Donald trump residence florida

In 1973, cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post donated her 128-room Palm Beach mansion to the U.S. government to be used as the "winter White House." Post, who had inherited the Postum Cereal Company from her father and who then went on to become America's richest woman, finished building Mar-a-Lago in 1927 at a cost of $7 million (that equals to about $120 million today).

Architects Marion Sims Wyeth and Joseph Urban designed the estate, which sits on 20 acres that border the Atlantic Ocean on one side and Florida's Intracoastal Waterway on the other. (Wyeth also designed the Florida governor's mansion in Tallahassee).

Post willed her home to the American government upon her death with the intention that it be used as a warm-weather retreat for the president. But in 1981 the government returned Mar-a-Lago, which had been declared a National Historic Landmark a year earlier, to the Post Foundation, citing its high annual maintenance cost of $1 million.

Enter Donald Trump. The mogul's reported first offer for the property—$28 million—was turned down. But he persisted and the market slumped. Trump ended up getting the property for the relative bargain price of $5 million in 1985, and paid an additional $3 million for Post's antiques and furniture.

(In addition to Mar-a-Lago, Post had a considerable real estate portfolio that included an Adirondacks retreat, a Long Island mansion, a yacht she designed herself that was the largest privately-owned yacht at the time, and a Washington, D.C estate, Hillwood, that is now a house museum containing her extensive collection of jewelry, Sèvres porcelain, Fabergé, and French masterpieces.)

Mar-a-Lago's Living Room In 1967

Trump turned Mar-a-Lago into a private club in 1995 and built a 20,000-square-foot ballroom with $7 million in gold leaf. He commandeered a coat of arms that British authorities in 1939 had granted to Joseph Edward Davies, Post's third husband, then replaced "Integritas," the Latin word for integrity, with "Trump. " He also spent $100,000 on four gold-plated sinks. Basically, much like his Fifth Avenue penthouse, there is gold everywhere you look. (When Trump is in residence, he and his family stay in a private wing of the house.)

Donald Trump with his then-wife Ivana and staff at Mar-a-Lago in 1987

"I have 24 acres in Palm Beach and nobody has anything like that," Trump said at a show jumping event there in 2014. "A big house is on one acre. I have 24. It's the great estate of Palm Beach." (Technically, Mar-a-Lago is on 20 acres.)

In 2016, Anthony Senecal, Trump's former butler and Mar-a-Lago's unofficial historian, offered up some secrets to the New York Times, describing the library as, "paneled with centuries-old British oak and filled with rare first-edition books that no one in the family ever read." (Senecal was also investigated by the Secret Service for threatening comments he made on Facebook about President Barack Obama. )

Trump hasn't always seen eye-to-eye with the locals over his plans for Mar-a-Lago. He has fought the town of Palm Beach over the size of its American flag. The original, installed in 2006, was on an 80-foot pole though Palm Beach ordinances forbid flag poles to be higher than 42 feet; a violation carries a daily fine of $250.

Getty Images

Trump sued for $25 million, claiming his right to free speech was being violated. Ultimately he and the town came to an agreement: he switched to a smaller flag posted on a 70-foot pole. And instead of paying fines, he donated $100,000 to veterans' charities.

In 2015, he sued Palm Beach County again for what he called "deliberate and malicious" moves to direct departing flights from Palm Beach International Airport over Mar-a-Lago. The suit was dropped after the election, obviously, since now there is a Secret Service-mandated no-fly zone over Mar-a-Lago when Trump is in residence.

When he opened Mar-a-Lago, Trump welcomed Jewish members, African-Americans, and gay couples, who had been prohibited from joining other Palm Beach clubs. Club members reportedly used to pay a $100,000 initiation fee and annual dues of $14,000 (along with taxes and an annual food minimum of $2,000) for the privilege of using the facilities. Following Trump's victory, the inauguration fee went up to $200,000.

It is, by most accounts, a profitable business. Trump made $15.6 million from the club in 2014. His first year in office, he made $25.1 million. Last year, that number dipped slightly to $21.4 million.

The Beach Club is on the Atlantic Ocean side of the property.

To date, Trump has spent 133 days at the property while in office. He took his first trip there as POTUS for the Red Cross Ball in early February 2017 and hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe the following weekend. Mar-a-Lago is where he was when he announced Lieutenant General H. R. McMaster as his pick for national security advisor, authorized a missile strike on Syria, and hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping for a two-day summit. According to the Government Accountability Office, four trips the president took to Mar-a-Lago in 2017 cost taxpayers at least $13.6 million.

President Trump hosted a dinner for President Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil at Mar-a-Lago in March. Three attendees later tested positive for the coronavirus.

In March, Mar-a-Lago temporarily closed its doors due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Three visitors, including a press secretary to Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro, had tested positive for the coronavirus after visiting the club for an event hosted by the President Trump.

Earlier this month, a team of Miami Herald journalists published The Grifter's Club: Trump, Mar-a-Lago, and the Selling of the Presidency, an investigative account of the "Winter White House" and all of the business and governmental dealings—ethical and not—that take place within its walls. Among its tales of palace intrigue: Trump reportedly banned the infamous sex offender Jeffrey Epstein from Mar-a-Lago after the latter hit on a teenage daughter of a member.

PublicAffairs The Grifter's Club: Trump, Mar-a-Lago, and the Selling of the Presidency

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In any case, it's apparent that Trump feels more comfortable at Mar-a-Lago than almost anywhere else. He most certainly prefers it over the White House. At Mar-a-Lago, he can let loose and be himself, unbound by strict D.C. protocols and unbothered by scores of aides and handlers.

He also has more friends down there, as opposed to, say, in Manhattan, where Trump—a lifelong New Yorker—is extremely unpopular. In fact, in September 2019, he and the First Lady changed their primary residence from Manhattan to Palm Beach, where, presumably, he could pay lower taxes—and feel more welcome. He explained his decision on Twitter, saying, "I cherish New York, and the people of New York, and always will, but unfortunately, despite the fact that I pay millions of dollars in city, state and local taxes each year, I have been treated very badly by the political leaders of both the city and state."

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Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York didn't miss the opportunity to express his feelings about the move. "Good riddance," he tweeted. "It's not like [Trump] paid taxes here anyway. He's all yours, Florida."

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Sam DangremondContributing Digital Editor

Sam Dangremond is a Contributing Digital Editor at Town & Country, where he covers men's style, cocktails, travel, and the social scene.

Leena KimAssociate Editor

Leena Kim is an associate editor at Town & Country, where she writes about travel, weddings, arts, and culture.

Photos Show What It's Like Inside Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club

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• The FBI executed a search warrant on Trump's Mar-a-Lago home in Florida on Monday, Trump said in a statement.
• Mar-a-Lago is Donald Trump's private club in Palm Beach, Florida. The property made a number of headlines and served as the First Family's gilded getaway throughout Trump's presidency.
• Here's a look inside the exclusive resort that the public doesn't get to see.

The FBI searched former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump confirmed in a statement on Monday.

"These are dark times for our Nation, as my beautiful home...is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents," the statement read.

The search was first reported by Florida Politics.

During Trump's presidency, the exclusive resort was often referred to as "the winter White House."

Now, it's just his house.

Following the end of his presidential term, Trump decamped to the ornate resort. Reports in 2020 of construction work at the family's on-property living quarters and Melania Trump touring a local school (presumably for son Barron) stoked rumors of the move long before it was official. Neighbors even publicly spoke about wanting Trump to stay away, though it clearly didn't deter him.

Mar-a-Lago has hosted a number of high-powered visitors over the years, as it has seemingly always served as the Trump family's gilded weekend getaway. Mar-a-Lago has served as a lavish backdrop to host important dignitaries with its elaborately decorated halls. It was built to impress.

Case in point: the property was closed for 57 days amid the pandemic after visitors like the press secretary to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and Brazil's Chargé d'Affaires Ambassador Nestor Forster tested positive for the coronavirus in March.

Here's a look inside the sprawling complex, which was built in the early 20th century, where the Trumps have hosted opulent holiday parties and watched Super Bowls alongside members of the exclusive private club.

The Mar-a-Lago Club is a 20-acre estate with 128 rooms. The heiress to Post Cereal built it in 1927.

Source: Town and Country Magazine

It spans the entire width of the island Palm Beach is located on, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Intracoastal Waterway.

Source: Google Maps

Today, it serves as the Trump family's opulent playground, but is also open to people who purchase a membership at the club.

Source: Palm Beach Daily News

Back in the 1990s, memberships cost $50,000, but they soared to $200,000 after Trump's election.

Source: Palm Beach Daily News

Members also have to pay a $14,000 annual fee, with a $2,000 dining minimum.

Source: Palm Beach Daily News

Members can access the club's pools, beaches, dining halls, and private rooms. They can also rent out the resort for events like weddings, bar mitzvahs, and charity galas.

Source: Mar-a-Lago

Trump has also used it to host numerous campaign events and publicity events, like the one pictured below, which was held in Mar-a-Lago's giant ballroom.

Source: Time

For most people, access to the club stops at its gated entrance.

Source: Mar-a-Lago

Those who do make it inside are treated to a detailed portico that leads into the main building, which features neo-Gothic and Andalusian accents.

Source: Mar-a-Lago

Once inside, ornate decor reminiscent of European palaces accompanies pricey antique furniture. The club's main living room features high ceilings and gold-plated designs over every wall.

Source: Mar-a-Lago

Here, the president and first lady Melania Trump used the cavernous library to make calls to children on Christmas Eve in 2017.

Source: The White House

Not all of the rooms are so lavish. This interior room is where Trump gathered with his advisers to order 2017's missile strikes in Syria in response to what the US said were President Bashar al-Assad's chemical attacks on his own people.

Source: Business Insider

Trump has also hosted world leaders at the resort, including Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan.

Source: Business Insider

In February 2017, Trump got into a bit of hot water when he discussed national security details with Abe in full view of the resort's other guests.

Source: Business Insider

Trump used Mar-a-Lago's luxurious interior to full effect when Xi visited the complex. As usual at Mar-a-Lago, bouquets were everywhere. Reports later found that such flowers cost the US government $6,000 — with the entire visit totaling more than $35,000.

Source: Business Insider, Business Insider

In 2018, Trump also welcomed the Chinese president's delegation in a royal neo-Baroque hall at Mar-a-Lago.

Source: Sun-Sentinel

Not a detail was amiss for the visit, including the elaborate place settings

Source: Palm Beach Daily News

The food at events like these is prepared by a team of expert chefs.

#foodporn • crested lamb chops • #momsbirthday • #trump #dinner #birthday #palmbeach

A post shared by Oleg Kouznetsov, MBA 🇺🇦 #MAGA (@olegkouz) on May 6, 2015 at 5:38pm PDTMay 6, 2015 at 5:38pm PDT

Source: Palm Beach Daily News

But not all of it is up to fine dining standard: In January 2018, a customer was disappointed when she was served caviar with plastic spoons, with allegedly "low-budget" crackers to accompany it.

I hate to do this, but this is a total #disgrace , #shame on #maralago , you can’t serve caviar with plastic spoons! Please offer your caviar with mother of pearl spoons and dishes! Wait until you see the accompaniments...#horriblepresentation no THIS WAS NOT THE EVENT. It was the restaurant.FYI I do not hate Mr. President - I think he is great. This posting was just about being disappointed in the caviar presentation from a beautiful place with beautiful people.

A post shared by Maria Rogers (@vacayinbae) on Jan 21, 2018 at 7:19am PSTJan 21, 2018 at 7:19am PST

Source: Business Insider

Trump's taste is evident throughout his palatial second home.

Source: Town and Country Magazine

Because of its flat terrain and open air access, Trump can fly in on his own helicopter.

Source: Palm Beach Daily News

If the club's multiple beaches aren't enough for guests, they can relax by the various pools on the property. It seems Trump and his security team have taken advantage of brief windows of downtime to do so.

Source: Mar-a-Lago

Mar-a-Lago has become synonymous with Trump's lavish lifestyle.

Source: Town and Country Magazine

The parties he holds there, like those on New Year's Eve and Super Bowl Sunday, last late into the night.

Source: Business Insider

In September 2019, Mar-a-Lago made headlines as one Jeffrey Epstein victim said she had been recruited directly from the resort in 1999 when she was 15.

Source: Business Insider, The New York Times

In September 2019, a Chinese businesswoman was convicted of trespassing on Mar-a-Lago with multiple cell phones and electronic devices. She was suggested to be a spy for the Chinese government and was ordered to be deported after her eight-month sentence.

Source: Business Insider, Business Insider

In February 2020, a 30-year-old opera singer from Connecticut named Hannah Roemhild was arrested after leading police on a high-speed chase through Palm Beach. Roemhild barreled through two security checkpoints at Mar-a-Lago in a black SUV that was shot at by police.

Source: Business Insider

Following the Trumps' exit from the White House in January, the family seemingly moved back to Mar-a-Lago to live full time.

Recent reports have surfaced about construction work being performed on the family's living quarters during Trump's final months in office. Sources close to the president told People in December that his 2,000-square-foot private residence at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach "will be expanded and spruced up."

Melania Trump also just toured the $35,000-a-year Pine Crest School in Fort Lauderdale, ostensibly for their 14-year-old son Barron. It's a 40-minute drive south from Mar-a-Lago, but also has a campus in Boca Raton, which is 10 minutes closer to West Palm Beach.

Neighbors, however, aren't thrilled at the prospect and are even trying to keep him from taking up residence at Mar-a-Lago. The DeMoss family sent a letter pleading their case via an attorney. They claim that Trump cannot live at Mar-a-Lago because he signed an agreement to that effect around 30 years ago, around the time he transformed the estate into the members-only club it is today, according to the Washington Post, which obtained a copy of the letter. The signatories asked the town to step in and enforce the agreement.

Sources: New York Times, Business Insider, Washington Post, Miami Herald

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The FBI raids Donald Trump's home in Florida. The New York Times claims that the reason is in the secret documents that he took with him from the White House at the end of his presidential term.0003

Photo: Lynne Sladky / AP

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) raids the home of former US President Donald Trump. This is stated in a statement by Trump himself, published on the page of his associates on Twitter (the social network is blocked at the request of the prosecutor's office).

video

"These are truly dark times for our nation as my beautiful home at the Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, is currently under siege by the FBI, who are searching it," Trump said.

The New York Times, citing sources familiar with the situation, writes that the FBI is searching Trump's house because of documents that the former president took with him when he left the White House. According to the newspaper, they may contain classified information.

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According to the publication, the US National Archives requested the return of 15 boxes of documents "over many months" and appealed to the FBI in connection with the likely threat of their destruction. "Mr. Trump is notorious for destroying official papers intended for storage in government archives during his presidency," the newspaper writes. In February, an article about this appeared in The Washington Post.

Trump said he was not notified of the search. The ex-president called the search itself "optional". He accused the FBI of violating procedures, and "radical-left Democrats" (the US Democratic Party) of using the law enforcement system as a weapon. Trump says Democrats "do not want him in the 2024 presidential election."

The previous US presidential election took place in November 2020. According to the results, Trump won 232 votes, his opponent Joe Biden - 306. After that, Trump declared "deception of the American public" and "shame" for the country. According to the ex-president, "millions and millions of people voted for him", but "a miserable group of people is trying to deprive them of voting rights." Biden insisted that the vote was fair.

On January 6 last year, Trump supporters rallied in Washington DC as the House of Representatives was about to approve the election results. Protesters seized the Capitol, and tear gas and stun grenades were used against them. Five people were killed in the clashes. Biden accused Trump of inciting violence.

At the beginning of June, open hearings began in the United States on the case of the storming of the Capitol. A congressional special committee to investigate these events was formed largely from Democrats in the House of Representatives and began work in July last year. His intention was to prove that the actions of the ex-president directly influenced the events of January 6th. At the hearings, evidence was presented that Trump first tried to falsify the election results, and then achieve the cancellation of the recognition of their results.

The former president himself believes that a special congressional committee intends to prevent his participation in the next presidential elections. The committee's final report is due this September, less than a month before the midterm congressional elections.

Donald Trump was searched - Mir - Kommersant Moreover, this happened just two days after his loud speech at the Conservative Congress in Texas, where the ex-president was expressed unconditional support and wished to see him as the future president of the United States. US media sources at the FBI say the case is not politically motivated. However, most Republicans believe that this is not the case. They see the searches as the start of a crusade against the party on the eve of the congressional elections and do not hide their indignation.

Search of Donald Trump's residence

Photo: Marco Bello, Reuters

Search of Donald Trump's residence

Photo: Marco Bello, Reuters

-Lago in Florida are being searched. Several dozen federal agents indiscriminately collected boxes of documents, looked into every safe and cabinet, and removed them for further study. This was reported by several American media at once, including Fox News, CNN, The Hill, AP.

The ex-president himself confirmed this information. In a statement posted on Twitter by Trump War Room, a group close to him, Mr. Trump said what is happening is evidence that the American nation is going through "dark times."

The ex-president added that his property was "under siege and raided by a large group of FBI agents." He called what happened unprecedented.

Donald Trump also expressed his belief that this review was unnecessary because his lawyers were cooperating with the authorities. In this regard, he concluded that "this unannounced raid" is nothing more than "an attack on the justice system and radical left Democrats" who "desperately do not want" him to run for president in 2024.

Donald Trump said the searches were triggered by his numerous protégés winning the Republican nomination (more than 90% of Donald Trump-backed candidates received the party nomination) and the latest polls confirming his personal leadership among the Republicans. Moreover, last Saturday support for Donald Trump was expressed by the absolute majority of Republicans who attended the Conservative Congress in Texas. The former president received 67% of the vote, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (24%) was second by a wide margin. And only two politicians received double-digit support. The rest are far behind.

Mr. Trump compared the searches on Monday to the methods that authoritarian regimes use against their political opponents in third world countries.

However, the politician promised that he would not be intimidated just like that and that he would continue to "fight for America."

Mr. Trump did not specify what the search was for, but AP sources, on condition of anonymity, said that this was an investigation related to the ex-president's possible negligence in handling classified information. Previously, the US National Archives and Records Administration said that there were 15 boxes of records containing classified information in Mar-a-Lago. At the same time, these documents could not be there by law. And that is why, after receiving the papers for safekeeping, the National Archives transferred the case to the Ministry of Justice. Donald Trump retorted that the presidential records were transferred to the archive "in the usual and routine manner" and he did not allow any violations. Interestingly, another old story surfaced once again the day before.

Axios published photographs that proved, according to the publication, that Donald Trump was destroying important documents by tearing them into small pieces and flushing them down the toilet.

Taylor Budovic, a spokeswoman for the ex-president, told Axios that the photos were fabricated. The release of these photos preceded the release of a book about Donald Trump by The New York Times journalist Maggie Haberman, so the ex-president's spokesperson called the photos "desperate attempts to sell books if photos of paper in the toilet are part of the advertising plan. "

AP sources continued that the FBI agents were just checking to see if the ex-president had any other documents of a secret nature at his residence in Florida. Another FBI source added that the agents were not local, but traveled from the capital, notifying FBI officials in Miami just shortly before the inspection.

Fox News, citing a source familiar with the searches, said the raid took place early in the morning.

Agents brought "safe locks" and broke into a "relatively new" safe in Mar-a-Lago. They checked every room, office, drawer, took away papers and boxes, didn't even look at them.

Donald Trump himself was in New York at the time of the search. The fact is that the residence is now closed. Due to the too hot climate in Florida, the Trump family prefers to live there in the winter. And, according to AP, everything indicates that the search came as a surprise to the ex-president himself and he only found out about it in the evening.

While a search warrant does not imply criminal charges against Donald Trump, federal officials seeking a warrant must first demonstrate to a judge that they have good reason for the search. Therefore, the fact that it was held indicates that the FBI still has something against Donald Trump.

In this regard, we recall that the Department of Justice is conducting another investigation against Donald Trump and his allies, which concerns their attempts to cancel the results of the 2020 presidential election. Especially the case began to move after the Congressional Committee on the events of January 6 held a series of hearings.

What is happening around Donald Trump made all Republicans rally around him. Many of them accused the current government of using the Ministry of Justice as a weapon against opponents. The leader of the Republicans in the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, in his account on the Twitter service, promised to investigate the actions of the Department of Justice. “I've seen enough already. The Department of Justice has reached an unbearable state of politicization,” the politician wrote and promised that when the Republicans return the majority in the House of Representatives, they will immediately begin checking this ministry and “leave no stone unturned there. ” Therefore, he recommended that the attorney general "keep the documents and prepare your calendar" for numerous congressional hearings.

Republican National Committee Chair Ronna Romney McDaniel called the FBI raid outrageous. And she added on her Twitter that “absolute power has completely corrupted” the Democrats, who are “constantly arming the bureaucracy against the Republicans.”

Among the Republicans who spoke out on the topic of searches at Donald Trump, was Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (we recall that the raid took place precisely on the territory under his control). Due to his possible claims for the presidential nomination and the growing trust of the electorate with the ex-president in recent months, Mr. DeSantis has not been all smooth sailing. However, on Monday, the young politician unambiguously spoke out in support of the ex-president. He said that what is happening is “the use of federal agencies as a weapon against political opponents of the regime”, while people like the son of the current president Hunter Biden are allegedly working there “with kid gloves”.

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