WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House says it has chosen President Donald Trump's golf resort in Miami as the site for next year's Group of Seven summit.
The announcement Thursday comes at the same that the president has accused Joe Biden's family of profiting from public office because of Hunter Biden's business activities in Ukraine when his father was vice president.
RELATED: Ethics outcry as Trump touts Doral for next G7.
Critics are already sounding off that this is clearly to the benefit of businesses the president still profits from. The White House says the president will not profit in any way from it being at his resort.
The G-7 summit will be held June 10 to 12. The idea of holding the event at Trump's resort has been criticized by government ethics watchdogs.
"We used the same set of criteria that previous administrations have used," White House acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney said.
He said Doral was "far and away the best physical facility for this meeting."
"He got over that a long time ago" -- Mulvaney's response to a Fox News reporter raising concerns about the bad optics of Trump holding the G20 at a resort he still owns and profits from is to point out that Trump just doesn't care. pic.twitter.com/8CStvgLsg7
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) October 17, 2019Trump has touted his resort, saying it's close to the airport, has plenty of hotel rooms and offers separate buildings for every delegation.
Government ethics watchdogs have long railed against the perils of Trump earning money off the presidency and hosting foreign leaders at his properties. But they say Trump's proposal to bring world leaders to his Miami-area resort takes the conflict of interest to a whole new level because, unlike stays at his Washington, they would have no choice but to spend money at his property.
"It's ethics violation squared," said Kathleen Clark of Washington University School of Law in St. Louis.
When the United States has hosted the summit before, it has been held in Puerto Rico; Williamsburg, Virginia; Houston; Denver; Sea Island, Georgia; and Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
