Key Sentence:
- As U.S. Ambassador to Canada, Kelly Kraft directed government affairs at President Donald Trump’s hotel in Washington.
- According to an internal email from the State Department.
In November 2018, US Government Business Craft received guidance for an upcoming conference in Washington, DC, for ambassadors and other mission leaders overseas. The announcement listed five hotels that the meeting organizers had negotiated with, although participants were told they could make alternative arrangements.
Craft forwarded the email to one of the staff and asked, “Do I US Government Business have to attend this meeting?” If so, I prefer the Trump Hotel. The assistant confirmed that Craft would like to attend in mid-January 2019, adding. “I’ll be making a reservation at the Trump Intl Hotel.”
Special rates on competitors at the Trump Hotel, including the Ritz-Carlton Washington, DC, range from $119 to a maximum of $181 per night. It’s not clear what Trump International is asking for Craft to stay. The State Department released the email in response to a Freedom of Information Act request by government observer American Oversight. Craft did not respond to requests.
In January, a team member sent Craft a “friendly reminder” to pass coordinates to the hotel manager. So the assistant could book an apartment for Craft and a room for a foreign ministry professional. Craft signed up again, this time in D.C., for an event hosted by Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.
And in June, a trade official emailed Craft saying he would meet her at the Trump Hotel to read the flyer.
“Ambassador Kraft’s clear desire to do business at Trump’s hotel sends a signal that U.S. foreign policy is bearing fruit,” said Jack Patterson. A spokesman for the U.S. regulator. “An American diplomat using his position to sift through the president’s pockets is an example of the unintentional corruption. That has infiltrated the Trump administration and undermined U.S. credibility.
Trump-appointed Kraft as his ambassador to Canada in June 2017. Two years later, he promoted him to represent his government at the United Nations. According to the email, Craft celebrated with lunch at the Trump Hotel after the hearing to confirm the U.N. post.