President Donald Trump was caught on video Saturday night giving some cash to an employee of his hotel in Washington, D.C., by a member of his 2020 advisory board who called it "so generous."
In the video recorded by board member Harlan Hill, a GOP political consultant who appears on Fox News and CNN, the president stood inside Trump International Hotel and received a round of applause.
"Great job," Trump appeared to say, and pulled out a stack of cash from his pocket. He picked out what appeared to be a few bills, the amounts of which could not be seen from the video, and handed it to an unidentified person in a white shirt.
"Thank you," Trump said, to more clapping.
A woman standing in the crowd told him, "Thank you, thank you, thank you so much, God bless you."
Hill tweeted the video and commented, "President @realDonaldTrump just gave the staff at @TrumpDC a wad of cash in appreciation for their great service! So generous!" along with the hashtag #MAGA for his "Make America Great Again" slogan and an American flag emoji.
President @realDonaldTrump just gave the staff at @TrumpDC a wad of cash in appreciation for their great service! So generous!#MAGA 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/CvtGEVr9Jq
— HARLAN Z. HILL 🇺🇸 (@Harlan) November 24, 2019
Hill emailed Newsweek on Sunday morning to further clarify: "That stack of hundreds the president gave was to what appeared to be back of house staff that were all lined up and excited to see the president."
"That tip was in addition to the tip the president gave his actual waiter," Hill continued. "He always tips above and beyond."
Some Twitter users did not buy Hill's characterization of Trump's gesture.
Melissa Jo Peltier, a TV and film writer, director and producer, shared a 2016 story with the headline, "Trump has been giving out fake diamond cuff links for years."
"So generous?" she commented sarcastically.
The president and first lady Melania Trump went to his hotel for dinner, according to The Hill, which shared a video of the couple walking into a building.
EARLIER: President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump depart the White House head to the Trump International Hotel for dinner. pic.twitter.com/wiun3tyifv
— The Hill (@thehill) November 24, 2019
Watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) quote tweeted the post and remarked: "Honest question: when was the last time President Trump went out in DC and didn't go to a business he owned?"
CREW launched a tracker of Trump's supposed conflicts of interest earlier this year. As of August, Trump had made 362 visits to properties he owns, the watchdog reported.
Trump's D.C. hotel has brought in $2.4 million in political spending in about two-and-a-half years, according to CREW.
In late October, Trump Organization executive vice president Eric Trump, the president's second eldest son, confirmed that they were exploring selling the D.C. hotel amid ethics criticisms the president has received.
"People are objecting to us making so much money on the hotel, and therefore we may be willing to sell," Eric Trump said in a statement at the time.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
A Los Angeles native, Jessica Kwong grew up speaking Spanish, Cantonese and English, in that order. Her journalism career started ... Read more
