Trump Hotel Bans Media During Inauguration Week

The move is unusual for the real-estate billionaire, who often uses the media to tout his businesses

President-elect Donald Trump's hotel in the nation's capital is off limits to media during Inauguration Week.

Patricia Tang, director of sales and marketing for the Trump International in Washington, said Wednesday in a phone interview that media are banned from the hotel grounds through Sunday to protect the privacy of guests.

The hotel opened in September after Trump won a lease from the federal government to renovate the Old Post Office building on Pennsylvania Avenue, a few blocks from the White House.

Tang said she's confident the ban does not violate the hotel's lease with the government or the city's public accommodations laws.

The move is unusual for the real-estate billionaire, who often uses the media to tout his businesses. In September, Trump was accused of "baiting" the media into covering the hotel's opening by promising to address the birther controversy. After promoting his latest project, Trump briefly acknowledged before leaving the stage that President Barack Obama was born in the United States. Reporters, who were told it would be a press conference, were not allowed to ask any questions.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday night, a protester suffered burns after trying to light himself on fire outside the hotel.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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