By Andy Sullivan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A congressional committee on Thursday asked the U.S. government to cancel former President Donald Trump’s lease of a historic Washington property, saying that recent courtroom developments have cast doubt on the accuracy of his company’s financial statements.
The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Reform said it believed the Trump Organization may have misled the federal government when it applied to turn the Old Post Office Building into a luxury hotel.
The hotel became a gathering point for Trump supporters and some foreign government officials during his presidency and a sticking point for critics who said it violated ethics laws.
Trump’s company reached a deal last year to sell the money-losing hotel for $375 million, according to media reports.
Democrats on the committee asked the U.S. General Services Administration, the federal property manager, to consider canceling the lease before the sale is complete.
“No one should be rewarded for providing false or misleading information to the federal government or for seeking to profit off the presidency,” the panel’s top two Democrats, U.S. Representatives Carolyn Maloney and Gerald Connolly, wrote to the GSA.
The GSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Andy Sullivan; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
