Trump announced 2026 G20 summit at his Doral resort, directing foreign-government spending to his own property

On September 5, 2025, President Trump announced that the United States would host the 2026 G20 summit at Trump National Doral Miami, a golf resort in Doral, Florida that Trump personally owns. The White House described the arrangement as "at-cost" hosting with no profit to Trump from foreign governments, but watchdog organization CREW noted that even cost-neutral hosting generates substantial indirect value for a Trump-branded property: heads of state and their delegations book ancillary rooms and services, advance security teams spend weeks on-site, and the global media spotlight elevates the resort's brand worldwide.

The Foreign Emoluments Clause of the U.S. Constitution (Article I, §9, clause 8) prohibits the president from receiving anything of value from foreign governments without the explicit consent of Congress. Hosting a G20 summit — where every participating foreign delegation must spend money at or near the venue — at a president's personally-owned property falls squarely within the clause's prohibition. Trump made no request for congressional approval before or after the announcement. During his first term, Trump announced a nearly identical plan to host the G7 summit at Doral in 2019; he abandoned it after bipartisan congressional criticism and public pressure. He is now proceeding in his second term with no apparent legislative check.

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed public records requests regarding the site-selection process and noted that other U.S. cities had expressed interest in hosting the summit. CREW's analysis documented that the selection bypassed a competitive process and that the decision was made unilaterally by Trump, who has direct financial interest in the outcome.