Monitoring former President Donald Trump's latest legal turmoil was not a priority — top or otherwise — for the less than two-dozen people that flowed through the twice-impeached POTUS' DC hotel early Thursday.
Disinterested patrons went about their lives — mapping out sightseeing plans, sipping bubbly, and even celebrating a birthday! — as news broke about Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg's handcuff-bedazzled arraignment in New York City for alleged tax fraud.
No one seemed to care that the Trump Organization itself, which owns the Trump International Hotel DC's lease, was also indicted on various charges, including fraud.
Read more: Trump Organization on trial: Here's what it could look like
Insider spent Thursday at the Trump International Hotel in the lead-up to the expected announcement.
Here's how the day unfolded:
9:14 a.m.: Two high school-age tourists — Close Up-style badges dangling from their necks — stroll past the hotel in the hazy morning heat.
One pauses to snap a cell phone pic of the Trump-branded signage facing Pennsylvania Avenue NW.
9:18 a.m.: The sun-lit hotel lobby resembles a ghost town.
The only signs of life are at the embedded Benjamin Bar & Lounge. Patrons include: a mixed trio of foreigners eating breakfast and catching up at one table; three casually dressed men (think: ponytail, designer sweatpants, worn t-shirts) snacking on baked goods while stretched out on big blue couches; a lone silver haired-woman sipping coffee at a two-top; and a pinstriped suit-clad Asian man, American flag pin gleaming from his left lapel, chatting loudly with his waiter.
There were no indications of pending Trumpworld legal doom. The quartet of TVs hung behind the lobby bar were tuned to ESPN (Wimbledon matches), CNN (January 6 select committee coverage), Fox News ("Exclusive video amid border surge" reads the chyron), and ESPN 2 (basketball highlights).
At the back of the lobby, the BLT Prime restaurant staff assembled for their morning meeting. (Trump's go-to restaurant in Washington is dinner service-only right now.)
9:29 a.m.: New York City is on the mind of one tourist digging into a berry-laced yogurt parfait ($20). But not in any legal sense. "Central Park, it smell, no good," she scoffs, sharing her distaste for the Big Apple with a male companion at the table. She adds that she finds New York City, overall, to be "dirty."
9:38 a.m.:
Man: "How far is it from Moscow?"
Blonde woman with a distinct accent: "By train, 3 hours."
Man: "Oh. We should go. You'll come with me?"
Blonde woman: "Of course!"
9:41 a.m.: "I need to get rid of all my unmatched dishes" a woman visiting from New Jersey tells her female friend about the Marie Kondo-ing of her life.
9:47 a.m.: The three casually dressed men leave behind several spiral-bound booklets titled "Building Tour," and stamped with the MGA logo. Per its website, the DC-based firm handles commercial real estate transactions.
Could they have been prospective buyers? The Trump family has been trying to unload the controversial DC hotel property, which is leased from the federal government, since 2019.
9:50 a.m.: Insider's bakery basket arrives sans the advertised "daily muffin." Contents: 2 traditional croissants, 1 chocolate croissant.
9:53 a.m.: "She's got youth group tonight. With her new Bible!" says the reorganization-minded New Jersey woman, after scanning her online calendar, updating her friend about her daughter's upcoming Baptist Bible study gathering.
10:09 a.m.: Modern crooner Michael Buble's version of "My Kind of Girl" echoes throughout the cavernous lobby.
10:13 a.m.: Dean Martin's "Standing on the Corner," an ode to leering at women, reinforces the burgeoning Rat Pack vibe.
10:22 a.m.: Breakfast arrives at the neighboring table. It's two egg, bacon, and potato platters ($45 a pop) with gluten-free toast, per the New Jersey mom's request, and a short stack of pancakes ($25) for her yet-to-arrive teenage daughter.
10:24 a.m.:
New Jersey mom: "It's so good to be back here. Are they selling it?"
Friend: "I don't know what's happening."
New Jersey mom: "If he's gonna run again, he should keep it."
The conversation eventually turns to a rapid-fire vetting of 2024 Republican presidential candidates — if Trump doesn't follow through on his threats to jump back into the field.
10:33 a.m.: The New Jersey mom takes a moment to reiterate to her school-age child how important it is to keep quiet about a potential business deal (something about a hotel sale) after her friend wraps up a cautionary tale about pulling out of a deal with what turned out to be a shady venture capital firm two hours before going public.
New Jersey mom: "That's how imperative it is that we don't speak of this to anyone — even daddy."
Daughter: "I know mom."
10:47 a.m.: A teenage boy at an adjoining table maps out the day's sightseeing agenda for his parents. Roosevelt Island and the Korean War memorial are at the top of his list. His mother looks up, smiles, then continues perusing a brochure about the Washington Monument.
10:59 a.m.:
New Jersey mom: "Did you notice how much the rooms are now?"
Friend: "It used to be like $500."
New Jersey mom: "I know. I asked and they told me there's like a $150 hotel tax."
The obviously repeat guests compare notes about their latest room charges (about $800 a pop). They try to hash out the math, lightly debate NJ vs. DC hospitality fees/taxes, then decide to blame it all on the "DC mayor" (but don't mention Mayor Muriel Bowser by name).
A search on the Trump International Hotel site shows room rates for a July 1-to-July 4 stay ranging from $460 (deluxe room) to $1,500 (Ivanka Study, signature suite) per night.
The base prices (taxes/fees excluded) break down like this:
Deluxe room: king-sized bed, "varying views"
Executive room: king-sized bed, Nespresso machine
Clicking through adds a $205.12 "Room Tax" charge to $1,372 booking; that's a 12% fee for the whole weekend.
11:12 a.m.: The first time Trump indictment coverage pops up on CNN. Fox News is focused on President Joe Biden's visit to the apartment building that collapsed in Surfside, Florida, on June 24.
No one in the lounge area seems to notice either broadcast.
11:15 a.m.: Trump hotel staff (seven) now outnumbers paying customers (three).
11:41 a.m.: New Jersey mom's two-plus hour breakfast huddle comes to a close.
12:38 p.m.:
"Trump CFO surrenders after grand jury indicts" — this marks the second time CNN has run its indictment-related alert.
"What's next for Britney Spears after court loss" — Fox News is hosting a panel discussion/"Outnumbered" segment on Britney Spears' conservatorship saga.
Three guests in the lobby are blissfully unaware either is happening. One solo diner is eating her lunch with her back to the bank of TVs. Two 20-something guests camped out in huge leather chairs that ring the lobby lounge barely look up, munching away on sandwiches.
1:01 p.m.:
"Soon: Indictments against Trump Org. CFO to be unsealed" – CNN
Fox News sticking with the collapsed building in Florida.
1:06 p.m.: The day-drinking begins.
A solo gent with frosted hair starts sipping on the first bit of alcohol to flow from the bar — a flute of sparkling wine. (Perhaps a pour of the 2014 blanc de blanc ($19) from the former Kluge Estate vineyard the Trump family snatched from foreclosure in 2011?)
1:18 p.m.: The in-house music feed has switched to a steady diet of samba/bossa nova.
1:29 p.m.: In an abrupt twist, the soundtrack has now switched to straight up house music, as a booming remix/cover (maybe?) of Crooked Colours "Hold On" kicks in.
2:03 p.m.:
"Any moment: Tax crime charges against Trump Org. unsealed" — CNN
"Mixed messaging raising new COVID concerns" — Fox News
2:17 p.m.:
"Any moment: Tax crime charges against Trump Org. unsealed" — CNN
Teaser about Hunter Biden foreign business dealings — Fox News
2:19 p.m.: Another woman joins the solo diner still turned away from the TVs. The seal now officially cracked, the duo ups the drinking stakes by splitting a bottle of white wine.
A server, a white napkin draped over his arm, holds the bottle out for their inspection. He uncorks it, pours a taste for the younger, blonde woman, then waits for the approving nod before pouring a full glass for her, and then a glass for her older companion. Their glasses topped off, the server slides the bottle into an ice bucket placed next to the table, and leaves them to their leisurely get together.
2:25 p.m.:
"Court in session: waiting for indictment details" — CNN
"Rpt: 'Hamilton' eligible for $50M in pandemic aid" — Fox News
2:32 p.m.:
"Indictments against Trump Org. and its CFO unsealed" — CNN
"Fmr. prosecutor on deal that led to Cosby freedom" — Fox News
No reaction from two women seated directly in front of the TV tuned to CNN. The visiting New Yorker seated in front of the TV tuned to Fox News continues nursing the same glass of sparkling liquid (Vodka soda? Carbonated water?) he's had in front of him for a while.
2:36 p.m.: "Oh, wow!" The white wine-drinking ladies light up when staffers deliver a firework-topped dessert to the table, then serenade the pair with a muted rendition of "Happy Birthday."
2:39 p.m.:
"Trump Org. indicted on 15 felony counts, alleged 15-year tax scheme" — CNN
"Fmr. president Trump not charged in tax crimes" — Fox News
2:49 p.m.: The older of the two white wine-drinking women is the first person to actually concentrate on either of the TVs tuned to the Trump-related happenings. She watches the CNN broadcast for a few seconds, raises her phone to presumably snap a picture, then dives back into her dessert.
2:56 p.m.: Indictments? What indictments? The ladies lunching with their backs to the TV coverage order some sparkling wine.
3:01 p.m.: Dark clouds creep toward the US Capitol, preparing to drench DC denizens with a powerful summer thunderstorm.
All the TVs go dead. "DirectTV signal loss" messages dance across the screens.
