Democrats Introduce “MAR-A-LAGO” Act to Force Trump to Release Visitors Log

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By Kody Fairfield

The MAR-A-LAGO Act—”Make Access Records Available to Lead American Government Openness Act”—calls for Trump to release visitor logs from his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida as well as the White House and anywhere else he conducts official business, the Hill reports.

The MAR-A-LAGO acted was introduced by Senators Mark Udall (D-NM), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Tom Carper (D-DE), and Jack Reed (D-RI) on Friday, reports the Hill.

The goal of the bill, according to the Hill is to require the Trump administration to publish public visitor logs for the White House “or any other location where President Trump regularly conducts official business.”

The Senate bill will be matched by a similar action in the House of Representatives, which will be introduced by Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL).

Sen. Udall, who has accused the administration of skirting around transparency, said in a statement, “It’s simple: the American people have a right to know who has access to the president and who has leverage over this administration,” reports the Hill.

In addition to Mar-A-Lago and the White House, the legislation would include visitor lists for Trump Tower and the Trump National Golf Club in New Jersey, the Hill explains.

Reportedly, Democrats had asked both President Trump, and William Callahan, the Secret Service deputy director, whether or not a public visitors log would be made. It was explained by the Hill that the White House was yet to respond.

The lack of communication between the two sides led Sen. Whitehouse to say, “if [Trump] won’t adopt that policy himself, Congress should require it.”

With a Republican controlled Congress, the bill obviously faces a tremendous headwind, but it would be naive to believe that even if defeated, the Democrats would quell their requests of action from the Trump administration.

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