Checks & Imbalances: Mar-A-Lago’s Busy Week

Welcome to the Checks & Imbalances newsletter. Today we get you caught up on this week’s abundance of Trump news.

Mar-A-Lago Is Looking To Hire 91 Foreign Workers This Year

Mar-a-Lago, former president Donald Trump’s private club-cum-legal residence at the center of an investigation into his handling of classified government documents, has relied on temporary foreign workers to keep the sprawling estate humming.

Last year, the Trump Organization sought 87 foreign workers for the Palm Beach property, up from 78 a few years earlier. It’s not clear how many were hired, but no doubt at least some likely had backstage access to political theater (maybe even scraps of presidential records floating in toilets). On Monday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation raided Mar-a-Lago, with one of Trump’s attorneys confirming the agency’s search related to an investigation into his handling of classified documents.

This year, as the labor market is even tighter, with just 2.8% unemployment in Florida, Mar-a-Lago is looking to bring on 91 temporary foreign workers. (That previously unreported number appears to be the highest in recent years.)

In July, Mar-a-Lago began to search for cooks, servers and housekeepers to work from October 2022 through May 2023, according to postings on the Department of Labor’s website. Trump’s West Palm Beach golf club is also looking overseas for employees, seeking 14 servers and cooks.

Pay for the full-time jobs that potentially get foreign workers in the vicinity of state secrets start at $11.96 an hour, up slightly from last year’s $11.70 and less than a dollar above Florida’s minimum wage.

Citizen and Immigration Services’ guidelines allow employers to hire short-term, non-permanent foreign workers if “there are not enough U.S. workers who are able, willing, qualified and available to do the temporary work.” Businesses have to apply to the Department of Labor for permission to hire these workers, listing the number of vacancies they are looking to fill. Foreign nationals from 85 countries are eligible to apply for these jobs.

Representatives of the Trump Organization did not respond to requests for comment.

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Watch: Merrick Garland Admits He ‘Personally Approved’ FBI Raid Of Trump’s Mar-A-Lago

In Case You Missed It

Continuing Irresolutions

A member of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps attempted to pay $300,000 for the assassination of former National Security Advisor John Bolton, the Justice Department disclosed on Wednesday. Secret Service Police have been monitoring Bolton’s home, Checks & Imbalances reported in January.

House Committee Can Get Trump’s Tax Returns, Appeals Court Rules

“Donald Trump’s tax returns must be turned over to the House Ways and Means Committee, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday, the latest ruling in the ex-president’s ongoing effort to shield his taxes from Democrats in Congress,” reports Alison Durkee:

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed a district judge’s ruling from December, which dismissed a Trump lawsuit that sought to block the Treasury Department from complying with the House committee’s request for his tax returns.

The panel of judges rejected Trump’s arguments that the lawmakers’ request exceeded their authority, and found the tax returns are being sought for a legitimate legislative purpose, as lawmakers said they needed Trump’s taxes as part of their study into the Internal Revenue Service’s Presidential Audit Program.

Watch: Trump FBI Raid Fall-Out: How Will This Effect 2024 Presidential Election?

Your correspondent joined Forbes Newsroom and assistant managing editor Diane Brady to discuss what the FBI’s raid of Mar-a-Lago means for Trump, the GOP and the 2024 presidential election.

Legally, It’s Been A Rough Few Days In Trumpworld—A Timeline

“While most attention may have been focused on the FBI’s Monday evening search at Mar-a-Lago, the past few days have seen a stunning series of legal setbacks and developments for former President Trump and those in his orbit,” reports Kyle Mullins:

In a statement posted on Truth Social Wednesday morning, Trump blasted the various investigations into him in his explanation for why he would invoke the Fifth Amendment in the New York AG case: “I once asked, ‘If you’re innocent, why are you taking the Fifth Amendment?’ Now I know the answer to that question. When your family, your company, and all the people in your orbit have become the targets of an unfounded, politically motivated Witch Hunt supported by lawyers, prosecutors, and the Fake News Media, you have no choice. If there was any question in my mind, the raid on my home, Mar-a-Lago, on Monday by the FBI, just two days prior to this deposition, wiped out any uncertainty.”