President Trump's Miami Golf Resort To Host Next G-7 Meeting

DORAL, FL — The White House confirmed Thursday what President Donald Trump hinted at in August: The president's own golf course — Trump National Doral — will host next year's G-7 summit of world leaders outside Miami.

The Group of Seven summit includes the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States but not Russia, which was suspended from the group when it was known as the G-8. The G-7 will meet in Doral from June 10-12.

The announcement to hold the event at Trump National Doral comes at the same time the president has accused Joe Biden's family of profiting from public office because of Hunter Biden's business activities in Ukraine when his father was vice president.

Speaking after the last G-7 meeting, President Trump dismissed ethical concerns over thrusting his own resort onto the world stage.

"There's limitations at other other places," acting Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney told reporters in Washington, D.C. on Thursday. "We thought of the 12 places we looked at, that this was by far and away the best choice."

Mulvaney said officials considered one location that was at such a high altitude "we actually had to figure out if we were going to have to have oxygen tanks for the participants because of the altitude."

Trump pointed to Doral's close proximity to Miami International Airport and the Miami area in general as pluses.

"I think having it in Miami is fantastic. Really fantastic," the president said. "Having it at that particular place, because of the way it’s set up, each country can have their own villa, or their own bungalow ... It’s not about me, it’s about getting the right location."

Trump National Doral was the scene of a police shootout last year when a gunman allegedly scaled a fence with a handgun, walked into the resort "spewing" comments about President Trump and opened fire in the lobby.

Mulvaney said holding the event at Doral would be significantly cheaper than other sites and that Trump would not be profiting from the event. Other U.S. locations where past summits have been held include Puerto Rico; Williamsburg, Virginia; Houston; Denver; Sea Island, Georgia; and Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland.

Some watchdog groups were angered by the decision.

Trump "no longer sees fit even to pretend that he is constrained by the law or the Constitution," said Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen.

"The president is now officially using the power of his office to help prop up his struggling golf business," added Noah Bookbinder, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.