Democratic donors, staffers and lawmakers have thrown fundraisers and holiday parties at The Bazaar. They’ve popped in for morning coffees and after-work drinks at the hotel bar — where TVs are no longer all tuned into Fox News. They’re finally able to dine at Sushi Nakazawa and, if they can snag a reservation, they’ve attended afternoon tea in the grand atrium.
With the hotel transforming this week into an unofficial headquarters for Biden’s moneyed supporters, the days when Trump, Rudy Giuliani and other MAGA figures feasted on shrimp cocktails and well-done steaks at BLT Prime felt like a distant memory.
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“The expression that a couple of people used was, ‘We’ve turned Trump Tower blue,’” said Chip Forrester, a member of the Biden finance committee who attended the Thursday meeting.
As Biden campaign co-chair Jeffrey Katzenberg grabbed a table Thursday at The Bazaar to huddle with finance chair Rufus Gifford and other Biden aides, former Democratic National Committee chair Donna Brazile chatted on the other side of the lobby with current DNC chair Jaime Harrison. Environmental Protection Agency administrator Michael Regan lounged in a leather wingback chair. Donors wore their Biden finance committee name tags around the hotel like a badge of honor.
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“It wasn’t lost on anyone that just a few short years ago this was jam packed full of Trump supporters,” said another person who attended the finance meeting.
The last time that the Biden Victory Fund National Finance Committee met in Washington, D.C., it was at the Salamander hotel. A person familiar with this week’s meeting said the Waldorf Astoria wasn’t selected as a political statement, but rather because there are only so many high-end hotels available in the area with large meeting rooms.
Whether or not intentional, donors delighted in the ability to schmooze in the hallways once owned by their chief political rival, and took particular delight in spending their money at Andrés’ restaurant. In 2015, Andrés ended up in a high-profile legal battle with then-candidate Trump after canceling plans to open a fine-dining restaurant in the hotel over Trump’s anti-immigrant comments.
We hear Andrés’ food is genuinely delicious, particularly the conch fritters. And it’s not just wealthy Dem donors who like to dine there. The Obamas were spotted there two weeks ago and Lin-Manuel Miranda dined there before the 2023 Kennedy Center Honors. It’s a favorite of second gentleman Doug Emhoff. White House chief of staff Jeff Zients, Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and Biden campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez have also been spotted enjoying meals there.
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“I think a lot of people’s favorite part about the hotel is that it’s not owned by Donald Trump,” said Biden campaign spokesperson Kevin Munoz.
Democrats might have firmly planted their flag in what used to be a social hub for the Trump White House. But some acknowledged that they couldn’t totally get rid of all the remnants of the former president. Tourists in MAGA hats still occasionally pop in to get a glimpse of where Trump officials used to hang out. And as some Biden donors pointed out, the decor is still very Trumpian.
“There was a little bit of wisecracking [among donors] about, ‘Oh, I wish they could get rid of all the gold leaf stuff. It’s really opulent and could we tone it down a little,’” said Forrester. “But then they would say, ‘Yeah, but it’s ours now.’”
Daniel Lippman contributed to this report.
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