Florida town performs legal review of Trump residency at Mar-a-Lago

Authorities in the town of Palm Beach, Florida, are conducting a legal review of former President Donald Trump’s use of Mar-a-Lago as his permanent residency.

Some Palm Beach residents have complained that Trump has violated an agreement with the town to limit his stays at Mar-a-Lago when he turned the residence into a social club in 1993.

Trump had agreed to certain limitations from Palm Beach after he had turned the private residence into a members’ only club in order to turn a profit. The guidelines had restricted the number of club members to 500, who could only stay a maximum of seven consecutive days at Mar-a-Lago, or no more than three weeks a year in total.

Trump had been exceeding the 21-day cap by staying at his private mansion far more often as president, prompting nearby residents to raise objection to Trump’s use of the club as his permanent home after he left office, according to CNN.

Trump relocated to Mar-a-Lago on January 20 after leaving office, skipping the inauguration of President Joe Biden.

"This matter is under legal review by our Town Attorney, John 'Skip' Randolph," Palm Beach Town Manager Krik Blouin told CNN via email, adding that "Mr. Randolph is reviewing the Declaration of Use Agreement and our Code of Ordinances to determine if former President Trump can live at Mar-a-Lago."

A spokesperson for the Trump Organization had previously told the Miami Herald that, “There is no document or agreement in place that prohibits President Trump from using Mar-a-Lago as his residence.”

Meanwhile, many once-loyal members of Mar-a-Lago are leaving the club because they do not want to be associated with Trump, according to the author of a book about the resort.

“It's a very dispirited place,” Laurence Leamer, historian and author of Mar-a-Lago: Inside the Gates of Power at Donald Trump's Presidential Palace told MSNBC.

Trump continues to be embroiled in controversy as a private citizen, facing a trial in the Senate after he was impeached by the House for an unprecedented second time for inciting an insurrection against the US Capitol while still president.

Trump hosted the top Republican in the House, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, at Mar-a-Lago on Thursday as the party scrambles to determine how to move forward in the wake of defeats in the November elections.

Winning back the House from Democrats in 2022 was the primary topic of the meeting, according to a readout provided by Save America, a political action committee linked to Trump.

McCarthy, a Trump ally who supported his claims of election fraud, had distanced himself from the outgoing president following the assault on the Capitol, which left five people dead. He had declared that Biden was the winner of the November election and that Trump “bears responsibility for attack on Congress by mob rioters.”

But on Thursday, McCarthy appeared back in Trump's graces, criticizing Democrats for “impeaching a president who is now a private citizen."

He also noted that the former president was committed to helping put Republicans back in control of the House and Senate in 2022. "A united conservative movement will strengthen the bonds of our citizens and uphold the freedoms our country was founded on."

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