Ivanka Trump Deposed in Donor Fund Suit12/03 06:17

   

   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Ivanka Trump has been deposed by attorneys alleging that 
President Donald Trump's 2017 inauguration committee misused donor funds, a new 
court filing reveals.

   The document, first reported by CNN Wednesday, notes that Ivanka Trump, the 
president's oldest daughter and a senior White House adviser, was interviewed 
Tuesday by attorneys from the Washington, D.C., attorney general's office.

   The office has filed a lawsuit alleging waste of the nonprofit's funds, 
accusing the committee of making more than $1 million in improper payments to 
the president's Washington, D.C., hotel during the week of the inauguration in 
2017.

   As part of the suit, they have subpoenaed records from Ivanka Trump, first 
lady Melania Trump, Thomas Barrack Jr., a close friend of the president who 
chaired the inaugural committee, and others. Barrack was also deposed last 
month.

   Trump's inaugural committee spent more than $1 million to book a ballroom at 
the Trump International Hotel in the nation's capital as part of a scheme to 
"grossly overpay" for party space and enrich the president's own family in the 
process, the District of Columbia's attorney general, Karl Racine, alleges.

   He has accused the committee of misusing nonprofit funds and coordinating 
with the hotel's management and members of the Trump family to arrange the 
events.

   "District law requires nonprofits to use their funds for their stated public 
purpose, not to benefit private individuals or companies," Racine has said. "In 
this case, we are seeking to recover the nonprofit funds that were improperly 
funneled directly to the Trump family business."

   The committee raised an unprecedented $107 million to host events 
celebrating Trump's inauguration in January 2017, but its spending has drawn 
continued scrutiny.

   In a statement, Alan Garten with the Trump Organization said that "Ms. 
Trump's only involvement was connecting the parties and instructing the hotel 
to charge a 'fair market rate,' which the hotel did."