Acting White House Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney said on "Fox News Sunday" that President Trump was "honestly surprised" at the level of pushback he received from the decision to choose his own Doral resort in Miami as the site of next year's G7 summit, which he walked back Saturday night.
"He was honestly surprised at the level of pushback. At the end of the day, he still considers himself to be in the hospitality business and he saw an opportunity to take the biggest leaders around the world and he wanted to put on the absolute best show, the best visit that he possibly could. And he was very comfortable doing it at Doral. And I think we were all surprised at the level of pushback. I think it's the right decision to change. We'll have to find someplace else, and my guess is we'll find someplace else that the media won't like for another reason."
Why it matters: The announcement that Trump would host the G7 at his own property was followed by swift condemnation by Democrats and even some Republicans, with many claiming that the move would violate the emoluments clause of the Constitution. President Trump has faced allegations of abusing his office to enrich himself throughout his entire presidency.
- The self-dealing could have inspired an extra article of impeachment, lawsuits, demands for forensic accounting, boycotts by world leaders, defections by Republicans and other consequences Trump can't afford.
- Despite reversing himself, Trump doubled down on defending the decision as appropriate on Twitter Saturday night, blaming "Media & Democrat Crazed and Irrational Hostility" for forcing him to reconsider.
Go deeper: Appeals court revives lawsuit against Trump for hotel profits
