President Donald Trump and his administration do not publicly acknowledge when the Commander-in-Chief plays golf. And, unlike the Obama administration, Trump and his administration do not share the names of the people joining Trump when he does play golf.
Senator Ron Wyden, a Democrat from Oregon, believes that's a transparency problem, and he wants to see just who is playing golf with Donald Trump.
On Thursday, Wyden, who is the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, asked the Department of Homeland Security to turn over the names of Trump's golf partners as well the visitor logs to all of his private clubs. This may have been in response to reporting from USA Today, which found at least 71 of the approximately 4,500 members of Trump's private clubs are executives with businesses holding federal contracts or with organizations directly involved in lobbying the government. Some two-thirds of those 71 persons have played golf at a Trump-owned private club on one of the 58 days -- so far -- that Trump has been at one of his golf clubs since becoming President on Jan. 20.
Wyden's letter said the USA Today report "raised the possibility that members of the president's private clubs could receive special access to the president not available to private citizens."
Wyden wants the information by Oct. 13, including those logs, a full list of members with government contracts or ties to government lobbying, as well the names of all guests requiring Secret Service screening.
This is part of Wyden's continued effort to seek more transparency concerning Trump's businesses, including the sourcing of his foreign income. Trump's refusal to release his tax returns, both as candidate and President, fuel skepticism that Trump's business ties may influence his policies in office.
