{"id":47611,"date":"2017-03-31T12:00:32","date_gmt":"2017-03-31T19:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/?p=47611"},"modified":"2017-04-03T10:36:25","modified_gmt":"2017-04-03T17:36:25","slug":"trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump Organization Reportedly Mulling Return to Casino Business, Phil Ruffin Visits White House"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p1\">The Trump Organization is reportedly in discussions to re-enter the casino business with a new property in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The president\u2019s former company, which he still owns but is today controlled by his two adult sons Donald Jr. and Eric Trump, is rumored to be working with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/president-trump-infrastructure-plan-could-fund-vegas-rail\">fellow billionaire Phil Ruffin<\/a> on the project.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_47614\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-47614\" data-style=\"width: 705px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-47614\" src=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816.jpg\" alt=\"Trump Organization Phil Ruffin Las Vegas\" width=\"705\" height=\"480\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816-142x97.jpg 142w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816-768x524.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816-161x110.jpg 161w, https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816-440x300.jpg 440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 705px) 100vw, 705px\" \/><figcaption  id=\"caption-attachment-47614\"class=\"text-description\">The Trump Organization is allegedly in talks with billionaire Phil Ruffin, seen here during the opening of the Trump International Hotel in 2008, in developing a new resort in Las Vegas. (Image: Ethan Miller\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"p1\">The prospected property is a four-acre parcel of land near the Vegas Strip adjacent to the current Trump International Hotel. Ruffin and the Trump Organization hold equal 50 percent stakes in the luxury hotel and condominium building.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Located at Fashion Show Drive across from Wynn Las Vegas, the acreage in question is presently a paved parking lot. But according to a recent <i>Forbes <\/i>article, Ruffin and Trump might be considering turning the pavement into a gambling floor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">If the report is true, President Trump\u2019s powerful position would complicate the gaming license process for Nevada regulators.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"main-blockquote\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong>\u201cIt\u2019s rare that we have someone who is an elected official asking for gaming approval, Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairman AG Burnett told the <i>Las Vegas Sun <\/i>recently. \u201cA gaming license cannot be held by someone who holds office in the State of Nevada.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"p1\">In addition to his stake in the Trump International Hotel, Ruffin owns Treasure Island Hotel and Casino.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><b>Ruffin Heads to DC<\/b><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\">Adding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-in-talks-with-phil-ruffin-for-new-las-vegas-casino-project\">speculation to the rumors<\/a> is Ruffin\u2019s visit to the White House this week.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">Though the two have long been friends and Ruffin told the <i>Associated Press<\/i> he\u2019s never been to the presidential residency in his 82 years, the overnight stay on Thursday provided plenty of time for the billionaires to talk about a variety of issues. And if Donald Jr. and Eric are seriously considering returning the family company to the gambling business, the president presumably took time to talk casinos with Ruffin.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cIt\u2019s a lonely job,\u201d Ruffin said of the presidency. \u201cI have been friends with him for a long time. It\u2019ll be nice to catch up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">The president served as Ruffin\u2019s best man during his 2008 wedding to Oleksandra Nikolayenko, a Ukrainian model who is 47-years his younger.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"main-blockquote\">\n<p class=\"p1\"><strong>Nikolayenko is close friends with First Lady Melania Trump, another Eastern European immigrant who married into money. Melania is also considerably younger than her husband, but by only 24 years.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<h2 class=\"p1\"><b>Trump Gambling<\/b><\/h2>\n<p class=\"p1\">Billionaire Carl Icahn closed the last remaining casino from the Trump Entertainment Resorts brand last fall. The Trump Taj Mahal was later sold to Hard Rock International for an undisclosed sum.<\/p>\n<div class=\"callout\">\n<p class=\"p1\">While Trump made a small fortune off his casinos, the properties that extended from Atlantic City to California also provided plenty of fodder for the president\u2019s critics who routinely cite his numerous bankruptcy filings. A return for the Trump Organization into casinos would certainly create a media news storm that the commander-in-chief might understandably wish to avoid.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"p1\">Ruffin has denied any such talks about a casino between his company and Trump\u2019s have taken place. However, Eric Trump, like his father, has routinely sung Ruffin\u2019s praises.<\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\">\u201cI couldn\u2019t imagine a better partner,\u201d the new Trump Organization boss said this month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Trump Organization is reportedly in discussions to re-enter the casino business with a new property in Las Vegas. The president\u2019s former company, which he still owns but is today controlled by his two adult sons Donald Jr. and Eric Trump, is rumored to be working with fellow billionaire Phil Ruffin on the project. The [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":47614,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,61,1],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Trump Organization Reportedly Mulling a Return to Casino Business, Phil Ruffin Visits White House<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Trump Organization, now operated by the president\u2019s sons, is reportedly in discussions to reenter the casino business with a new resort in Las Vegas.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Trump Organization Reportedly Mulling a Return to Casino Business, Phil Ruffin Visits White House\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Trump Organization, now operated by the president\u2019s sons, is reportedly in discussions to reenter the casino business with a new resort in Las Vegas.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Casino.org\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/Casino.OrgNews\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-03-31T19:00:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-04-03T17:36:25+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"698\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Casino.org Staff Writer\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Casino_Org\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Casino.org Staff Writer\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/\",\"name\":\"Trump Organization Reportedly Mulling a Return to Casino Business, Phil Ruffin Visits White House\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-03-31T19:00:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-04-03T17:36:25+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/8c48bf89dc86da77b4d856c7b3b78d77\"},\"description\":\"The Trump Organization, now operated by the president\u2019s sons, is reportedly in discussions to reenter the casino business with a new resort in Las Vegas.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/trump-organization-reportedly-mulling-return-to-casino-business\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.casino.org\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/03\/GettyImages-80640816.jpg\",\"width\":1024,\"height\":698,\"caption\":\"The Trump Organization is allegedly in talks with billionaire Phil Ruffin, seen here during the opening of the Trump International Hotel in 2008, in developing a new resort in Las Vegas. 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