President Donald Trump has announced he will switch his permanent residence from Trump Tower in New York to Florida.
The president said he had been badly treated by New York’s political leaders, despite having paid millions of dollars in tax.
Donald Trump was born in New York but has increasingly spent more time at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach.
The Republican president has been at odds with New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio – both Democrats.
Both welcomed the news that the president was Florida-bound.
Mayor De Blasio tweeted: “Don’t let the door hit you on the way out or whatever.”
Governor Cuomo challenged President Trump’s assertion that he had paid his taxes, adding: “He’s all yours, Florida.”
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Donald Trump has owned the Mar-a-Lago resort since 1985 and travels frequently between there and the White House.
He is running for a second term in next year’s election and made clear on October 31 that he hoped to be in the White House for another five years.
The president said he would always cherish New York but added: “Unfortunately, despite the fact that I pay millions of dollars in city, state and local taxes each year, I have been treated very badly by the political leaders of both the city and state. Few have been treated worse.”
The New York Times reported that
President Trump and his wife Melania filed for residency in Florida in September, the New York Times reported.
According to documents obtained by the publication, President Trump’s “other places of abode” are listed as 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue (the White House) and his private golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
An apartment in Trump Tower, Manhattan, has been Donald Trump’s primary residence since 1983. It is not clear if the prsident will retain it.
President Trump has spent 99 days at Mar-a-Lago compared with 20 days at Trump Tower since taking office, according to NBC News.
The White House has not commented on the president’s reasons for changing his permanent address but the New York Times quoted a person close to the president as saying that the reasons were mainly for tax purposes.
Florida does not have a state income tax or inheritance tax.
