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Obama Is In NYC Tonight, But He Won't Be Staying At The Waldorf-Astoria
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 17, 2015
Modified Jul 17, 2015
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 17, 2015
Modified Jul 17, 2015
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President Obama will be visiting New York City today (he'll be arriving after 6 p.m., FWIW, and he's going to see the brilliant musical Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda) and he won't be staying at Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Because of Chinese hackers and spies.
Last month, the AP reported that the State Department confirmed it "would base its U.N. operations at the New York Palace Hotel instead of the famed Waldorf."
The officials did not give a reason for the switch, which will affect hundreds of American diplomats and support staff who travel to New York for the General Assembly each September and usually stay and hold meetings on two secured floors at the Waldorf.
However, officials pointed to Hilton Worldwide's sale of the Waldorf-Astoria to China's Beijing-based Anbang Insurance Group for $1.95 billion last year, a deal that prompted security concerns. Terms of the sale allow Hilton to run the hotel for the next 100 years but also call for "a major renovation" that officials say has raised eyebrows in Washington, where fears of Chinese eavesdropping and cyberespionage run high.
The U.S. suspects China-linked hackers were behind a recent massive breach of federal personnel records that compromised the data of millions of government workers.
Also, the Waldorf sometimes has the worst wedding guests—you know, the ones who accidentally fire their guns. Oh, and sometimes bedbugs.
Obama has previously stayed at the Waldorf Astoria, which has been the New York home of Presidents since Herbert Hoover. According to the Page Six, Obama "will stay at Millennium’s ONE UN New York, right near the UN, which sources said would likely be his regular hotel when he’s in town."
The ONE UN New York looks decent enough, but does it have a super-secret train platform?!?
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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