The apartment was needed to provide a “downtime” facility in the Kalorama neighborhood, the source said. The neighborhood is a popular residential area for dignitaries and diplomats, in addition to the president’s daughter and son-in-law. Former President Barack Obama also has a home in the neighborhood.
The Kushner-Trump house is substantial in size, with 5,000 square feet, and has six bedrooms and seven bathrooms. But family protection team agents do not enter the home, the source said, although that person forgot to say whether this was at the request of the Kushners or because of the Secret Service protocol.
The source notes that the rental of the apartment was not only to provide sanitary facilities, but also to serve as a break room for agents in the area. There is also an office with Internet and printer, as well as a kitchen, where agents can refuel after long shifts and during times when finding restaurants open in the area is difficult, said the source.
White House spokesman Judd Deere denied that the Kushners would not allow their Secret Service staff to use the bathroom.
“This is just another false narrative. When discussions about protecting their home were initially held in 2017, Ivanka and Jared made it clear that their home would always be open to the incredible men and women in its details. It was only after a decision by The USSS was informed that its detachment was looking for other accommodation, “said Deere.
“The Kushners have great respect for soldiers and women in their deployment and for the United States Secret Service as a whole. Their home will always be open to them and they have an immense gratitude for their services for the past four years. ”
When asked to comment, Secret Service spokeswoman Justine Whelan said that “the United States Secret Service does not discuss protégés”.
A Secret Service spokesman later told CNN: “The Secret Service makes every effort, especially in a residence, to conduct protection operations with the least impact on a family. According to this practice, personnel Secret Service does not request access to facilities in private homes. Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner have not denied Secret Service personnel access to their home to include using the bathroom. ”
Two police officers told the Post that the facilities inside the family home were designed from the beginning not to be used by Secret Service agents. One official told the newspaper that they were unaware of the reason for this rule, while the other told the newspaper that it was established by Trump and Kushner.
The Post reported that the Secret Service agents’ plight was unique in that they took it to secure a toilet, with a law enforcement officer familiar with the situation saying to the Post, “This is the first time I have heard of a Secret Service detail having to go to those ends to find a toilet. ”
The agency spent months trying to secure facilities, including a chamber pot that was removed after neighbors complained, according to the Post.
Then police officers told the newspaper, agents began using the toilets in a garage that became a command post at Obama’s home, used by his security detachment. That option came to an end when the Obama detachment banned the Trump / Kushner detachment after the latter’s Secret Service supervisor “left an unpleasant mess” in that bathroom earlier than fall 2017, the newspaper reported, citing an informed person about the event.
The agents then started driving to Vice President Mike Pence’s home at the Naval Observatory, about a kilometer away, to use a local restroom or restaurants, police officials told the Post.
In September 2017, agents contacted Kay Kendall, who is chairman of the DC Arts and Humanities Commission, lives in the neighborhood and owns a house in front of the Trump / Kushner family, she told the Post.
The house has a basement with a bathroom, and when she asked the current tenant – former Connecticut representative Anthony “Toby” Moffett Jr. – if she could separate her, he agreed to a reduced rent, Moffett told the Post.
The list of properties rented by the General Services Administration includes a property on the same street where the Trump / Kushner family resides.
Police officers told the Post that Kushner / Trump’s gang agents approved the studio, with natural light and a bathroom.
“It wasn’t a big deal,” Moffett told the newspaper. “They have been very good to our grandchildren.”
CNN’s Maegan Vazquez contributed to this report.