Qatar Funded Muriel Bowser’s $61K Trip to Gulf State, Contradicting DC Mayor’s Claims: Report
29th April 2025
Washington, D.C., mayor Muriel Bowser (D.) lied about a $61,000 trip she took to Qatar, which she said was funded by two different U.S. organizations. The Hamas-harboring Middle Eastern nation actually funded the trip, according to a new report.
Bowser’s office initially claimed her December 2023 trip to the Qatari capital city of Doha was funded by the D.C. Chamber of Commerce before changing its story and saying the U.S. Conference of Mayors paid for the trip. Both claims are false, local station WJLA/ABC7 reported Monday. In reality, Qatar covered $61,930 in travel expenses for Bowser and four staff members, according to a letter from Qatar to the mayor’s office that WJLA obtained through a FOIA request.
The mayor failed to record the trip with the District of Columbia or sign a donation agreement, both of which are required by law, even though Qatar referred to the trip as an “in-kind donation,” according to WJLA. Now, two years after Bowser visited Qatar, her office plans to file a donation agreement, reaching out to Qatari officials in February for “a breakdown of the expenses the Qatari Government paid for.”