Not very common

In recent days, President Trump has hosted critical meetings with two major world leaders at his Mar-a-Lago residence: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Their discussions focused on the war in Ukraine and the fragile ceasefire in Gaza.   

These were not the first meetings held at Mar-a-Lago; they follow a series of visits by foreign political leaders and business executives to the Florida residence since President Trump’s 2024 election victory.  

Mar-a-Lago Visits, by the Numbers  

Mar-a-Lago is President Trump’s private residence and social club in Palm Beach, Florida. And while U.S. presidents have occasionally met foreign leaders at private or non-official residences, these meetings have historically been rare.  

President Trump, however, has bucked the trend. Since winning the 2024 election, the President has met with a range of political and business leaders from the U.S. and across the globe at Mar a Lago, including:  

  • Bill Gates – Co-Founder of Microsoft  

Past Presidents’ Use of Private Residences  

Previous presidents have hosted world leaders outside of official government buildings, though not as much as President Trump has in just his first year of office. Here is how each president stacks up:  

Richard Nixon (1969-1974)  

  • Hosted foreign leaders and senior envoys including the Soviet Union’s Leonid Brezhnev and Japanese Prime Minister Eisaku Sato at his “Western White House” residence in San Clemente, California.  

Gerald Ford (1974-1977)  

  • Met with German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt at a private ski residence in Vail, Colorado.  

Jimmy Carter (1977-1981)  

  • Largely avoided private home diplomacy and used Camp David or the White House.  

Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)  

  • Hosted UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and King Juan Carlos I of Spain at his Rancho Del Cielo ranch in California.    

George H.W. Bush (1989-1993)  

  • Hosted UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Canadian Prime Minister Brian Mulroney at the Bush family compound in Kennebunkport, Maine.    

Bill Clinton (1993-2001)  

  • On rare occasions met at private homes or hotels with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak.  

George W. Bush (2001-2009)  

  • Hosted Russian President Vladimir Putin, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, Saudi King Abdullah, Australian Prime Minister John Howard, Mexican President Vicente Fox and numerous others at his Prairie Chapel Ranch in Crawford, Texas.  

Barack Obama (2009-2017)  

  • No meetings at personal residences for diplomatic meetings.  

Joe Biden (2021-2025)  

  • Hosted Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at his Wilmington, Delaware home.     

Should Presidents Host at Private Residences?  

The Constitution places no restrictions on where a president may conduct diplomacy. There is currently no law that bans or regulates meetings between presidents and foreign leaders at private residences.  

The Bottom Line  

Presidents meeting foreign leaders outside official venues is not unprecedented, but it has historically been uncommon and often limited to close allies.