Politico reports:

President Donald Trump arrives Monday in a country featuring the most Trump properties outside the U.S.

The White House hopes the visit will advance trade talks and bolster the president’s standing with Indian-Americans ahead of the 2020 election. But it’s also a trip that will create attention that could help Trump-branded properties amid a slumping real estate market and slowing economy in India.

Already, in the days leading up to the trip, some Indian media outlets have referenced the Trump properties in their coverage, with one even suggesting the president chose his speaking location because of his longstanding ties to realtors in the region.

It’s an issue that has hovered over the entire Trump presidency. From staying at his own properties, to his attempt to host world leaders at one of his Florida resorts, to his loving odes to his overseas properties while sitting next to the leaders of those countries, Trump has faced constant questions about whether he is using his presidential perch to line his own pockets.

And nowhere are the lines more blurred between Trump the statesman and Trump the salesman than in India — a nation that boasts the distinction of being both the globe’s largest democracy and the Trump Organization’s largest foreign market. For three years, Trump’s White House has worked with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on trade and a multi-billion weapons sale. And for three years, Trump’s company has worked to promote its four developments in India that have earned Trump millions of dollars in royalties. [Continue reading…]