Federal prosecutors are reviewing a 2023 trip Mayor Muriel Bowser took to Qatar, but officials say she is not a target of the probe. Investigators are concentrating on a lobbyist tied to the delegation and possible bribery or campaign finance concerns. Bowser says she has not been contacted by investigators and calls the visit a publicly noticed business trip; Qatar provided $60,000 toward travel costs. The inquiry arrives as Bowser considers a fourth-term bid and the city deals with a government shutdown and National Guard deployments.
DOJ Reviewing Mayor Bowser’s 2023 Qatar Trip — Officials Say She’s Not a Target
Federal prosecutors are reviewing a 2023 trip Mayor Muriel Bowser took to Qatar, but officials say she is not a target of the probe. Investigators are concentrating on a lobbyist tied to the delegation and possible bribery or campaign finance concerns. Bowser says she has not been contacted by investigators and calls the visit a publicly noticed business trip; Qatar provided $60,000 toward travel costs. The inquiry arrives as Bowser considers a fourth-term bid and the city deals with a government shutdown and National Guard deployments.
09:01, 08.11.2025Politics
Justice Department Reviewing 2023 Qatar Trip; Mayor Bowser Not a Target, Officials Say
The Justice Department is reviewing a 2023 trip Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser took to Qatar, but officials say the mayor is not a target of the inquiry, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
Scope of the review
According to the person who spoke on the condition of anonymity, investigators are focusing on a lobbyist connected to the mayor and whether any laws were violated during the trip Bowser made with members of her staff. The New York Times reported that federal prosecutors in Washington had opened a corruption investigation looking into potential bribery or campaign finance violations tied to the visit.
Officials' statements
Washington’s top federal prosecutor, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, said Friday that Bowser "is not under investigation, nor is she the target of any investigation." A spokesperson for Pirro declined to provide further comment.
“I have checked our lawyers, and we have a regular kind of chain of who talks to who and we have not been contacted, not related to me or to anybody else as I’m aware,” Bowser said at a Friday press conference, adding that she had not received any subpoenas or a target letter.
Details of the trip
The delegation stopped in Doha, where Bowser met with international officials to discuss infrastructure, sports and education, and to promote Washington, D.C., as a destination for investment and tourism. Qatar contributed $60,000 to help cover travel costs for the mayor and members of her party. Bowser has described the visit as a "business trip, a publicly noticed trip to promote Washington, D.C., in Qatar," and credited it with helping keep two professional sports teams in the downtown area.
Context
The scrutiny comes as Bowser weighs a potential fourth term and as the city faces federal impacts from a government shutdown and an ongoing deployment of National Guard troops on city streets through at least February 2026. Officials have emphasized that while the trip is under review, the mayor herself is not currently a target of the investigation.