How Much Did the Obama Family Cost Taxpayers for Travel
Final fiscal year, the Trump family took more trips that required Underground Service protection than the Obama family took in seven, according to a budget certificate released by the Treasury Department. On average, Obama's family took 133.three protected trips per year, while the Trump family has taken an boilerplate of ane,625 annually. Much of the Trump family's known travel has been to promote Trump Organization businesses, which President Trump still owns and profits from. Every President and his family deserve Secret Service protection. Just the President'southward private business should reimburse taxpayers for money spent at Trump'south businesses or in support of them.
While previous presidents have separated themselves from their assets and placed them in a blind trust, President Trump appointed his two adult sons to manage the international businesses that continue to make hundreds of millions of dollars a twelvemonth on his behalf . The Trump family'southward extremely high number of protected trips can be partially explained by the fact that Eric and Don Jr. have traveled the world promoting Trump-branded businesses throughout the Trump presidency. This caption does less to settle concerns than to highlight the extent to which the American people are subsidizing the Trump family unit business organization. Despite running up a high tab, the Trump System has not paid the American people back for the security taxpayers take subsidized when Trump family members travel to support a business that regularly cashes in on the presidency.
Of form the Trump family is entitled to Secret Service protection, and should exist protected, but increasing the volume past more than a gene of ten has put a strain on the bureau'due south budget. So much so, that the Clandestine Service has had to justify the spike in protective travel costs in its congressional budget requests for the past two years . That appears to exist the but reason the number of protected visits has been fabricated public at all. Non just has the frequent travel put a strain on the budget, just a Secret Service amanuensis told VICE News that Trump'due south travel has contributed to "burnout."
The Hush-hush Service 2020 and 2021 upkeep requests comprise explanations of some of the expenses driving costs that necessitate a larger budget. One of these is protective travel. Protective travel spiked massively in 2017 when Trump became president. In the last financial two years, the Trump family has taken 3,249 protected trips. In seven years, the Obama family took a total of 933.
The nautical chart below shows the number of protective trips for each financial year, which, for the federal government, begins in Oct. Considering the fiscal year does not line up with Trump'southward inauguration, we accept left financial yr 2017 out of the calculations. Protected travel visits are defined as " whatsoever instance that an individual protectee spends fourth dimension within the jurisdiction of a unmarried USSS field office, other than the protectee's home district."
All this travel has price taxpayers tens of millions of dollars. The Washington Post reported that in 2017 the Surreptitious service requested an boosted $60 million for the year to pay for protective travel for President Trump, Vice President Pence, visiting heads of state and the Trump family unit. $26.8 1000000 was prepare aside to protect Trump'southward family and their residence at Trump Tower. That $60 million increase was no small bump: in 2015, the entire Secret Service protective travel budget was $lxxx one thousand thousand.
Some of the spike can exist accounted for past the fact that President Trump has five children, iv of whom are adults, whereas President Obama has ii. Still, fifty-fifty vice presidential families with developed children did not reach shut to the tally of the Trump family. Vice President Biden's family tally, including his developed children and grandchildren , reached i,882 in 7 years, only around 250 more than the Trump family accumulates every yr. Vice President Pence'south family has only taken 190 protected trips in the final 2 fiscal years.
CREW has uncovered the Hugger-mugger Service costs for several Trump family business concern trips that help to piece together the tab that the Trump family has accumulated with taxpayers. In Feb 2017, Eric and Don Jr. flew to Dubai to open a Trump-branded golf club, which cost the Secret Service more than $200,000 . The same calendar month, Eric flew to the Dominican Republic to potentially relaunch a failed Trump-branded resort project, which cost $20,000 . Eric Trump has visited Uruguay twice for Trump Organization business, costing taxpayers $97,830 in 2017,and $80,786 in 2019. And those are just the receipts we take obtained and then far. What we do know is that the President's frequent trips to Trump branded properties put taxpayer money directly into the coffers of the Trump Arrangement.
The Trump family has taken more three g protected trips in the last two fiscal years and the Cloak-and-dagger Service budget has had to increase massively to accommodate the family's travels. We don't know exactly how many of those trips are related to the Trump business, but the bill is calculation upwards fast. A 12x increment in whatsoever budget particular is bound to attract attention, and the President's business organisation should reimburse the Treasury for taxpayers funds spent to back up his business directly or indirectly.
Source: https://www.citizensforethics.org/reports-investigations/crew-investigations/trump-family-travel-12x-obama-family/
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