Taxpayers Have Paid $1.1 Million to House Secret Service in Trump’s Hotels

Since President Trump assumed office, his private hotels have charged the Secret Service $1.1 million, including $188,000 accrued during the pandemic, The Washington Post reports. These costs largely cover housing agents as they follow the president and his family wherever they go. This spring, Trump’s Bedminster, New Jersey, club billed the Secret Service $21,800 for 29 nights while the club was closed to guests due to the coronavirus. Trump didn’t visit the club during this time but his daughter, Ivanka, visited in April for Passover.

Some Secret Service rentals have lasted for months, with one former administration official saying the agency would rent for half a year just in case the president decided to go somewhere with little notice. The Secret Service paid rent for at least 200 days at Bedminster in which the president wasn’t there. “The waste inherent in this is appalling,” Lisa Gilbert, executive vice president at the watchdog group Public Citizen, said.