Andrew Milligan/PA Wire
If nothing else, President Donald Trump seems to know how to relax. After yet another week of pissing off international allies, the New York Times reports that he’s spending the weekend at Trump Turnberry, his luxury resort in Scotland, which means that he’s now spent 169 days of his presidency, or about 30 percent of days, hanging out at his branded properties—all at a staggering cost to U.S. taxpayers.
Here’s a graphic from the New York Times’ Karen Yourish:
Trump has spent 169 days of his presidency, or about 30% of his time in office, visiting Trump properties. He is spending the weekend at Trump Turnberry, his luxury resort in Scotland. See all of his visits here: https://t.co/knlG6roZJM pic.twitter.com/N6hXRjpSy1
— Karen Yourish (@karenyourish) July 14, 2018
It’s no surprise that Mar-a-Lago tops the list, with Trump having paid 72 visits to his Palm Beach resort since taking office. Those trips aren’t cheap: in 2017 alone, taxpaying Americans shelled out more than $6.6 million in airfare alone, not including the costs of protection from Secret Service and Coast Guard officers. As a candidate and private citizen, Trump regularly berated President Barack Obama for his golf and vacation habits.
President Obama should have gone to Louisiana days ago, instead of golfing. Too little, too late!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 23, 2016
In addition to the U.S. government’s expenses, Scottish police have estimated security for Trump’s weekend golf visit could involve 5,000 police officers, and cost U.K. taxpayers $6.6 million.
