Donald Trump is known to enjoy a round of golf or two – so much so, in fact, that he owns courses across the globe so that he can go and play regularly on his own turf.
The most famous is arguably the course at his sprawling Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida, which Trump lovingly refers to as his ‘winter White House’.
He bought the complex back in 1985, later converting it into a members-only club with guest rooms and amenities like a luxury spa, tennis courts, private beach access and pool.
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Over the years, it’s become Trump's ultimate schmoozing hotspot – and unlikely political base - with previous invitees including everyone from TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew to Argentina's President Javier Milei.
But while it’s often used for genuine political and business meetings, it is also the chosen location for many of Trump’s golfing trips – something, it turns out, is costing US taxpayers a lot of money.
A 2019 report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) crunched the numbers on four trips Trump took to Mar-a-Lago during his first term.
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The report put the total cost at $13.6 million, which works out at around $3.4m a pop.
According to the Guardian, the cost includes flying Air Force One - plus a separate cargo plane to carry the presidential motorcade – between Washington and Palm Beach International Airport.
For his current term, he’s been on seven trips so far, meaning the US government is thought to have splashed out more than $23m on his golfing hobby.
The Guardian added that this figure may not even be the full picture, as the GAO report doesn’t account for ‘additional federal funds to reimburse local law enforcement agencies for protecting Trump while he’s in Florida’.
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Indeed, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw has previously said his department spends $240,000 a day to help protect Trump alongside the Secret Service.
Of course, Trump isn’t the first sitting US president to play golf, with the likes of Barack Obama and George W Bush also known to dabble.
However, he did regularly mock Obama for jetting out of Washington at the expense of taxpayers, once tweeting: “President Barack Obama’s vacation is costing taxpayers millions of dollars — unbelievable!”
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During an August 2016 rally in Virginia for his first presidential campaign, he also memorably told crowds: “I’m going to be working for you.
“I’m not going to have time to go play golf.”
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics
Jess Hardiman