Exclusive: Secret Service depletes funds to pay agents due to Trump's frequent trips

[StLucieBengal]

(08-22-2017, 03:41 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: So your argument is he lived in a different house than his wife and son?

He's on pace to outspend Obama's 8 years of travel by the end of his first, I'm not even sure what argument you're attempting to make with highlighting on trip.

He isn't taking a vacation. He is going to his house.

[*PhilHos*]

(08-21-2017, 06:44 PM)ballsofsteel Wrote: Anyone notice their take home pay go up yet?  

Mine has.

Seriously it has.

Not because of Trump (that I'm aware of), but because my state taxes in PA are lower than they were in CT. I'm making less an hour (by like 50 cents) at my new job, but my take home pay is higher by almost $100. 

CT sucks.

[GMDino]

(08-22-2017, 03:34 PM)StLucieBengal Wrote: Dear lord.  Michelle obama went to aspen, shopping all over the world.... without her husband .  

When trump goes anywhere except his house then come back to me.   And when he and melani take delegate vacations then come back.

Is there one link...one iota of evidence to back this up?

I know I should do my own work, but my hard work to show the hypocrisy so far has been ignored.

[BmorePat87]

(08-22-2017, 03:43 PM)StLucieBengal Wrote: He isn't taking a vacation.  He is going to his house.

His vacation home, right? 

[StLucieBengal]

(08-22-2017, 03:52 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: His vacation home, right? 

Not necessarly.

[BmorePat87]

(08-22-2017, 04:53 PM)StLucieBengal Wrote: Not necessarly.

but technically, especially considering his wife and son resided in New York. Of course, the point is this has cost the tax payers tremendously and eclipse similar costs for Obama. Things the Right and Trump criticized Obama for and now defend. Things that go against their belief in fiscal conservatism. 

[Benton]

(08-22-2017, 05:55 PM)BmorePat87 Wrote: but technically, especially considering his wife and son resided in New York. Of course, the point is this has cost the tax payers tremendously and eclipse similar costs for Obama. Things the Right and Trump criticized Obama for and now defend. Things that go against their belief in fiscal conservatism. 

I don't think we've had but a handful of fiscal conservatives in Congress in the last couple decades. 

For simplification for voters, I wish they media would stop using terms like 'conservative' and 'liberal' or even — to a degree — 'left' and 'right.' Just call them Republicans and Democrats. Drop all the misleading monikers and boil it down to simpler labels.

[*Nately120*]

(08-22-2017, 03:43 PM)StLucieBengal Wrote: He isn't taking a vacation.  He is going to his house.

How many vacations does the guy need?  Can't Americans just work harder and get off their damn iphones and social media and fix this damn country?  That includes our president, FYI.

[*PhilHos*]

(08-22-2017, 06:46 PM)Benton Wrote: I don't think we've had but a handful of fiscal conservatives in Congress in the last couple decades. 

For simplification for voters, I wish they media would stop using terms like 'conservative' and 'liberal' or even — to a degree — 'left' and 'right.' Just call them Republicans and Democrats. Drop all the misleading monikers and boil it down to simpler labels.

Actually, I wish they would just refer to them by their names and what district/state they represent. Too many people judge politicians solely by their party. And, then there's the condemning the whole party due to the actions of one of its members. 

[Belsnickel]

(08-23-2017, 03:27 PM)PhilHos Wrote: Actually, I wish they would just refer to them by their names and what district/state they represent. Too many people judge politicians solely by their party. And, then there's the condemning the whole party due to the actions of one of its members. 

How about a list of their top 5 corporate, top 5 interest group, and top 5 individual donors underneath each of their names? The list would be long, but would be a better reflection of who they represent and where their policies come from.

[GMDino]

In other news....

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4740690/Tiffany-Trump-s-Roman-holiday-cost-taxpayers-100K.html

Quote:Tiffany Trump and mom Marla enjoyed free stay on friend's yacht and reduce-priced Roman hotel suite during Italian getaway - as taxpayers paid $100K on car rentals ALONE for First Daughter's trip


The State Department splashed out over $100,000 on car rentals during First Daughter Tiffany Trump's recent vacation in Italy.
Federal records show that three separate payments in the amounts of $54,694.84, $39,188.64 and $23,605.96 were made on July 18 in Rome.

That was two days before Tiffany and Marla disembarked in Portofino after almost two weeks spent cruising up the coast of Italy.


The women then enjoyed a few days in the northern port city before heading to their final destination of Rome on Sunday.


Best of all, Marla and Tiffany were able to do all this without breaking the bank.


The Roman hotel of President Trump's second wife appeared to be comped or at the very least discounted, while the ladies' two weeks on the Tyrrhenian Sea were spent as guests on the yacht of their friend Chahrazad Rizk.


Mother and daughter also got a big assist from American taxpayers too, who footed the $117,489.44 fee for the car rentals that transported the two women and Secret Service agents around the European nation. 

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Serve and protect: Official government records show three payments were made by the State Department to a car rental agency in Rome on July 18 totaling $117,489.44 (Tiffany disembarks from the Mirage IV on July 21)

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Best of friends: The First Daughter and her mother Marla Maples were guests of their good friend Chahrazad Rizk, who is the founder of TEC Interior Design, on Mirage IV (Tiffany and Marla in Rome earlier this week)

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Thifty ladies: Once in Rome, Marla stayed in a reduced-rate hotel suite at the Parco dei Principi Grand Hotel & Spa, which she posted photos of to Instagram (above)


That fee pales in comparison to the money spent on car rentals back in May when President Trump visited Rome and Vatican City with First Lady Melania and First Daughter Ivanka.


For that trip, the State Department paid $802,335.68 to the same car rental company when President Trump arrived on May 25 before making an additional three payments on May 27, the day the group departed the country. 


Those payments were in the amounts of $904,895.69, $81,476.48 and $168,241.88, bringing the grand total spent on rentals cars to $1,956,949.73 for that 48-hour trip.


The agents came in two days before Tiffany docked to prepare to meet her in Portofino, with the First Daughter needing a larger detail as she toured the foreign city.


A group of agents could be seen in photos walking her off the yacht in Portofino, with the no-fuss Tiffany insisting on carrying her own bag. 


Once in Rome, Tiffany and Marla even took some time to stop by the Pantheon, causing far less of a scene than the one created when Ivanka and Jared visited back in May, shutting down the square outside so that they could pull right up to the door of the famed temple.


A picture of the two was posted to Instagram by Marla, who wrote: 'Yesterday .... at last  #Rome with my girl/'


Marla also posted a photo of her accommodations in the city to Instagram on Friday, giving her followers a well-curated look at the Parco dei Principi Grand Hotel & Spa.


There was a beautiful interior photo of her and daughter Tiffany inside the hotel's marble lobby as well as an exterior shot with the owner that had easy-to-read signage for the hotel over her shoulder.

The third and final photo was taken on the outdoor patio atop the hotel, which offered a view of Vatican City's famed St Peter's Basilica in the distance.

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Tourists: Marla and Tiffany posed for a photo at the Partheon over the weekend in Rome (above)

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Disruptors: The Partheon became a blocked-off nightmare for tourists when Jared and Ivanka visited in May (above)

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Over-the-top: The costs for Tiffany's rentals pale in comparison to the $1,956,949.73 that was spent at the same agency back in May during President Trump's 48-hour trip to Italy (above)


Last weekend in #Rome Sharing time with family, old friends & new at the magical #ParcoDeiPrincipi. You can even see the #Vatican on the final photo from our balcony. #Nature and the ancient city together, wrote Marla on the post.


And while there was no '#ad' attached at the end of the text, both the look and feel of the post made it seem as though Marla might have been getting a discount on her lodging in exchange for some love on social media. 


It is unclear if Tiffany stayed with her mother or at the US Embassy, where members of the First Family tend to stay during visits to Rome.


The Embassy previously hosted President Trump and Tiffany's sister Ivanka back in May when they traveled to Rome on the administration's first overseas trip.

[GMDino]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2017/10/05/secret-service-spent-137-k-golf-carts-protect-trump-new-jersey-florida-clubs/736618001/

Quote:Secret Service spent $137K on golf carts to protect Trump at New Jersey, Florida clubs

WASHINGTON – The Secret Service has spent at least $137,505 to rent golf carts to protect President Trump this year at his private clubs in New Jersey and Florida. 

According to federal purchase orders flagged by the progressive PAC American Bridge and reviewed by USA TODAY, the agency paid $61,960 in a Sept. 29 contract to rent golf carts at the Trump International Golf Club in Florida. 


That's the biggest purchase order for golf carts so far. It comes in a contract that will extend through May 28, 2018. The agency signed contracts for golf carts at Trump's clubs as early as February, but they never exceeded about $18,000 – and only lasted for one month at a time.


In August, USA TODAY first reported that the Secret Service can no longer pay the overtime for hundreds of agents it needs to carry out an expanded protective mission – in large part due to the sheer size of Trump's family and efforts necessary to secure their multiple residences up and down the East Coast. Secret Service Director Randolph "Tex" Alles said more than 1,000 agents have already hit the federally mandated caps for salary and overtime allowances that were meant to last the entire year. 

While Congress has been working on a fix to raise the caps for the agents, critics have said Trump could ease the financial burden on the agency by reducing his travel and staying at the White House more often. 


"There's a question about how fast Trump is racking up bills that the taxpayers have to pay, which are largely trips to his hotels and his golf courses," said Harrell Kirstein, American Bridge communications director. 

Under the law, Trump cannot provide or pay for any equipment or services the Secret Service needs to protect him. The rule is intended to stave off any potential conflicts of interests for the agency. 


The Secret Service has signed several more golf-related contracts. On Oct. 1, the agency paid $15,600 to install and remove ballistic glass for Trump to watch the Presidents Cup golf competition in Jersey City, N.J.


"President Trump isn't working and taxpayers are being forced to pick up the tab," Kirstein said. "Instead of wasting so much time and money on his vacation, he should do his job and address with the multitude of crises facing the country that are piling up on his watch." 


The service's luxury portable restroom spending for the clubs has also increased since August. 


A recent switch in restroom providers also appears to have cost the agency extra. The agency signed a contract with Sanitary Solutions Inc. for $5,365 on Sept. 21. The previous contract with Imperial Restrooms was $3,300 from Aug. 21. 


The total the agency has spent on portable bathrooms, a mobile office and ballistic glass at Trump’s New Jersey golf course rings in at $53,316.