It is not uncommon for presidents to spend significant time away from the White House, but most presidents don't do so at a privately owned commercial property, either. By this weekend, President Trump will have spent 28 percent of his term traveling to or staying at Mar-a-Lago, NBC News estimates, renewing concerns about ethics and costs.
"It's just another example of [Trump's] consistent efforts to exploit public office for private gain," said ethics expert Steve Schooner. "He's using his official office and the fact that people have to travel with him, meet him, and follow him to promote his commercial enterprise, in this case his privately owned club."
It additionally costs about $1 million to travel from D.C. to Palm Beach on Air Force One and while the White House declined to put a price tag on Trump's frequent travels, some estimates are already as high as over $10 million. Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw estimates it costs his department alone $60,000 for every day Trump is at his retreat.
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Trump, of course, was long a critic of presidential vacations. "If you're in the White House, who wants to take a vacation?" Trump blasted his predecessor in Iowa last year. "You're in the White House. What's better than the White House? Why these vacations?"
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