On Friday, US President Donald Trump tweeted that the US government has spent over $17 million on a “Russian Hoax” investigation. However, Trump may have spent that much – if not more – on his many trips to his Florida resort.
According to data submitted to the Justice Department by US Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team, the probe into Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 US presidential elections stood at about $16.7 million in its first 10 and a half months. It sounds like a lot of money, until one puts things in perspective by acknowledging that the federal government is expected to spend $4.1 trillion in the 2018 fiscal year.
In addition, after Trump took office, Judicial Watch reported that each one of Trump's trips to Mar-a-Lago — his private luxury bolthole in Florida — costs about $1 million. The figures include Secret Service protection and Air Force One travel. According to the Washington Post, since Trump took office, he has been to Mar-a-Lago a minimum of 17 times.
According to Judicial Watch, the cost of Trump's Mar-a-Lago trips calculated above do not include airlifting equipment like presidential limousines or all the protection costs. In July 2017, the Coast Guard spent some $6.6 million protecting the resort during Trump's first five visits there after becoming president, according to the data.
Trump has naturally been tight-lipped about his leisure time, which apparently includes a lot…
