Trump not so thrifty
Ms. Mather asserts in her Dec. 15 letter that $85 million was spent on President Obama’s vacations during his eight years in office with no citation and without putting this into context with other presidents. For example, George W. Bush took 879 days of vacation (Obama, about 150). Flight time alone for Air Force 1 cost over $20 million just flying back and forth to his Texas ranch.
Her main point, however, seems to be that Trump will be great steward of taxpayer dollars and that Trump speaks Mather’s language when he talks about being thrifty. Yet CNN reports that it costs $1 million per day to protect Trump while he is in New York.
Trump has stated that he intends to “commute” weekly from the White House to his Manhattan penthouse so as to spend time with his current family. This commute estimate does not include the entourage that accompanies Trump. Trump could blow past $85 million by Halloween 2017. Scary.
James Murphy
Spokane