Trump slammed for 'hypocrisy' as frequent golf trips have cost taxpayers $26M since return to office

WASHINTON, DC: President Donald Trump has reportedly spent 18 out of his first 69 days back in office at one of his golf courses. This means that he has dedicated nearly one-fourth of his second term to perfecting his swing.

While presidential downtime isn’t uncommon, the staggering cost associated with Trump’s golf outings has raised eyebrows. 

Donald Trump’s golf trips have cost taxpayers over $26 million

According to an analysis by HuffPost, which used data from a 2019 Government Accountability Office report, these trips have already cost US taxpayers an estimated $26,127,531 during his second term.

The expenses include moving security personnel around, his motorcade equipment, as well as the huge cost of flying Air Force One.

Quite recently, on the morning of March 29, Trump arrived at his West Palm Beach golf course, located just across the Intracoastal Waterway from Mar-a-Lago, his private club.

The $26 million estimate is calculated using 2017 costs, which have almost certainly increased over time.

In his first term, Trump’s frequent visits to his own golf resorts amounted to a total taxpayer expense of $151.5 million, with him spending 293 days on one of his courses throughout those four years.

Trump was known for criticizing former President Barack Obama for golfing, and once tweeted, "Can you believe that, with all of the problems and difficulties facing the US, President Obama spent the day playing golf?"

Now, as Trump racks up millions in taxpayer-funded golf expenses, critics argue that his previous outrage rings hollow.

Donald Trump's costly golf trips spark backlash

Netizens couldn't help but question Donald Trump's apparent hypocrisy, especially since his second administration's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative was meant to cut unnecessary costs. 

One said, "Not surprised. Elon Musk is the one running the country after all," and another added, "That would fund 373 park rangers at about a GS-5 level for a year," referring to the National Park Service layoffs. 

"It is definitely hypocritical to mandate federal employees go back to the office to work while he barely goes to the office to work," a person wrote, whereas someone else expressed, "It’s hypocritical to talk about government waste and fraud with golf excursions that demonstrate government waste and fraud! But It’s just a repeat of 2016-2020!"

Similarly, another comment echoed, "Think how much this money could help FEMA or provide some food to homeless people," while one joked, "In this administration, DOGE is Department of Golf Expenses."

"We can only be grateful that Musk has been saving us all this money by eliminating Health, Education, the Environment, taxes on Billionaires and Defense. Otherwise, the cost of Trump's golf games would be a real budget buster for the country," an individual wrote. 

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