The former president has just one official event, a closed-press signing of executive orders, on his public schedule before he heads out of Washington by mid-afternoon
After announcing potentially devastating tariffs on Europe, signing a few documents, and posing for the press, Donald Trump is once again heading to the golf course, where he has spent the bulk of his weekends since becoming president, despite reports of tumbling stocks.
According to the White House press pool’s daily guidance and media schedule for Friday, May 23, the former president has only one official engagement, a closed-door signing of executive orders, before departing Washington by mid-afternoon.
Trump is heading back to the golf course after unveiling plans for a 50 percent tariff on all European Union goods, stating that trade talks with the EU were “going nowhere.”
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In a separate social media post, Trump threatened Apple with a minimum 25 percent tariff unless it starts manufacturing iPhones in the US. Such a move, effectively a tax on imports aimed at a specific company, would likely be met with swift legal challenges, reports NBC.
Trump said to the press that the tariffs would apply to other companies as well, all while signing executive orders related to the nuclear energy sector. But around 3:00 pm, Trump departed from the White House and headed for Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, New Jersey, looking at a leisurely weekend.
This trip marks yet another in a series where Trump distances himself from the day-to-day presidency, opting to work from his golf club, a privilege not extended to other federal employees. Trump played a round there last weekend (May 17), according to his public schedule, as well as the weekend before (May 10).
The first weekend of May, he flew to Mar-a-Lago, spending a few days at his favored residence.
It appears to be a pattern for Trump, who made headlines during his first term too for taking an excessive amount of vacations and traveling to his golf club, at great cost to taxpayers, while Trump profits as security and his staff paid for hotel rooms and dining to continue protecting the president.
Amidst national unrest on April 2, after Trump enacted heavy tariffs that plummeted the stock market, incited trade war fears, and rattled consumer confidence, the president opted for a weekend getaway from the White House. He jetted off to Mar-a-Lago and found solace on the golf course.
While individuals worried about potential price hikes under tariffs, and businesses began to plan their options for dealing with such an act, the White House released a statement highlighting Trump’s golf milestone.
“The President won his second round matchup of the Senior Club Championship today in Jupiter, FL, and advances to the Championship Round tomorrow,” the White House announced.
The headlines on April 2, rightfully focused around the economy, overlooked Congressman Steve Cohen’s (TN-9) introduction of the “Making Any Reimbursement Against the Law for Guarding Overnight Act” or the “MARALAGO Act” of 2025. The act’s language reveals some intriguing costs for taxpayers and the profits Trump has previously made.
The proposed bill would prevent the Secret Service from using federal funds to pay a President or former President (or an entity they own or control) for lodging, meals, and other incidental expenses while the Secret Service is protecting them at their residence.
Which means that Secret Service won’t be able to use taxpayer funds – but no word on how they’re supposed to cover expenses while traveling with Trump to his properties.
Congressman Cohen stated: “Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach isn’t just Donald Trump’s home; it is a hotel and restaurant. When the Secret Service travels to Mar-a-Lago to protect the President, Donald Trump turns around and sends the hotel bill to taxpayers.”
“In his previous term, Donald Trump charged the Secret Service more than $800 per night at least 11 times to stay at his properties, including Mar-a-Lago. It also paid $17,000 per month to rent a cottage at his Bedminster, New Jersey, golf club. This continued into his post-presidency, when Trump continued to bill the Secret Service $396.15 per night to stay at his Florida resort. Between January 20, 2021 and April 30, 2021, spending records show the Secret Service paid more than $40,000 for hotel rooms at Mar-a-Lago.”
“Secret Service protection shouldn’t be a financial burden for a president. If he feels the need for security at his property, the agents should provide it as they would for any president with a home residence by safeguarding the home, but they should stay elsewhere. When they protected Biden in Delaware, they didn’t bunk at Biden’s house.”
So far this term, Trump has traveled less around the country compared to the same period during his first term in 2017, preferring to golf. Former President Joe Biden made more trips outside Washington during his first 100 days. At one point in February, Trump spent parts of six consecutive days at Mar-a-Lago.
By March, according to the official White House schedule, President Donald Trump had spent eight consecutive weekends golfing at his Mar-a-Lago mansion, costing taxpayers an estimated $24 million.
While Trump’s visits to Mar-a-Lago are out-of-pocket expenses for him, the necessary protection services for him and his family come at a cost to taxpayers, as his businesses charge for housing Secret Service employees at his hotels and other properties while Trump visits and plays golf.
A 2019 Government Accountability Office (GAO) study revealed that each of President Trump’s trips during his first term cost approximately $3.4m, and with his eight recent sojourns to Mar-a-Lago, the taxpayer’s tab is now believed to be a staggering $24 million.
These figures incorporate the price of using Air Force One and an additional freight aircraft for transporting the presidential motorcade from Washington D.C. to Palm Beach International Airport.
Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw, encumbered by duty, has found it necessary to deploy helicopters, increase police presence, and station protective boats around Trump’s estate flanked by the Atlantic and the Intracoastal Waterway, nearly non-stop.
Speaking to county commissioners last month, Sheriff Bradshaw labeled the costs as “substantial,” stating, “They request it, and then we provide it. It’s expensive, but we don’t really have a choice.”
Furthermore, Bradshaw disclosed to CBS 12 News the department incurs a daily expense of $240,000 for safeguarding the President, his family, and their esteemed guests which typically include dignitaries and fellow politicians.
Confronted with this financial strain, Sheriff Bradshaw urgently petitioned for $45 million to fund the protection services leading up to November, a plea that met with approval from the county commissioners.
At present, it’s the taxpayers of Palm Beach County who are footing the bill. The money is being drawn from a ‘contingency reserve’ intended for unexpected costs. According to County Commissioner Gregg Weiss, that fund is nearly depleted.
