The Secret Service was rejected by the Office of Budget and Management after asking for an additional $60 million in the budget to pay for Trump travel and protection, including protecting Trump Tower, according to a scoop by Drew Harwell and Amy Brittain published Wednesday in the Washington Post. That money will have to come from somewhere, so it will likely pull from the other responsibilities of the SS.
$26.8 million out of that would have gone to protecting Trump Tower and the other $33 million “would be spent on travel costs incurred by ‘the president, vice president and other visiting heads of state’,”, according to the report. “The $26.8 million funding request says the money is needed for ‘residence security operations at the president’s private residence in Trump Tower,’ with roughly $12.5 million earmarked to cover ‘personnel related costs in New York.'”
According to the Secret Service website, “In 1994, Congress mandated the Secret Service provide forensic and technical assistance in matters involving missing and exploited children. The Secret Service offers this assistance to federal, state and local law enforcement agencies and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.”
Because the OMB rejected the Secret Service’s request, the reporters point out that means it probably that the United States Secret Service (USSS) will have to divert money from other areas, such as cases involving missing and exploited minors, cybercrimes and counterfeit-money operations.Money has to come from somewhere, after all.
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So basically the money that used to go toward missing and exploited children will be diverted to pay for Trump’s vacations and pay for the First Lady’s refusal to move to D.C. with her husband.
The Secret Service operates under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
Additionally, the Washington Post reported that some of money coming from taxpayers “could potentially become revenue for Trump’s private company, the Trump Organization, which owns the Trump Tower that agents must now protect.”
New York Magazine pointed out ways that Trump’s budget is already betraying his campaign promises. Trump promised, “The forgotten men and women of our country will be forgotten no longer.â€
“So, it’s remarkable how much of President Trump’s agenda is devoted to making life worse for poor people in rural America,” Eric Levitz wrote, noting the terrible impact of Trumpcare on rural, “flyover” America. But also, “The president proposes slashing $4.7 billion from the Department of Agriculture; cutting more than $500 million from Rural Development; eliminating the Rural Business-Cooperative Service; and abolishing the Appalachian Regional Commission, which promotes economic development and infrastructure in poor rural areas.”
That’s a no to missing and exploited kids, a no to others suffering cybercrimes (on this we can see Trump’s point, after all he has benefited from cybercrimes), a no to rural flyover country, and a yes to his vacations and a yes to his wife staying in Trump Tower.
This might seem awkward for a man who trolled President Obama over golfing, but hypocrisy is not a problem for conservatives supporting Trump. Heck, they’re okay with Trump being investigated for treason, so what’s a little theft from missing and exploited kids.
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