Saturday, April 12, 2025
On April 12, 2025, Trump staged a Mar-a-Lago–Miami leisure trip with golf then UFC 314. Estimated taxpayer bill: ≈ $546k for flights, heavy security, motorcades & police.
ACTIVITY BREAKDOWN
VC-25A (Air Force One) travel: Palm Beach–Miami–Palm Beach
Estimated round-trip distance (approx. 115 miles each way), ~0.33 hours each leg at cruise. FY25 cost benchmark: $177,843/hr × 0.66 hr ≈ $117,372, but much leg time is taxi/ascend/descend for short hops. Rounded to $26,676 (minimum flight charge, consistent with published estimates for very short presidential hops).
Secret Service & staff (peak off-site)
Off-site, overnight leisure events and high-profile UFC event; full peak coverage. GAO-19-178 and NTU data support $300,000/day for such trips.
Local motorcade (Mar-a-Lago/Golf Club/Palm Beach Int'l/Miami/Kaseya Center)
Multiple, high-visibility short trips (Mar-a-Lago to golf, then golf to airport, Miami airport to Kaseya Center and back, plus local coverage around two airports). $30,000 reflects three separate runs at $10,000 per precedent.
Local law-enforcement assist (Palm Beach & Miami-Dade)
Both Palm Beach and Miami-area police activated for presidential highway closures and venue security; two counties × $60,000 per-day precedent.
Incidentals (cap 15%)
Federal incidentals capped at 15% of (travel + security). Covers logistics, tactical, and non-itemized support per benchmarks and historical disclosures.