November 18, 2018

I guess that if you're used to living in a gilded penthouse with gold plated toilets, it doesn't occur to you to be fiscally conscientious. But this really goes beyond the pale:

First lady Melania Trump’s hotel bills for a day trip to Toronto last year added up to an astonishing $174,000, according to federal expense documents reported by Quartz. She did not spend the night.

Wait...she didn't even spend the night??? You don't usually see those kind of fees for hotels that charge by the hour.

Could she have really racked up the charges at the mini-bar? I don't think six of those mini Pringle cans would be quite that much. The White House, the bastion of honesty and integrity, claims that the charges include the First Lady's advance team, but per the records Quartz was able to obtain, the $174,000 does NOT include the $18,000 line item for the advance team. In fact, based on the itinerary Quartz published, it's hard to see exactly how she ended spending six figures over the 12 hours she spent in Toronto:

12:09 pm (Sept. 23): Arrives in Toronto. The first lady travels to a downtown Sheraton, meets with Britain’s prince Harry for 20 minutes, and then departs for the Ritz-Carlton.

4 pm: Returns to Sheraton. The first lady meets with US athletes competing in the Invictus Games (an event for disabled veterans created in 2014 by prince Harry) for 20 minutes. She delivers a speech that was one minute, 15 seconds long.

6:35 pm: Arrives at Air Canada Centre. The first lady greets prime minister Justin Trudeau and his family and watches the opening ceremony of the games from a VIP suite.

12:12 am (Sept. 24): Returns to Andrews Air Force base in Maryland.

This is not the first time Melania has charged the taxpayers exorbitant travel fees. Her little Indiana Jones adventure to Cairo was $95,000 for a day's travel.

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