Why Would a Billionaire Charge the Secret Service $650 a Night?

Last year, Eric Trump was asked about Secret Service protection at Trump Organization properties.

“If my father travels, they stay at our properties for free,” he said. “So everywhere that he goes, if he stays at one of his places, the government actually spends, meaning it saves a fortune because if they were to go to a hotel across the street, they’d be charging them $500 a night, whereas, you know we charge them, like $50.”

You will be stunned to learn that this is not remotely true.

Instead, as the indefatigable David Fahrenthold and three colleagues at on the president’s business, the Trump Organization charged the Secret Service (in other words, the taxpayer) $400 to, there’s still no complete picture of just what the Trump Organization is charging the Secret Service.