At the time of Donald Trump’s unfortunate inauguration, his inauguration committee announced a record $106.7 million haul in donations. From the Associated Press in September 2017:
President Donald Trump’s inaugural committee raised an unprecedented $107 million for a ceremony that officials promised would be “workmanlike,” and the committee pledged to give leftover funds to charity. Nearly eight months later, the group has helped pay for redecorating at the White House and the vice president’s residence in Washington.
But nothing has yet gone to charity.
As we approach the first anniversary of Trump’s deeply unpopular, poorly-attended inauguration ceremony, USA Today is again following up and asking: where is the money?
“We must decline comment at this time,” Kristin Celauro, a spokeswoman for the inaugural committee’s chairman, Thomas Barrack, said this week in response to a USA TODAY inquiry about the committee’s finances.
Some of the mystery money was pledged to three well-known charities, but they are being tight-lipped about whether those funds were ever received or not:
Officials with the American Red Cross and Samaritan’s Purse, a group led by evangelist Franklin Graham, declined to comment this week about the inaugural committee donations, saying they do not disclose contributor information. Officials with the Salvation Army did not immediately respond to an inquiry.
Some of the funds were used for renovations at the White House and the VP residence. A former Obama staffer said that was reasonable use for the money. But where is the rest of the massive haul?
Steve Kerrigan, who served as chief of staff for Obama’s first inaugural committee and chairman for his second inauguration, said it was “entirely appropriate” to use surplus money for renovations to the White House. Obama did the same and also funded some public outreach programs, such as the Easter Egg Roll, with the leftover donations.
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“It is alarming that you would potentially have at least $50 million left over and no sense of how it was spent,” he said. Kerrigan said if he’s elected to Congress, he would draft a bill to create more transparency in inaugural spending.
For what it is worth, the White House renovation reportedly cost $1.75 million. Surely they didn’t spend more than that on Pence’s residence. So, how much is left and where did it go? Wherever it is, someone is swimming in money.
If nothing else, maybe the remaining $50,000,000 to $90,000,000 could be spent supplementing Donald Trump’s 100 days of golfing per year, and give us taxpayers a break?
via GIPHY