Trump has spent more visiting Mar-a-Lago than Mueller has on Russia probe

[Ulquiorra]

President Trump has spent more in taxpayer dollars on his frequent trips to his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida than special counsel Robert Mueller's office has spent on the Russia investigation so far.

The president has repeatedly attacked the Mueller probe for racking up millions of dollars in expenditures, doing so most recently this week after the Justice Department reported that the special counsel's office had spent roughly $16.7 million on expenses in just over a year of investigation.

"A.P. has just reported that the Russian Hoax Investigation has now cost our government over $17 million, and going up fast. No Collusion, except by the Democrats!" Trump tweeted Friday.

But that number is dwarfed by the amount required to pay for the president's numerous trips to the "Winter White House," which Washington Post and Politico analyses have estimated to cost taxpayers on average between $1 million and $3 million dollars per trip.

As of Dec. 26, Trump had spent 39 days at Mar-a-Lago in 2017. Trump took his 17th trip to the property in April, according to Town and Country magazine.

The figure also comes in spite of Trump's frequent attacks aimed at his predecessor, former President Barack Obama.

Trump, who has been criticized for his frequent outings to Trump properties, particularly golf courses, has invoked his own criticism of Obama's golfing trips on numerous occasions. Trump surpassed the pace of Obama's golf outings, making 56 total trips so far compared to Obama's 37 at the same point in his presidency, according to Politifact.

A White House spokeswoman claimed last year that despite Trump's fondness for golf, his visits to Mar-a-Lago have been "work" excursions.

"He is not vacationing when he goes to Mar-a-Lago. The president works nonstop every day of the week, no matter where he is," a White House spokeswoman said in February.