Ivanka Trump's family skiing 'funded by the taxpayer'
'Taxpayers can't afford Meals on Wheels anymore, but they can afford to pay for Trump's kids to vacation,' says critic
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Ivanka Trump has sparked outrage for the cost of her family’s spring break ski holiday in Colorado.
President Donald Trump’s daughter, her husband Jared Kushner, their children and the President’s other son Eric reportedly required 100 Secret Service agents to travel with the group for the trip.
The US Secret Service, funded by the US taxpayer, is reported to have spent $12,208 on rental ski equipment and clothing at the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club.
Fellow holiday-goers at the high-end ski resort in the Rocky Mountains voiced their anger about the Trump family’s presence. Some expressed their annoyance at struggling to get dinner reservations and increased traffic in their area.
Dozens of residents staged an impromptu protest to voice their opposition to the president’s cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency.
According to The Aspen Times, data on the Federal Procurement Data System found the secret service signed a contract last week for $12,208 for "lease or rental of equipment, clothing, individual equipment and insignia”.
But the ski club’s director told the local paper the club does not rent ski equipment and he knew nothing of the contract. "I see all the checks that come through here and I certainly didn't see one from the Secret Service," Mark Godomsky said. "For me, this is entirely out of the blue."
However, an anonymous Aspen area law enforcement source suggested the rental equipment might be for Secret Service agents protecting members of the Trump family while they are on their skiing trip.
Another anonymous law enforcement source said roughly 100 Secret Service agents were expected to accompany the family, saying: “It’s a big gathering”.
Secret Service agents are said to have communicated with local authorities ahead of the group’s arrival but did not ask for the Aspen Police Department’s help for the holiday.
People expressed their outrage about the skiing holiday and juxtaposed it’s said cost with the president’s recently announced extensive budget cuts to social programs.
"GOP: Taxpayers can't afford Meals on Wheels anymore, but they CAN afford to pay for Trump's kids to vacation," said one critic on Twitter.
"I'm not vacationing this year so that I can pay for Trump kids security to ski in Aspen this week. Hope I get a T-shirt," chipped in another.
Eric Trump’s wife Lara shared a photo of the billionaire family, including Mr Kushner who arrived late to the holiday, on the ski slopes on Monday. Eric, who is an executive of the Trump organisation alongside his brother Donald Jr, posted a photo of their two dogs.
Despite the fact the Trump children have taken a number of holidays in the lavish Aspen resort over the years, Mr Trump previously criticised former First Lady Michelle Obama’s trip to the same location, claiming it cost taxpayers substantial amounts of money.
“With 15 per cent US real unemployment and a 16T debt, @Michelle Obama's luxurious Aspen vacation - her 16th - cost us over $1m,” he claimed on Twitter in July 2012.
This is not the first time Ms Trump, a former executive of the Trump Organisation, has found herself at the centre of controversy. The first daughter recently came under fire for sharing a photo of her “date night” with her husband and senior Trump advisor, Mr Kushner, in the immediate aftermath of the President’s hard-line immigration ban.
She drew heavy criticism for sharing the posed photo of herself and Mr Kushner, a former property developer, while humanitarian chaos swept across airports around the world, with people accusing her of “extreme insensitivity” and labelling the photo “wildly offensive”, “inappropriate” and “tone deaf”.
The Independent contacted a representative of Ms Trump for comment.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments