Post-White House Secret Service for Trump's Adult Children and Staff Cost $1.7M: Report

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty The Trump family at the Republican National Convention in August 2020

The six months of extra Secret Service protection approved by outgoing President Donald Trump for his four adult children and other staffers before leaving office cost taxpayers $1.7 million, according to spending documents analyzed by The Washington Post.

PEOPLE confirmed in January that Trump had extended the protection for his kids for six months when he left Washington, D.C., with a Secret Service source saying that the former president, 74, issued the last-minute extension as a "transition period" for Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump (and her husband, Jared Kushner), Eric Trump (and his wife Lara Trump) and Tiffany Trump.

The source added that some other non-Trump family members were also given an extended period of security but could not provide names.

The Post reported that former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Trump's former Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and former National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien were among those granted extended protection.

On Friday, the Post reported the high cost of that extra protection, including that that the U.S. government paid up to $3,000 each for plane tickets and $11,000 for rooms at the St. Regis Doha during a trip Mnuchin took to the Middle East in June.

"In all, the records show U.S. taxpayers spent more than $52,000 to guard a multimillionaire on a business trip," the paper reported.

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Mnuchin, 58, was previously an investment banker and film producer prior to joining the Trump cabinet as secretary of the Treasury.

A spokesperson for Mnuchin told the paper that he did not ask Trump to provide the extra Secret Service protection but also did not turn it down on the advice of "government officials." The spokesperson added that Mnuchin intends to reimburse some of the costs but did not elaborate further.

As the Post notes, the Secret Service's $2.4 billion budget is more than enough to cover the unusual request for extra coverage. The protection is still notable, however, as it extends to adults (like Trump's elder sons) who had no official role in government and seemingly have enough wealth to pay for their own security as private citizens.

Brendan Smialowski/Getty From left: Donald Trump, Melania Trump and son Barron Trump at the Republican National Convention in August 2020

The Secret Service is required by law to protect ex-presidents and their spouses for life, but is only required to protect their children until they turn 16.

Some presidents have requested extra protection for their children for a short time after leaving office, but usually in those cases the children were college-aged or younger.

In a June interview on Good Morning America, former President Bill Clinton said that he worried about daughter Chelsea's safety following the events of Sept. 11, 2001, and took it upon himself to hire security to ensure she was okay, though he was months removed from office.

Chelsea, now 41, was at that point living in New York and attending college.

"We did get security for her, headed by a former Secret Service agent, for quite a while after 9/11," President Clinton said on GMA. "I was really worried then ... We tried to do the best we could to whatever point she felt comfortable, and if she didn't want it anymore, we didn't do it, but she was an adult and she can make the decision. But she realized that she was at some risk for a couple of years after 9/11."

The Obamas' daughters were teenagers when their father's term ended. President George W. Bush's daughters were 27 when he left office and did not continue to receive Secret Service protection.

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Trump's oldest child, Don Jr., is 43. Ivanka is 39, Tiffany is 27, and Eric is 37. By proximity, their children — Trump's grandchildren — have also received Secret Service protection in recent months.

Ivanka and Kushner, have three young children. Eric, and Lara, 38, have two young kids. Don Jr. has five children from a previous marriage to Vanessa Trump.

President Trump and former First Lady Melania Trump will be given Secret Service protection for the remainder of their lives, while the Post reported earlier that their 15-year-old son Barron will continue receiving protection until he's 16.

The former president's office did not respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on the report. The Secret Service sent the following statement: "As a matter of practice, the U.S. Secret Service does not discuss protective operations or protectees."