Donald Trump has been working to cut federal spending and reduce government jobs through the Department of Government Efficiency (Doge), which is headed by tech billionaire Elon Musk.
The department recently stated on its website that it had saved $55 billion in federal spending since Trump took office on January 20.
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These savings were achieved through contract cancellations, workforce reductions, and asset sales.
Both Musk and Trump have remained firm on reducing government expenditure and easing the burden on taxpayers. Among their most notable measures was a major overhaul of
USAID, the primary US foreign aid agency, which funds projects in multiple countries. They also claimed to have “saved taxpayers over $1 billion in crazy DEI [diversity, equity, and inclusion] contracts”.
However, amid these cost-cutting efforts, concerns have emerged over the President’s personal expenses, particularly his golf trips.
How much taxpayer money is being spent on these trips? What other unnecessary expenditures are being made?
US President’s golf trips
Trump and his associates have been spending public funds on various extravagant activities, even as his administration, along with Musk’s team, has made deep cuts to essential government functions. Agencies dismissed as “waste” have faced huge reductions.
Donald Trump gestures to supporters gathered for a Presidents Day rally. AP
Expenses have included a trip to the Super Bowl, a joyride at the Daytona 500, and golf outings at Doral, MSNBC News reported.
Regarding his golf trips, Trump has reportedly spent nearly $11 million (approximately Rs 95.33 crore) in taxpayer money on the sport since returning to office, according to HuffPost.
The report said that he has played golf at his own resorts on nine out of his first 30 days in office, with a golf trip taking place each weekend since his inauguration on January 20.
The precise figure, $10.7 million, is based on a 2019 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), which detailed the costs of Trump’s early visits to Mar-a-Lago, his private club in Palm Beach, Florida, during his first term.
Doge’s social media accounts have not mentioned the word “golf” or acknowledged the president’s recreational trips, HuffPost noted.
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How much does he spend on each golf trip?
The calculations were based on
Trump’s initial trips to Mar-a-Lago during his first term, with the GAO estimating each visit cost $3,383,250.
Approximately one-third of this amount was spent on Air Force One flights for the round trip. Further costs included transporting vehicles such as two presidential limousines for Trump’s motorcade and reimbursing the Coast Guard for deploying a gunship in the Atlantic Ocean and heavily armed patrol boats in the Intracoastal Waterway.
These figures, calculated in 2017 dollars, are likely higher today, the report noted.
Three of Trump’s four-weekend trips have been to his golf course in West Palm Beach while visiting Mar-a-Lago, with another trip to his Miami Doral resort. However, HuffPost adjusted the overall cost estimates as some flights were classified as official White House business.
Donald Trump drives a golf cart at the Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia. Reuters/File Photo
Jordan Libowitz, from the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, told the publication, “It’s clear that when the Trump administration considers the definition of corruption and wasteful spending, it doesn’t count spending that ends up in the president’s pockets.”
“By visiting his for-profit businesses roughly a third of his days in office, Trump is directing government spending to follow him there, and profiting off the trip.”
According to previous HuffPost analyses, Trump’s golf-related expenses during his first term – including taxpayer-funded travel and security – totalled $151.5 million. He spent 293 days at his own resorts, despite claiming during his 2016 campaign that he would be too busy for vacations.
How much did Trump spend on trip to Super Bowl?
On February 9, 2025, Donald Trump made history as the first sitting president to attend the
Super Bowl.
Fact-checking organisation Snopes estimated that Trump and his family’s trip to the Super Bowl in New Orleans cost taxpayers around $1 million.
This figure includes expenses such as air travel and Secret Service security. However, Snopes noted that this amount is likely “only a fraction of the total cost of Trump’s presence at the Super Bowl to American taxpayers.”
Over the same weekend, Trump also attended the Daytona 500, where Air Force One performed a flyover before his presidential limousine took a lap around the track. The cost of this trip has not been disclosed.
Doge and slashing of federal spending
Thousands of federal employees have
lost their jobs in the first month of President Donald Trump’s administration.
The White House introduced a “deferred resignation” proposal, offering financial incentives such as months of paid leave to employees who voluntarily left their positions by February 6.
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Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Reuters/File Photo
According to an AP report, at least 39 employees were dismissed from the Education Department, while the Department of Veterans Affairs announced the removal of over 1,000 staff members.
Hundreds of employees working on the nation’s nuclear weapons programs were laid off, and more than 5,000 probationary employees at the Department of Health and Human Services faced potential dismissal. Also, over 130 employees at the US Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency were affected by probationary cuts, around 1,000 newly hired National Park Service employees were let go, and several other departments witnessed similar firings.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported that
Musk’s cost-cutting initiative within the government has led to the cancellation of hundreds of contracts, claiming to have saved US taxpayers $8.5 billion so far.
On Wednesday, Doge said on its website that it had saved $55 billion in federal spending since Trump took office on January 20. However, DOGE acknowledged that the itemised figures for about 1,100 cancelled contracts and 100 terminated leases did not add up to $55 billion, adding that more data would be published on a rolling basis.
With inputs from agencies
