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Thursday, April 10, 2014
Revealed: The Obamas' three-day trip to Ireland in 2013 cost taxpayers $7.6 million, and Michelle’s gigantic suite cost $3,300 per night
- Michelle Obama and her daughters stayed in the 'Princess Grace' presidential suite at one of Dublin's fanciest hotels
- The $3,300-per-night mini-palace includes butler service, two bedrooms and two bathrooms
- Her side trip during the Belfast G-8 meeting was billed as an official visit but she saw Riverdance, gawked at the Book of Kells and toured a national park
- Air Force One alone costs more than $228,000 to operate
The Obamas' three day trip to Ireland last June cost the taxpayer more than $7.6million, it was revealed today.
Michelle Obama spent more than $251,000 of taxpayers' money on a sightseeing jaunt to Dublin, Ireland while the first family was the official trip to Belfast, Northern Ireland.
She stayed in the $3,300-per-night 'Princess Grace' presidential suite at Dublin's tony Shelbourne Hotel, a sumptuous two-bedroom, two-bathroom lodging that measures 1,530 square feet and includes butler service and its own dining room.
President Obama an official visit to Belfast for a G-8 summit, and then to Berlin for official meetings, consuming 33.6 hours of Air Force One flight time.
According to Air Force documents published Wednesday by Judicial Watch, the president's private Boeing 747 costs $228,288 per hour to operate, bringing the flight expenses for the trip to a whopping $7.67 million.
'The First Lady will visit Trinity College, Ireland’s oldest university, where she will explore archives documenting the Obamas’ Irish ancestry in the Old Library and view the Book of Kells,' read the White House's media preview of the journey.
THE FINAL TALLY
The Obamas' 2013 Ireland trip cost more than $7.9 million, including the first lady's Dublin sightseeing tour. Here is a breakdown of the expenses, according to Judicial Watch:
Air Force One: $7,670,476.80
'Security' in Dublin: $251,161.86, including:
- Shelbourne Hotel: $55,004.85
- Westbury Hotel: $70,855.44
- Vehicle rentals: $114,721.00
'On June 18th, the First Lady will visit the Wicklow Mountains National Park.'
During brief remarks to children at the Riverdance performance, she said one of her daughters described the Trinity College library as 'like Hogwarts ... It's a huge room with shelf after shelf full of books; a beautiful place, and I hope that all of you aspire to go there.'
At the beginning of the speech, she erroneously thanked her host – 'Mrs. Kennedy' – before correcting herself.
Michelle, Sasha and Malia Obama then flew from Dublin to Berlin, where they rejoined the president on the last leg of the short but expensive trip.
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