| $2,651,429.14. That's the estimate of how taxpayer money Texas Governor Rick Perry spent on his 160-day amateur presidential campaign. Here's how we crunched the numbers: According to records released by the Texas Department of Public Safety and published by the Texas Tribune, we can project Perry’s security costs from the day he officially announced his candidacy (August 13, 2011) to the time he suspended his campaign (January 19, 2012). Here is the total amount of taxpayer dollars spent during the 24-day window for which Texas DPS has released records: | September 5 – September 28 (24 days) |
|---|
| Airfare | $161,786 | | Baggage fees | $8,140 | | Food | $50,648.84 | | Fuel | $6,442.24 | | Lodging | $112,111.81 | | Parking | $2,990.26 | | Rentals | $54,356.65 | | Other | $1,238.57 | | TOTAL COSTS | $397,714.37 |
That gives us one look into the window. But what about the weeks before and after? We can project the costs from August 13 to September 4 and from September 29 to January 19 based on the exact figures we have. Our estimates show Perry’s security costs as follows: | Rick Perry’s Security Travel Costs During his Presidential Campaign |
|---|
| Time Period | Security costs | | August 13 – September 4 (23 days) | $381,142.94 (estimated) | | September 5 – September 28 (24 days) | $397,714.37 (exact) | | September 29 – January 19 (113 days) | $1,872,571.83 (estimated) | | TOTAL (160 DAYS) | $2,651,429.14 (estimated) |
Thankfully, Perry has options: he has nearly 93% of what he owes taxpayers in his state PAC. With $2,471,479.55 in his state account, that means he'd be only $179,949.59 in debt to the taxpayers of Texas -- provided he uses his state account to reimburse the state for his travel, of course. Should Perry run into trouble with the rest of his debt, I'm sure he can tap his new national donor base and the extra money he receives each year from his double-dip of retirement and salary from the job he technically has both retired from and still holds -- Governor of the State of Texas. With a budget battle looming and conservatives threatening to go through another round of drastic cuts, the $2.65 million Perry owes taxpayers should be repaid immediately. Related Posts on BOR: |
