- Trump spent the weeks after the election on mass election fraud.
- Its efforts to reverse the results have reportedly cost taxpayers more than $ 519 million so far.
- More than $ 488 million was for the safety of Capitol, while another $ 30 million was at government expense.
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Former President Donald Trump’s attempt to thwart the 2020 election by propagating unfounded claims of mass voter fraud has cost taxpayers more than $ 519 million, the Washington Post has found.
The Post calculated the cost from reviews of local, state and federal spending records and interviews with government officials. The costs included legal costs, damages due to the Capitol siege in January, military and security costs, and more.
Not long after the election was declared a victory for President Joe Biden, Trump falsely claimed that there was mass election fraud and said the election was stolen without evidence.
Trump and his Republican allies spent the weeks before Biden’s inauguration filing dozens of lawsuits in swing states to block the results, postpone certification or cast votes. They could not win any of them.
The Post has spent a total of $ 2.2 million on legal challenges and security for election officials.
Pennsylvania, for example, paid foreign lawyers as much as $ 480 an hour to work against Trump’s election fraud lawsuits.
During a Save America rally shortly before Congress began ratifying the vote on January 6, Trump told a crowd of supporters to march to the Capitol and still claimed fraud against mass voters. He also falsely claimed that Congress and Vice President Mike Pence could ‘certify’ the election results and give them a further term.
Not long after his speech, supporters trespassed on the U.S. Capitol and clashed with law enforcement. The riot resulted in the deaths of five people, including a police officer.
The House of Representatives has accused Trump of “inciting insurgency” for his role in the riot. The Senate will hold an indictment next week.
The riot led to a demand for increased security around lawmakers and the Capitol before the indictment.
National Guard troops were deployed after the attack in Washington, DC, and some will remain there until mid-March. The Post reports that the cost is at least $ 480 million. DC Metropolitan Police spent $ 8.8 million protecting the Capitol the week of the attack.
Costs for repairing the Capitol to repair the damage from the attack, costs for the US Park Police to clean up the National Mall, and costs for additional staff, overtime and medical bills of the Capitol Police are also still unknown.
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Members of Congress are also now using their publicly funded member representation grants, which come from taxpayers’ money, to secure personal protective resources, from bulletproof vests to private security details and security cameras, the Post reports.
Yogananda Pittman, acting chief of police of the Capitol, suggested last month that the fence installed around the Capitol building be kept permanent after the January 6 riot.
The move pushed local officials back, but if it were to be implemented, in addition to being approved by the Capitol Police Board, the House and Senate would also have to approve the strengthening of the building.
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States have so far also spent $ 28 million on security in connection with the uprising and inauguration, reports the Post.
The cost includes protecting their own state homes after the Capitol attack. For example, government officials in California spent about $ 19 million between January 14 and 21 on deploying National Guard and state troops to the State Capitol and elsewhere, according to the Post.
In Texas and North Carolina, taxpayers paid for helicopters to monitor potential protests, and in cities like Lansing, Michigan, and Olympia, Washington, they paid for temporary fencing and extra security details for state lawmakers going to legislative sessions.