The Washington Post has reported that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) rejected a request by the Secret Service for additional funding that would cover President Trump's travel and protection. According to their report, the request was for an additional $60 million, with $26.8 mil of that amount to protect Trump and his family at Trump Tower and $33 mil to cover his travel costs, those of Vice President Pence and other visiting heads of state.

The Post obtained internal agency documents for the Secret Service which are part of their fiscal budget request for 2018.

The requests from the agency were reportedly prepared in late February. A summary of the documents was presented to the Secret Service who declined to comment but referred the Post to the Department of Homeland Security who also declined. The White House referred the Post to the OMB office who did not respond until after the media outlet published their report on Wednesday, to which they denied that they had rejected the request, saying that they provided funding.

Protecting President Trump's lifestyle

The Post quoted the executive director of the risk-mitigation company called RANE, Jonathan Wackrow, who was a Secret Service employee for 14-years who explained their stance on how they provide protecting.

"The Secret Service cannot dictate the lifestyle of the protectee. They have to work around it. I don’t think they expected him to go to Florida so often." Jonathan also suggested that the reality for the agency was unanticipated and that they, "had to quickly re­adjust operations.” This would appear to be the case as the Post -- though they were not given a breakdown of the costs -- said that security agents are protecting his immediate family, such as his children, who have been traveling worldwide to oversee President Trump's business interests.

The article also said that for the agency's fiscal budget in 2017, the Secret Service requested $734 million for operations and support, according to Department of Homeland Security documents. The article referred to W. Ralph Basham who was with the Secret Service under President Bush who said that the agency could not have foreseen the expenses they would undertake with the next president.

It's also suggested that some of the money could go to the Trump organization as the agency has been looking to rent out floors in Trump Tower to protect the President. The coverage of protection also extends to the Florida Mar-a-Lago resort and for Melania in New York. Of the $26.8 mil, roughly $12.5 mil is earmarked to cover "personnel related costs in New York."

Even more money for Secret Service

The report says that the documents still have some undisclosed finances. It stated that the $26.8 million would go to command centers, rental space, communication spaces, etc. But it also says that the undisclosed finances are for equipment and infrastructure at Trump Tower. The request even adds another $33 million, for the travel expenses of Secret Service agents, saying that they have to adapt quickly to some last minute changes and because of the variety of travel options presented.

President Trump has been criticized for taking vacations on almost every weekend since he became president with expensive flights on Air Force One to his Mar-a-Lago resort. That fact contradicts what then candidate Trump said on the campaign trail, according to the Post: “There’s no time for vacation. We’re not going to be big on vacations. The White House is this incredible place. It represents so much, and you’re there for a limited period. If you’re at the White House and you have so much work to do, why do you fly? Why do you leave so much?” When Press Secretary Sean Spicer was confronted with questions about the President's trips to Mar-a-Lago, he dismissed them by saying that because he's president seven days a week, that's where he takes people to and goes to see his family.