Main Page

To get the ball rolling, we are giving away a free tee shirt to those who make legitimate and substantial contributions to our hunt for White House expenses! As soon as you have posted, the administrators will review your entry and then send you an email asking you to select your free tee shirt. This offer applies to posting of new content, but not to posting articles to the In the News section.

Phase One: The Total Cost of the Whole White House

As the federal government’s activities varied and broad, the first section of the Federal Budget we are focusing on is the Total Cost of the Whole White House. This is a tiny portion of the federal budget, but it's an important symbolic starting point. In a democracy, accountability should include everyone – even the president.

This includes 23 different categories:
_{(These categories are based on the research of the Bush White House by long time White house administrator and scholar Bradley Patterson. Read more about his work)}

• Compensation of the President
• The Executive Residence Operating Expenses
• The Executive Residence Repair and Restoration
• The Vice President's Downtown Office
• Residence of the Vice President Operating Expenses
• The White House Office
• Office of Policy Development
• National Security Council
• One-eighth of the Office of Administration
• The President's Unanticipated Needs
• White House Center Service Delivery Team
• U.S. Postal Service, White House Branch
• National Archives Professional Support of the White House
• Value of gifts supplied by the Department of State
• White House Communications Agency
• Air Force One
• Helicopter Squadron HMX-One
• Camp David
• Salary Costs for the White House Communications Agency, Air Force One, HMX-One, and Camp David
• U.S. Secret Service
• Commission of the White House Fellowships
• National Park Service White House Liaison Office
• Cost of Detailees (who work for more than 6 months in a calendar year)

This site is not about ideology – various contributors may favor or oppose individual government programs.

We are about facts and numbers; where dollars are actually going.

The US government and others provide excellent general information at a high level about government spending, but we're going to go in to much more detail. (For big picture information or general overviews, visit the government sites at usaspending.gov and recovery.gov)

Think of this wiki as a treasure hunt; it's our treasure, and we're on the hunt to find out how it's actually being used.

• 
  Air Force One
  In the year 2000, it cost $56,518 per hour to fly the President in his heavily modified Boeing 747. We need up to date data on Air Force One costs!
  
  • Read more about Air Force One, and contribute expenses details now!

• 
  Camp David
  In 2008, the total cost of Camp David services provided to the White House were $7.9 million. We need up to date and more specific data on the running costs of Camp David!
  
  • Read more about Camp David, and contribute expenses details now!

You can use some of the links on our Resources page to help you.

• -The Obama Bubble
  

  November 27, 2010 An editorial by Peggy Noonan on Obama's efforts to escape the White House Bubble Read more at Wall Street Journal

  • Return to Main Page
• -Obama Sets New Travel Expense Record
  

  November 25, 2010 Obama has set a new record for presidential travel expenses Read more at Fox News

  • Return to Main Page
• -Members of Congress Get Richer During Recession
  

  November 17, 2010 Members of Congress Get Richer During Recession Read more at CNBC

  • Return to Main Page
• -The Environment And Health Care
  

  November 15, 2010 John F. Groom is a writer and publisher with multiple credits in a variety of media. One of his latest projects is entitled The 1.8 Billion Dollar Man, and is currently available as an e-book*. However, the book is far from a partisan screed. Instead, the work provides an introduction into just how large and often wasteful the federal bureaucracy has become. Among many other findings, Groom discovered that even after adjusting for inflation, the entire Palace of Versailles could be completely rebuilt every single year for what it costs to support the current US President. The environmental angle here is really quite simple. No organization can be Green, or even claim to support such a notion if it is this big and bloated. Moreover, under these rubrics, there cannot be some sort of exemption for the White House, just because it is the White House. Either the future of the planet is at stake, or it isn't. Of course, Obama's is by no means the first profligate White House. Read more at HealthNewsDigest.com

  • Return to Main Page
• -The White House Bubble: President Barack Obama as the $1.8 Billion Man
  

  November 5, 2010 Following what he called a "shellacking", President Barack Obama remarked on how it's easy to lose touch with voters while living in the White House "bubble." He also commented on the need to reduce wasteful spending and to be able to relate to the economic pain of ordinary Americans. For the first time Attitude Media (http://www.taxpayertreasurehunt.com) and John F. Groom have determined what the White House Bubble really costs, and just how removed the president is from the lifestyle of ordinary Americans. Read more at PRWeb.com

  • Return to Main Page
• -John F. Groom Debuts 'The $1.8 Billion Dollar Man': 23 Categories Responsible for the Cost of the Obama White House
  

  October 21, 2010 John F. Groom (http://www.johnfgroom.com/products-page/e-books/the-1-8-billion-dollar-man/), a distinguished author and media analyst, announces the debut of his newest book: The $1.8 Billion Dollar Man. The book catalogues the 23 categories responsible for the $1.8 billion cost of the Obama White House, making this administration the most expensive presidency in history. This non-partisan analysis includes Groom's overview of everything from the president's salary to the cost of operating Air Force One to running the Vice President's office to maintaining Camp David to financing the resources that symbolize this presidency. Readers can learn more about The $1.8 Billion Dollar Man at http://www.taxpayertreasurehunt.com, where Groom dissects these figures alongside a variety of complementary news sources. Read more at PRWeb.com

  • Return to Main Page
• View older news