Taxpayers will cover most of the cost of Jill Biden’s whirlwind flights between Wilmington, Delaware, and France so she can be at his son Hunter’s side during his federal gun trial, although the Democratic Party will provide some funding.
The first lady racked up $345,400 in flight costs, the National Taxpayers Union Foundation estimated, while traveling between the United States and France last week, traveling separately from her husband Joe Biden so she could support her family at home and at the same time time representing the United States abroad. .
His political party will reimburse the government for what it would cost to fly commercially and taxpayers will foot the rest of the bill.
“In accordance with relevant regulations used in all administrations, the value of a first-class fare for these flights to Wilmington and back to Paris is reimbursed to the government,” Jill Biden’s office told DailyMail.com in a statement. .
The Democratic National Committee, which is funded by donors, will be the entity providing the reimbursement, a White House official told DailyMail.com.
The East Wing did not provide the dollar amount being reimbursed. He also did not say who paid for the assistants traveling with the first lady.
But a one-way first class trip from Philadelphia to Paris costs $6,655, according to a Google flights search.
Jill Biden spent 24 hours on a plane over the span of three days so she could alternate between being by her son and husband’s side, logging four days at the Delaware courthouse and three days in France. She returned to the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building in Wilmington on Monday.
First lady Jill Biden arrives at the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building on Monday, June 10, 2024 in Wilmington, Delaware.
Jill Biden’s trip last week: On Tuesday night she flew from Washington DC to Wilmington, Delaware; On Wednesday afternoon she flew from Wilmington to Paris; On Thursday she flew from Paris back to Wilmington and on Friday she returned to Paris.
The White House Military Office determines the final charge on the ticket and handles billing. It typically charges the cost of a first-class fare to those not traveling on government business, such as members of the media.
First Ladies usually travel on the plane a Boeing C-32. The Air Force lists the reimbursable fee for use of this aircraft at $13,816 per hour, the National Taxpayers Union Foundation told DailyMail.com.
The group discusses official government travel as part of its work, including the hourly rate to operate Air Force One.
According to TravelMath.com, a flight from Paris, France to Wilmington, Delaware, takes 8 hours. That would put the cost of each leg of the trip at $110,528. Adding the three flights between France and Wilmington, plus Jill Biden’s one-hour flight from Washington DC to Wilmington on Tuesday, is a total of $345,400.
As first lady, Jill Biden does not have the option to fly commercially due to security requirements. Wherever she travels, she is accompanied by her Secret Service detachments and various assistants along with logistical support personnel.
She has logged a full day of air time to be at her son’s side as he fought federal gun charges and then to join her husband as he honored D-Day veterans on the 80th anniversary of Normandy.
The first lady flew to Wilmington on Tuesday night. The president dropped her off on her plane on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews and then boarded Air Force One to travel to Paris.
Jill Biden spent Wednesday in the courtroom and then traveled to France that night.
He spent Thursday at D-Day festivities in Normandy and, that night, returned to Wilmington so he could spend Friday in the courtroom. She then flew back to France on Friday night and arrived early Saturday morning to be on the ground for the official state visit.
He spent Saturday at an event with French first lady Brigitte Macron and later attended the state dinner with the president. She returned to the United States with the president on Air Force One on Sunday.
Jill Biden was in France to support President Joe Biden, above the couple at the final stop of their trip at the American Cemetery in Belleau, France.
Brigitte Macron, French President Emmanuel Macron, US President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden at the Elysee Palace for Saturday night’s state dinner.
Jill Biden and Brigette Macron toured the Louis Vuitton Foundation
Hunter Biden and his wife Melissa Cohen arrive at court on Monday
Despite extensive travel, Jill Biden seemed energetic while in France. When she and Brigitte Macron toured an art exhibition at the Louis Vuitton Foundation on Saturday, she asked several questions. She and Macron chatted about art and, at one point, held hands and laughed.
For the state dinner, she wore a custom navy velvet Schiaparelli dress with a billowing scarf tied around her waist that fell behind her like a train.
But the first lady faced questions about her extensive travels.
“The White House should be more transparent about these costs so taxpayers are not misled,” Demian Brady, vice president of research at the National Taxpayers Union Foundation, told DailyMail.com.
“While I appreciate that the First Lady wants to support her son during this difficult trial, traveling to the trial should be a personal expense, not a taxpayer expense,” said David Williams, president of the Alliance to Protect Taxpayers.
Jill Biden spent most of last week in federal court in Wilmington, including her birthday on Monday and Friday, when her oldest granddaughter, Naomi Biden, testified on behalf of her father Hunter.
The Bidens have emphasized their faith in Hunter and remain close as he fights charges that he lied on a federal form when he bought a gun in 2018.
If convicted of lying about his drug use on a federal form when he purchased a Colt Cobra revolver, he could face up to 25 years in prison.
Two of the charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, while the rest have a maximum of five.
Each also carries a maximum fine of $250,000.
As it would be his first crime, it is not clear if he would serve any prison sentence.
On Sunday, instead of returning to the White House, the Bidens flew the 3,600 miles from Paris to Wilmington, Delaware, to be there on Monday, when Hunter Biden could take the stand.
Jill Biden was in the courtroom, as was Hunter’s sister Ashley and her aunt Valerie Biden Owens.
“She’s his mother and he’s on trial, so of course she wants to be there as much as humanly possible,” Elizabeth Alexander, the first lady’s communications director, told CNN of the first lady.
“It’s something that many parents, and maybe especially mothers, feel, that when your children need you, no matter how old they are, they are always your children and you always want to be there to support them.” she added.
