Talk about an empty gesture. And also not a charity.
President Trump has donated his salary from his first few months in office to the National Park Service, making good on a campaign pledge to forego a presidential paycheck.
His gift represents a small fraction, however, of the money the Park Service stands to lose if Trump’s budget were adopted.
Instead of collecting a salary of $400,000 a year, Trump has volunteered to donate that money to charity. He chose the Park Service as the beneficiary of his first installment, $78,333, which covers the first ten weeks Trump was in office.
Zinke hinted, however, that the president’s gift won’t go very far.
“We’re about $229 million behind in deferred maintenance on our battlefields alone,” he said.
Trump is proposing deep cuts to the Interior Department, which includes the Park Service. The president’s budget proposal for the coming fiscal year would trim $1.5 billion or 12 percent from the department’s budget. Ultimately, it’s up to Congress to determine how much money the department can spend.
Conservationists denounced Trump’s donation as a “publicity stunt.”
“If Donald Trump is actually interested in helping our parks, he should stop trying to slash their budgets to historically low levels,” said Michael Brune, executive director of the Sierra Club. “America’s parks, and the people and economies they support, need real funding, not a giant fake check. Parks are a good investment and we must invest now if we want them to be around for our kids,” Brune added.
KDK1 to KDK12…I’m sorry, Mrs. Torrance, due to budget cuts, we regretfully don’t have the funds to come up and rescue you from your crazy axe wielding husband. We recommend finding a secure location in the hotel, and locking yourself in until spring. Over and out.