It was a tough week for Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.
And, we believe, she deserved every bit of it.
DeVos came under fire from the public and government officials last week while defending her proposed cut of all federal funding to the Special Olympics. The cut would have taken $17.6 million from the organization, or about 10 percent of the program's overall revenue. At the same time, DeVos proposed an increase of $60 million to fund charter schools.
She faced a barrage of attacks during a House subcommittee hearing on the cut.
"Once again, I still can't understand why you would go after disabled children in your budget. You've zeroed that out. It's appalling," Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., said during the hearing.
Appalling. Callous. Heartless.
Following public outcry, President Donald Trump announced Thursday a change in course.
"The Special Olympics will be funded. I just told my people, 'I want to fund the special Olympics,' " Trump told reporters.
Before you give Trump a pat on the back for standing up for the little guy, remember this is not the first time his administration has sought to defund the program. DeVos has targeted it every year she has been in at the helm of the Education Department.
Congress - Republicans and Democrats alike - fended off previous efforts.
Based on history, we suspect this won't be the last time the Trump administration and DeVos target the program.
Fortunately, there is a simple solution - Trump can spend a few more weekends at the White House.
According to the Washington Post, Trump has taken 19 trips to Mar-a-Lago during his presidency.
A January report from the United States Government Accountability Office found taxpayers paid $13.6 million for Trump to visit his private club Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Fla., four times early in his presidency.
That amounts to $3.4 million per trip.
If the average cost held true, the president's getaways at his own private resort have cost taxpayers at least $64.6 million - and these figures do not include Trump's other vacationing spots, which are too numerous to list in the space available.
Everyone - even the president - deserves a break from work now and then, but it seems a bit excessive for a man who said before he was elected president that he would not have time for vacations. For comparison, according to government watchdog group Judicial Watch, former President Barack Obama and his family spent roughly $115 million of taxpayer money on travel during his entire eight-year tenure. Trump is on pace to top Obama's spending - in as little as one term.
The next time Trump considers cutting programs providing for our most vulnerable citizens, he should first consider taking a few less vacations.
