Trump returns to New Hampshire after sticking taxpayers with police bills

Editor's note: The header was corrected.

When Donald Trump comes to town, local police departments send dozens of officers to keep law and order at the former president’s Make America Great Again rallies — but it’s the cities that often end up paying most of the bill to provide security for the campaign events.

Like Manchester, N.H.

Thirty-five officers supported Trump’s hotel rally on April 27 — clocking in 216.5 hours of overtime, costing an estimated $12,870 — according to Heather Hamel, public information officer with the Manchester Police Department and documents obtained by Raw Story through a New Hampshire Right-to-Know Law request.

Of the 35 police officers, the city government covered overtime costs for 33 of the officers. Manchester sent a bill for two of the officers on “extra detail” to the host venue for the rally, the DoubleTree by Hilton Manchester Downtown, according to Derek Cataldo, a lieutenant with the Manchester Police Department.

The DoubleTree’s general manager did not respond to Raw Story’s requests for comment.

“The campaign books an event at the venue, and the venue contacts us about hiring detail coverage,” Cataldo told Raw Story via email. “We did not deal directly with the campaign for this event.”

Trump, who is facing dozens of felony charges in two separate cases against him, is scheduled to be back in Manchester Tuesday for the New Hampshire Federation of Republican Women’s lilac luncheon and the opening of his campaign headquarters in New Hampshire, according to press releases from the Donald J. Trump for President 2024 team.

It’s likely that Manchester taxpayers will be paying most of the police bill again — it could range well into five figures, if not higher — as Manchester officials have chosen not to bother trying to get Trump to help defray the cost.

With New Hampshire historically hosting the first presidential primary, when candidates come to town, the Manchester Police Department has to decide whether or not the department will cover the security costs for political rallies. "Each event is assessed and dealt with on a case-by-case basis," Hamel said.

Others have gotten Trump to pay up, with little success. Trump racked up nearly $2 million in unpaid, public safety-related municipal bills through 2020, according to an Insider tally. Since then, other city governments have tried, and failed, to recoup public safety costs from Trump, according to the Daily Beast.

This has prompted some city governments — particularly those that own the facilities Trump wants to use for campaign events — to prepare strongly worded contracts ahead of time to ensure payment for the public services needed for the rallies.

For example, officials in Waco, Texas, compelled Trump’s team to sign a 10-page contract ahead of his March 25 rally at the city-owned Waco Regional Airport, requiring the Trump campaign to cover the $60,000 bill, Raw Story reported.

In Des Moines, even though the event was ultimately canceled due to potential tornadoes in the area, the Trump campaign signed an eight-page contract and got a $12,900 bill for rent ahead of his scheduled May 13 rally, Raw Story reported.

While the Secret Service remains Trump's primary protection force, the Secret Service also routinely requests aid from local police officials, who have little choice in whether to provide it. Local police must also deal with issues such as traffic and crowd control that affect their broader communities during a Trump visit, which can attract thousands of supporters.

Trump is continuing to have an active campaign schedule despite facing a federal indictment consisting of 37 felony counts related to the alleged willful retention of classified documents and conspiracy to conceal them. The weekend before appearing in court on June 13, Trump spoke at both the Georgia and North Carolina State GOP conventions.

Trump is also facing unrelated felony charges in New York City.

Federal investigators continue probing Trump’s involvement in the January 6 insurrection, and officials in Fulton County, Georgia, are also investigating whether Trump tampered with the results of the state’s 2020 presidential vote.

Trump has made conflicting comments about law enforcement over the years — like in 2020 when he referred to former FBI director James Comey as a "dirty cop," but shortly after portrayed “our great Police" as heroes, according to The New York Times. This week, Florida's largest police union endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis over Trump, whom it supported in 2020, saying, "the choice for us could not be clearer."

The Trump campaign could not be reached for comment.

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to include new information from the Manchester Police Department, including the cost of police detail.