(cache) Mar-a-Lago membership fees double to $200k - Axios
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Mar-a-Lago membership fees double to $200k

Mberjano / Flickr CC

Trump's Palm Beach resort, Mar-a-Lago, doubled its joining fee to $200k on Jan. 1 thanks to the president's November win, according to CNBC. It is unclear whether the fee increase is a result in demand for membership.

On top of initiation fees, members also cough up $4k a year in annual dues.

Why this matters: The membership hike comes at a time when the Trump Organization is fending off criticism about conflicts of interest. However, the CEO of Trump Hotels said yesterday that the Organization is looking to expand from having properties in 5 major U.S. metropolitan areas to the existing 26.

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Here are the losers of the Trump Rally. Sad!

The S&P 500 has climbed 6.6% since Donald Trump was elected president. Not everyone has gotten in on the party.

Retail stocks have taken a beating because fewer people are going to offline stores and and investors are predicting that tax reform will hurt those who sell imported goods. The worst performers since November 8th:

Data: Money.net; Chart: Andrew Witherspoon / Axios

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Trump's disconnect on torture

Evan Vucci / AP

Text of draft executive order on torture: "No person in the custody of the United States shall at any time be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, as proscribed by U.S. law."

Trump to ABC's David Muir: "I have spoken as recently as 24 hours ago with people at the highest level of intelligence, and I asked them the question, 'Does it work? Does torture work?' and the answer was, 'Yes, absolutely.'"

Caveat: Trump said that he'd go along with his Secretary of Defense and CIA Director's belief that the United States does not torture.

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Trump introduces his 2 immigration executive orders

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

POTUS went to Homeland Security, where he spoke on immigration.

  1. He introduced his 2 executive actions: He'll build the wall, hire more border patrol, crack down on sanctuary cities and take action against countries that don't accept the return of deported citizens.
  2. He read off the names of family members of those killed by illegal immigrants, a regular event at his campaign rallies.
  3. He promised John Kelly, the retired general confirmed as head of Homeland Security, will get the job done.
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The Republican budget dilemma, in one video

There's a lot packed into this 46-second clip of Rep. Mick Mulvaney, the conservative Republican nominated to run Trump's OMB, being confronted over Trump's promise to balance the budget while cutting taxes and refusing to cut entitlements. It neatly summarizes the fiscal clash that seems inevitable between the White House and the Hill.



The key exchange:

Corker: "Mr. Trump did say some things during the campaign that I wish he had not said. They're totally unrealistic, make no sense whatsoever. And I just wonder if your sense that when you talk with him about the five levers and when you talk with him about the fact that it's impossible for us to balance the budget with 31% of our spending being discretionary without dealing with these other programs, do you think he understands that?"
Mulvaney: "I have to imagine the President knew what he was getting when he asked me to fill this role."
Corker: "So you think he understands that we have to deal with all of these issues?"
Mulvaney: "I'd like to think it's why he hired me."

Why this matters: Trump's pledges don't add up — a fact colorfully acknowledged by the staunch Trump ally, Tennessee Sen. Bob Corker. Mulvaney, one of the chief fiscal hawks in the House, knows this all too well, and his relationship with Trump could prove contentious if the President favors deficit spending.

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How Trump will build his Mexican border wall

The issue

President Trump unveiled today an executive action to get to work on his wall on our border with Mexico.

The facts

Trump wants a 1,000 mile wall, constructed of concrete and steel, between 35-60 feet high. The other 1,000 miles of the border won't need a wall because of natural obstacles, including mountains and deserts. Trump says the wall will cost $8-12 billion, but the MIT Technology Review took a more critical look and predicts between $27-40 billion.

There's already about 650 miles of fencing on the border, courtesy of a 2006 law signed by George W. Bush. The effort focused on high traffic areas for border crossings of illegal immigrants and drugs, and cost a little less than $3 billion. Previous attempts to build a bigger wall or install more high fencing stalled in Congress.

Data: OpenStreetMap; Map: Lazaro Gamio / Axios

What's next

Trump plans to have Congress pay for the first part of the wall using that 2006 law. He claims he'll get Mexico to pay us back using NAFTA re-negotiations and by potentially freezing remittances from Mexican nationals in the United States. Mexico says that won't happen.

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Trump takes action on border wall

Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP

At the Department of Homeland Security today he signed an executive order to build the wall.

"We've been talking about this right from the beginning."
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Spicer's Day 3: Unveiling Trump executive actions

Evan Vucci / AP

  1. Executive order #1 today: "Border Security and Immigration Enforcement improvements": Builds the wall and Mexico pays for it ("his goal was to get the project started...and then move forward to work with Congress on an appropriations schedule"), ends catch and release, and establishes detainment centers along border.
  2. Executive order #2 today: "Enhancing Public Safety on the Interior of the United States": ends sanctuary cities ("there's a taxpayer issue here") and directs federal agencies to abide by immigration policy — includes nothing specific regarding DACA policy.
  3. That draft executive order on CIA black sites: Trump hasn't seen it. "It is not a White House document. I don't know where it came from or where it originated."
  4. Investigation into voter fraud: Spicer implied the investigation is going to focus on bigger states. "This isn't just about the 2016 election. It's about the integrity of our voting system."
  5. @BadlandsNPS and the EPA: The White House didn't crack down on the social media activity of government agencies. He said that directive would come from the agencies themselves.
  6. Extreme vetting: Details on Trump's plan to restrict visas from various Middle Eastern countries still forthcoming, but his "guiding principle is keeping people safe."
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Nancy Pelosi says she "felt sorry" for Donald Trump

J. Scott Applewhite / AP

After Trump tweeted out he would be launching an investigation into his voter fraud claims, Nancy Pelosi said "to undermine the integrity of our voting system is really strange" as the president, per an AP report. She also lambasted him for being "insecure" about his election win.

I frankly feel very sad about the president making this claim. I felt sorry for him. I even prayed for him. But then I prayed for the United States of America.
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Trump on life at the White House

Evan Vucci / AP

Maggie Haberman of the NYT has a look inside the first few days in a Trumped-up White House:

  • A portrait of Andrew Jackson now hangs in the Oval Office.
  • Trump's first vacation? Mar-a-Lago, maybe as soon as next weekend.
  • Choice POTUS quote #1: "These are the most beautiful phones I've ever used in my life."
  • Choice POTUS quote #2: "There's something very special when you know that Abraham Lincoln slept there. The Lincoln Bedroom, you know, was his office, and the suite where I'm staying is actually where he slept."
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American history since 1985, visualized by the Dow Jones average

Data: Yahoo Finance; Chart: Lazaro Gamio / Axios

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