WASHINGTON _ President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he was "not happy" about Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price's repeated use of taxpayer-funded expensive charter flights, and did not rule out firing the Cabinet member.
"I'm not happy about it. I am not happy about it. I'm going to look at it," said Trump. Asked if Price's job was on the line, he replied: "We'll see."
Politico has documented more than two dozen charter flights taken by Price, to the tune of more than $400,000. They included visits to a resort where he owns land and a lunch with his son.
His department's inspector general is probing the flights, and the House Oversight Committee has asked the White House and various agencies to turn over information about private flights.
Such flights are typically not allowed if there are cheaper commercial options, which Politico said there were for Price's flights.
Trump's remarks were the latest example of the White House distancing itself from Price's actions. On Monday, asked about the flights during a media briefing, press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that "this wasn't White House-approved travel."
