Thread by @davelevinthal

1/ President Trump lavishes praise on police officers. But when cities send the Trump campaign bills for police protection at his #MAGA rallies, the Trump campaign doesn't pay. publicintegrity.org/federal-politi…

2/ Starting in March, @publici contacted the local governments in every place Trump has conducted a #MAGA rally since becoming president — more than 60 in all. Several said they were still waiting for Trump's campaign to pay bills.

@PublicI 3/ We also reached out to cities we knew had billed the Trump campaign for public safety-related costs during Election 2016. Several of them also said Trump's campaign had not paid bills.

@PublicI 4/ Taken together, the unpaid public safety bills municipal governments had sent the Trump campaign totaled more than $841,000, @publici found.

@PublicI 5/ The 10 cities that have formally asked the Trump campaign to pay police bills — to no avail — are:

@CityofGreenBay
@ElPasoTXGov
@CITYOFMESA
@EauClairePD
@SpokaneCity
@cityoftucson
@CityofEriePA
Billings, Montana
Lebanon, Ohio
Burlington, Vermont

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA 6/ Shouldn't the @SecretService cover police costs when the president comes to town for a campaign event? While they cover their own costs, they don't reimburse local police departments for law enforcement support they request:

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump 7/ Could city governments simply withhold public safety assistance from the @SecretService and Trump campaign during #MAGA rallies? Technically, yes. But no city appears willing to do so. This is why:

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs 8/ @publici reached out to the Trump campaign numerous times by phone and email to ask them about these police bills. Reached for comment, Trump campaign Director of Operations Sean Dollman referred questions to the campaign’s communications staff, which never responded.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs 9/ So what about the Democratic presidential candidates? Will their campaigns pay police bills they receive from cities that host their political rallies?

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs 10/ We asked every one. Their answers run the gamut. (Our story contains a video about that — h/t @SameeaKamal.)

Several Democratic presidential candidates — @corybooker, @ewarren, @ericswalwell and @BetoORourke — say they definitely will.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell 11/ Two of the three mayors in the race — @PeteButtigieg and @WayneMessam — also indicated their campaigns would pay public safety bills that municipal governments send them in conjunction with their campaign events. So did @marwilliamson.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson 12/ A few gave less-than-definitive answers, including @BernieSanders, @KamalaHarris and @AndrewYang.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson @BernieSanders @KamalaHarris @AndrewYang 13/ Several Democratic presidential candidates didn't respond to @publici's questions about whether their campaigns would pay public safety bills cities send them for their political events. Among them: @JoeBiden @BilldeBlasio @amyklobuchar @TulsiGabbard @TimRyan & @sethmoulton

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson @BernieSanders @KamalaHarris @AndrewYang @JoeBiden @BilldeBlasio @amyklobuchar @TulsiGabbard @TimRyan @sethmoulton 14/ And despite @SenGillibrand's U.S. Senate campaign last year saying she is “always supporting law enforcement,” Gillibrand's presidential committee did not return several requests for comment on whether it would pay public safety bills that cities send it.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson @BernieSanders @KamalaHarris @AndrewYang @JoeBiden @BilldeBlasio @amyklobuchar @TulsiGabbard @TimRyan @sethmoulton @SenGillibrand 15/ As for @realDonaldTrump's situation? It's notable that his campaign doesn't list any of these police bills as debt — disputed or otherwise — in his mandatory campaign finance reports. This is likely a violation of election law, several campaign attorneys tell @publici.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson @BernieSanders @KamalaHarris @AndrewYang @JoeBiden @BilldeBlasio @amyklobuchar @TulsiGabbard @TimRyan @sethmoulton @SenGillibrand @realDonaldTrump 16/ Congress could also get involved, if it so chooses.

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson @BernieSanders @KamalaHarris @AndrewYang @JoeBiden @BilldeBlasio @amyklobuchar @TulsiGabbard @TimRyan @sethmoulton @SenGillibrand @realDonaldTrump @ZoeLofgren @RepZoeLofgren 17/ In the meantime, what are cities to do if they want presidential campaigns to help cover public safety costs associated with their campaign rallies? Election law attorney Brett Kappel has a thought:

@PublicI @CityofGreenBay @ElPasoTXGov @CITYOFMESA @EauClairePD @SpokaneCity @cityoftucson @CityofEriePA @SecretService @TeamTrump @MjrCitiesChiefs @SameeaKamal @CoryBooker @ewarren @ericswalwell @BetoORourke @SenWarren @RepSwalwell @PeteButtigieg @WayneMessam @marwilliamson @BernieSanders @KamalaHarris @AndrewYang @JoeBiden @BilldeBlasio @amyklobuchar @TulsiGabbard @TimRyan @sethmoulton @SenGillibrand @realDonaldTrump @ZoeLofgren @RepZoeLofgren @Akerman_Law @leagueofcities @StateandFederal @usmayors 18/ Finally, @publici obtained dozens of Trump-related documents — bills, involves, canceled checks, demand letters, contracts — from various local governments. We published them all as part of this story. For now, sample: