Sept. 29, 2017 — Tom Price, President Donald Trump’s secretary of wellbeing and human services, resigned Friday evening within the wake of revelations he had used constitution flights at taxpayers’ expense.
The declaration came shortly after Trump had told correspondents he considered Cost a “fine man” but that he “didn’t like the optics,” the Washington Post reported.
“I’m not happy, I can tell you that. I’m not cheerful,” Trump said.
Cost will be replaced for the time being by Don Wright, who was declared as acting secretary. Wright had been serving as delegate right hand secretary for wellbeing and chief of the Office of Malady Avoidance and Health Advancement.
In a four-page letter of renunciation to Trump, Cost said he regretted “that the later events have created a diversion” from the administration’s targets. “Victory on these issues is more vital than any one individual,” the Post detailed.
A one-time congressman from the Atlanta suburbs, Cost served less than eight months.
The disclosure of Price’s use of constitution planes rather than commercial ones has incited scrutiny of other Cabinet members’ travel.
Price wrote a check for $51,887.31 for his possess travel costs. The entire cost of his travels, including his escort, was hazy, but could be as tall as a few hundred thousand dollars, the Related Press detailed.