South Carolina taxpayers didn’t foot bill for McMaster’s, Evette’s New Hampshire trip to rally for Trump

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) — South Carolina’s top two elected officials did not charge taxpayers with the cost of flying to New Hampshire where they stood beside Donald Trump at a Jan. 20 political rally.

News13 asked Gov. Henry McMaster’s office for details on the trip’s expenses this week after a viewer emailed us with questions on whether public dollars were used to send him and Lt. Gov Pamela Evette to the Granite State event.

“The Office of the Governor did not expend any state funds in connection with this event. The governor traveled to and from the event via private flight, which will be reflected on his Statement of Economic Interest for 2024,” McMaster spokesman Brandon Charochak said Thursday in an email to News13.

“The lieutenant governor traveled by commercial flight, and she personally paid for the coach airfare. The governor and lieutenant governor were each accompanied by a staff member who attended the weekend event on their personal time,” Charochak said.

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Currently, South Carolina has two airplanes in its fleet, a nine-seat King Air 350 and six-seat King Air C90. It costs $1,875 and $,1250 an hour respectively to book them, according to South Carolina Aeronautics Commission billing rates.

News13 reviewed flight logs and manifests posted to the Aeronauatics Commission’s website and found that neither plane was used on the date of Trump’s event.

A roundtrip economy class ticket from Columbia Metropolitan Airport to Manchester-Boston Regional Airport is about $400 a person.

In 2017, when he was still lieutenant governor, McMaster was the first statewide elected official to endorse Trump. He also offered his nominating speech at the Republican National Convention.

Trump remains a heavy favorite in South Carolina’s Feb. 24 GOP primary, where he holds a nearly 30-point lead over former Gov. Nikki Haley.

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