Fact check: What is the total cost of conservative protests in the last 5 years

1. Summary of the results

The analyses reveal that no comprehensive data exists for the total cost of conservative protests specifically over the last 5 years. The sources provide fragmented information about protest-related costs, but focus primarily on different types of events and timeframes.

The most substantial cost data relates to the 2020 protests following George Floyd's death, with reports estimating $1-2 billion in property damage nationally ^{[1] [2]}. However, these protests were primarily associated with the Black Lives Matter movement rather than conservative causes.

For actual conservative events, the available data shows much smaller individual costs:

• A 2004 President George W. Bush visit cost $14,000 ^[3]
• A 2018 Trump rally in Duluth cost $69,000 ^[3]
• Trump campaign rallies accumulated over $841,000 in unpaid police bills to municipal governments ^[4]

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original question assumes that comprehensive cost tracking exists for conservative protests, but the analyses reveal several critical gaps:

• No centralized tracking system exists for protest costs by political affiliation ^{[1] [5] [2]}
• Different cost categories are measured inconsistently - some sources focus on property damage while others examine public safety expenses ^{[3] [6] [4]}
• Municipal governments have varying policies about billing politicians for police costs, with some cities refusing to charge for public safety at political events ^[4]

The analyses also highlight that economic boycotts and protests can have broader financial impacts beyond direct costs, though specific figures aren't provided ^{[7] [8]}. Additionally, the question of who pays for police presence at political rallies varies significantly by jurisdiction and event type ^[6].

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question contains an implicit assumption that conservative protests have generated significant, trackable costs over the past five years. This framing could be misleading because:

• No evidence exists in the provided analyses of major property damage from conservative protests comparable to the 2020 figures ^{[1] [5] [2]}
• The question may conflate different types of events - campaign rallies, protests, and civil unrest - which have different cost structures and impacts ^{[3] [6] [4]}
• By focusing specifically on "conservative protests," the question may artificially narrow the scope while ignoring that the largest documented protest-related costs in recent years were associated with progressive movements ^{[1] [2]}

The framing could benefit those seeking to minimize attention on the documented $1-2 billion in damages from 2020 protests by redirecting focus to conservative events for which no comparable cost data exists.