Posted on 06/14/2005 11:53:52 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
WASHINGTON - Senators traveled to exotic foreign capitals and fabulous resort towns with beaches and golf courses in 2004 — all in the name of business of course and rarely on their own dime.
One such trip was taken by Senate Minority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., who went to Cape Town, South Africa, for an international affairs conference, according to the Senate's financial disclosure forms. That trip was paid for by the Chicago Council on Foreign Relations and the South African Institute of International Affairs.
Sen. Mike Enzi, chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, was reimbursed for travel expenses for himself and his wife, Diana, for a speaking engagement in Munich, Germany, for the German Marshall Fund of Washington.
Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (news, bio, voting record), D-Conn., ranking Democrat on the Senate Rules Committee, reported travel to Coral Gables, Fla., for three days in February 2004 to participate in the annual U.S.-Spain Council conference.
The trip was funded by the council.
And Sen. Debbie Stabenow (news, bio, voting record), D-Mich., reimbursed the Aspen Institute Congressional Program for travel, lodging and meal expenses for a May trip to Barcelona, Spain.
Congressional travel has been getting more scrutiny lately, in part because of the controversy surrounding House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, following allegations that a lobbyist paid for some of his trips, which is not allowed.
Other private groups, however, can fund travel, which at times can include lavish meals and golf outings.
Republicans also hit the road. Foreign Relations chair Richard Lugar, R-Ind., went on seven trips paid for by the Aspen Institute think tank, including to Hawaii; Cancun, Mexico; Barcelona; Venice, Italy, and Geneva, Switzerland.
Lugar is a member of that think tank.
Samaritan's Purse picked up Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's air transportation to Chad, Sudan and Kenya on a fact-finding mission last August, and his meals there.
The complaint that the Senate is a "millionaires' club" has some basis in fact, at least among the leaders.
Frist reported blind trusts — where the owner has no knowledge of where the money's being invested — worth between $7 million to $35 million. The income from the largest blind trust brought in $1 million to $5 million, his paperwork shows.
Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada didn't have as much as Frist in the bank, but made $1 million to $5 million in 2004 by selling a piece of property in Las Vegas and a 47 percent interest in an adjoining property.
He also listed as major assets municipal and school district bonds worth between $895,026 and $2,101,000 and a pension plan stock in oil, medical, technology, banking and other companies worth between $383,047 and $1,552,000.
The financial disclosure forms also gives the public a rare glimpse inside senators' personal lives.
For example, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., collected another $2,376,716 in royalties for her memoirs, "Living History," making her total take so far from the book near $8.7 million.
Under reporting rules, former President Clinton, as a spouse of a senator, is only required to report that he received more than $1,000 in payments for his best-selling autobiography "My Life," though published reports have said he inked a deal worth $10 million to $12 million with publisher Alfred A. Knopf.
Sen. Barbara Boxer (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., reported a $15,938 advance to write the suspense novel she's working on, "A Time to Run," about an activist senator who does battle with right-wing ideologues.
Also in the publishing business was Sen. Robert Byrd (news, bio, voting record), D-W.Va., who reported a $60,000 advance payment from W.W. Norton & Co. of New York, a book publishing company.
W.W. Norton also paid for Byrd to take several trips to promote the book "Losing America: Confronting a Reckless and Arrogant Presidency," in which Byrd argues that President George W. Bush "is in a class by himself — ineptitude supreme."
There will be at least one movie star in the Senate: Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record), R-Ariz., will appear in the summer movie "The Wedding Crashers" starring Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn, with his payments directed to select charities, according to his form.
Some other interesting tidbits that showed up in this year's disclosures include the fact that Sen. Edward Kennedy (news, bio, voting record), D-Mass., has bought his brother's house — former President John Kennedy's Hyannisport home — and is renting it out to other family members.
Kennedy paid his niece, Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg and her husband $3 million for the property, which is located next to his property on the Kennedy family compound. Sen. Kennedy also reported between $50,000-100,000 in rental income.
Also on the real estate front, Dodd reported ownership in a cottage in County Galway, Ireland, that's worth somewhere between $100,000 and $250,000.
Sen. Herb Kohl, D-Wis., and ranking member on Senate Aging Committee, listed his NBA basketball team, the Milwaukee Bucks, as worth more than $50 million. A more specific number comes from Forbes magazine, which last year valued the Bucks at $199 million in its annual survey, putting it last in the league.
ya notice how quiet the 'Rats got when their records were released on contributions they received...
these clowns are so hypocritical, it would be pathetic if it weren't so funny...
While we continue to bailout via our tax dollars various governments, countries and our government programs that provide corporate welfare the our government is continually passing legislation to stick it too us in another way. Yet, these crooks still enjoy their lifestyle uninterrupted and not even embarassed by it. JUST DISGUSTING!!!
Heard Rush talking about this today.
I have to say that I think about 98% of congress are bought and paid for by their special interests. We should go back to having the states elect the senators.
How about Teddy charging family members to rent the house. I heard yesterday, on Laura Ingraham or Tony Snow, that it gets crowded up there at the compound with all the relatives.
Pfffttt...
Babs gets no gifts. :( (I wonder why? lol)
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Financial disclosure details on Sen. Barbara Boxer
http://www.pe.com/ap_news/California2/CA_Senate_Disclosures_List_Calif_190069CA.shtml
The Associated Press
The financial disclosure forms that U.S. senators must file each year were made public Tuesday. Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., filed for an extension until July. Here is a summary of the 2004 disclosure form filed by Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.:
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif.
Earned income: $158,100.
Honoraria, all donated to charity: $800 from television appearance on "Real Time with Bill Maher."
Major assets: Blind trust valued between $1 million and $5 million which Boxer created in 2001 after controversy over disclosures that she and her husband, Stewart Boxer, held stocks in energy companies involved in California's energy crisis.
She and her husband also have an investment worth $1,001 to $15,000 in a San Mateo venture capital partnership, Technology Funding Partners. Boxer has accounts at the Senate's credit union and at WestAmerica Bank, both worth between $1,001-$15,000. She has $1,001-$15,000 in IBM stock in a retirement account.
Stewart Boxer reported a 3 percent interest, worth $15,001-$50,000, in a limited partnership in Barclays Plaza Office Building in Oakland, Calif.
Major sources of unearned income: Boxer got a pension of $3,756 from her years as a Marin County supervisor, and she and her husband earned $5,001-$15,000 in rent from a condo on Capitol Hill.
Major liabilities: None.
Gifts: None.
Narrative: Boxer reported a $15,938 advance to write the suspense novel she's working on, "A Time to Run," about an activist senator who does battle with right-wing ideologues. It's set for publication in November by Chronicle Books of San Francisco.
Seriously, what's wrong with letting companies pay for travel -- as long as it's fully disclosed. Voters can decide if it was legitimate or abusive.
"JUST DISGUSTING!!!"
of course it is but until we eliminate the IRS and lobbyists there will continue to be those out there who will comp these clowns trips and anything and everything else they can get away with...
Not sure I understand the IRS. What needs to be done is they need to be kicked out and prosecuted for scamming the taxpayers by benefit personally. I don't care who pays for their trips--they should be illegal so long as they are being paid by the general public. When Congress gets some morals maybe the rest of the country will follow suit. And it is not just the Dimocrats--Republicans are JUST as guilty. They are all crooks that care less about anyone but themselves.
Yeah, then state senators could be bought and sold by the special interests.
If the cost of the trips was considered income that would put a quick end to this constant junketing.
"Boxer reported a $15,938 advance to write the suspense novel she's working on, "A Time to Run," about an activist senator who does battle with right-wing ideologues. It's set for publication in November by Chronicle Books of San Francisco. "
I thought this violated Senate rules. Isn't that why Hillary finalized her book deal BEFORE being sworn into the Senate?
All of these rules should be abolished. Campaign finance reform should be gutted, conflict of interest rules should be tossed. People don't, can't, and shouldn't, obey them anyway. (IMHO)
The MSM is now reporting this stuff since it looks like the Delay Hunt has toned down. They did not want to touch this stuff before. They wanted to single Delay out.
Many predicted this is how they would do it.
Freeper intuition is as good as gold.
They couldn't get DeLay, so they've moved on to trying to shut Gitmo down.
Yes, of course .. because it's the same old excuse, "everybody does it" .. and their guys don't look so bad. I should have picked up on that scheme sooner.
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