Posted on 02/07/2007 5:42:02 PM PST by Hadean
A source close to the controversy over the request made by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., for use of a military plane that can fly to and from her home district in San Francisco, Calif., without having to stop to refuel, tells ABC News that the Pentagon has rebuffed Pelosi's request.
The source says that Pentagon officials and the Bush administration have instead offered Pelosi use of the same plane made available to former Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois: a C-20, which seats about 12 passengers and five crew members.
A C-20 can make the 700-mile flight to Hastert's Aurora, Ill., district easily but would generally have to stop to refuel to complete the 2,800-mile trip from Washington D.C. to the San Francisco Bay Area, depending on the headwinds.
Pelosi has expressed concern about having to stop and refuel, primarily for security reasons, her office says. Since 9/11, the Speaker of the House — second in line behind the Vice President in the line of presidential succession — has been able to use a military plane for travel, for security reasons.
In response to the Pentagon offer, Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly tells ABC News, "We appreciate the Defense Department's continuing concern for the Speaker's security. We are reviewing their letter."
Her rich husband could get her a nice private plane.
He's loaded.
I heard a late replay of Levin's show...I loved some of the names: "Left Wing One", "A flying Lincoln Bedroom"...there was one more good one, couldn't remember.
I like Levin's idea...put her in a tank. Goes 20 miles an hour, would take her forever to get somewhere from D.C., and in her case, the longer the better!
LMFAO!!!!
Good for the brass! I hope they told her that they were trying to reduce their "carbon footprint" so as to help cut "global warming."
It would be called a Vast Right Wing Conspiracy! (guess that's what the "V" in V-22 stands for...)
Add Secretary of Homeland Security to the bottom of the list -- the law provides that cabinet members are added in the order their departments were created. At the time Congress created DHS, there was some talk about revising the order -- in any crisis that takes out the president, VP, president pro tem and speaker at about the same time, you probably don't want Homeland Security at the bottom of the list -- but I don't know of there's been any move to change the statute.
Air Force One is the designation of any plane the president is aboard. The main presidential transport is the 747, but he occasionally takes other craft if he's going somewhere with a short runway -- I think the backup is a 727 or 737.
As far as I know, the planes Cabinet secretaries use for official travel aren't assigned to them 365 days a year -- they use one from the pool of VIP transports.
Regrettably, I've never been on one. I've flown on C-130's (quite miserable) and KC-135's (I got to stand behind the boom operator while they re-fueled a B-1 on one occasion, it was AWESOME), but I'd love the opportunity to fly on a Skytrain if I could. Without that aircraft we would not have won WWII.
If it were the mid-90's, I'd offer her a V-22 Osprey. Far, far better women than her (any Marine is better than her) died testing that damn thing.
And that is where I am coming from. Someone WILL challenge the law. That's normal procedure. Therefore it would end up in SCOTUS.
Doesn't sound clear to me. "May" does not mean "shall". Therefore succession would be challenged. Count on it.
"I disagree with the populace....as long as she holds the position, she deserves a direct flight across the country... "
Why? Where does the Constitution, or any other federal document, say she gets to screw the airlines out of ticket fare for her and everyone else she's trying to fly around at taxpayer expense?
She's tired of the boomstick. Seat belts are whole lot more comfortable than velcro.
LOL...nice try. The 20th Amendment gives Congress full powers to choose a line of succession. It did. The only way this is litigated is if there's some constitutional question over the application of the law, which seems extremely doubtful given the separation of powers.
Therefore succession would be challenged. Count on it.
Don't worry, I'm not.
Air Trebuchet.
I'm thinking Freudian here. < }B^)
That's exactly right! Count the characters in "Vast Right Wing Conspiracy!"
What do you want to bet that before this is done Bush rolls on this one. He has not stood down a single democrat yet.
Skroodup. Make that "Right Wing Conspiracy!"
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