Posted on 08/05/2009 6:40:42 AM PDT by Timeout
"Last year, lawmakers excoriated the CEOs of the Big Three automakers for traveling to Washington, D.C., by private jet to attend a hearing about a possible bailout of their companies," Roll Call reports.
"But apparently Congress is not philosophically averse to private air travel: At the end of July, the House approved nearly $200 million for the Air Force to buy three elite Gulfstream jets for ferrying top government officials and Members of Congress."
The Air Force had asked for one jet as part of an upgrade program, but the House Appropriations Committee added two more at its own discretion.
“Rep. Sanford Bishop (D-Ga.) had submitted a request to the Appropriations Committee for a $70 million earmark for one airplane on behalf of Georgia-based Gulfstream, and Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) lists the airplane as one of the earmarks that he was asked to request, though his office said he never made the request to the Appropriations Committee.
“The committee saw fit to fund it at that level” without Kingston’s involvement, his spokesman said.”
“Ellis said the airplanes are also part of a larger trend for the Appropriations Committee to simply decide that big-ticket items are program increases, not earmarks, so they require less public disclosure.
“The more that you push for transparency, the more of this stuff goes underneath the carpet,” Ellis said. While Congress has established new rules requiring greater transparency for earmarks, the Appropriations Committee is “the judge, jury and executioner over what is an earmark and what isn’t and how much information we get.”’
http://www.rollcall.com/media/37552-1.html
Yeah, I'm sure they screamed bloody hell
The Nomenklatura! We should use that!
(See my tagline...it's been there forever.....)
correct tag spelling
“Thompson pointed out that the cost of the plane would be peanuts compared to the cost to the nation if a top official were taken hostage or harmed taking a commercial flight to a dangerous region of the world.”
When has this happened ? This is about taveling in style,nothing more. I only know of one incident when Con. Leo Ryan flew to Jonestown and it wouldn’t have mattered if he was on a bi-plane.
He seems to think we would want them back. Whazzup with THAT?!
LOL good point.
Oh, so you’re saying it’s ok that the Republicans don’t read the bills, huh?
Did I say that? Must have been delirious or something!
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