Taxpayers to Pay for Wellstone Rally !!

World Net Daily ^ | 10/30/02

[LiveFreeOrDie2001]

Who foots bill for Wellstone memorial/rally? Questions raised as to use of military as support staff for event

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Posted: October 30, 2002 6:00 p.m. Eastern

Editor's note: WorldNetDaily is pleased to have a content-sharing agreement with Insight magazine, the bold Washington publication not afraid to ruffle establishment feathers. Subscribe to Insight at WorldNetDaily's online store and save 71 percent off the cover price. By Scott Wheeler © 2002 News World Communications Inc.

A memorial service for the late Sen. Paul Wellstone, that some say more closely resembled a political rally, has raised questions as to whether or not taxpayers should be reimbursed for the cost of flying a large delegation of mostly Democratic congressmen, senators and their spouses and staffs from Washington, D.C., to Minnesota aboard U.S. Air Force jets, according to a report in Insight magazine.

According to Pentagon sources, the Air Force supplied two C-32 aircraft, the military equivalent of the Boeing 757, and one C-9, the military equivalent of a McDonnell Douglas DC-9.

According to the Insight report, the cost to taxpayers of the congressional flights, with crew, was approximately $119,961.

A 1964 Department of Defense directive authorizes the use of military aircraft for official business of Congress, or to attend the funeral of a sitting member, only if a request is made to the ''secretary of defense by the president of the Senate, the speaker of the House or their designated representatives.''

A spokesman for Vice President Dick Cheney, constitutionally designated as the president of the Senate, says Cheney made no request of the secretary of defense for military support to transport the congressional delegation to the Wellstone memorial.

A spokesman for Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., confirmed that Hastert made no such request either, according to the Insight report.

The political memorial for Wellstone was attended by Democratic Party activists and luminaries from all over the country, including former President Bill Clinton, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., former Vice President Al Gore, former Sen. Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey (who was appointed to the ballot in his state when the incumbent Democrat was caught up in a bribery scandal) and former Vice President Walter Mondale, who will replace Wellstone on the ballot for next Tuesday's election.

According to the Insight report, the arena crowd of 15,000 cheered remarks by Wellstone's son David, who said, ''We all know what we have to do.''

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reported that Rick Kahn, a close friend and Wellstone campaign treasurer, ''shifted the tone of the event from a memorial service to full-throated, foot-stomping, fist-pumping political rally.''

The paper reported Kahn told the crowd: ''We are begging you to help us win this Senate election for Paul Wellstone,'' and called on the rallying Democrats and others to ''help us win this race.''

KARE-TV, the NBC affiliate in Minneapolis, reported viewers were outraged, saying what began as a poignant farewell turned into a political rally for national Democrats.

The station reported receiving more than 100 telephone calls complaining about the coverage.

According to the Insight report, uniformed members of the U.S. Marine Corps were also used as escorts for those attending the event and may have also provided ground transportation.

Sources say the delegation that left Andrews Air Force base yesterday for Minneapolis, and returned late last night, was comprised of an unknown number of senators, 11 members of the House of Representatives and ''some spouses and staff members.''

The total came to 120 people.

Aboard the return flight to Washington, one senator reportedly called the event ''a damned political rally.''

According to the Insight report, another shrugged, ''Well, that was fitting for Wellstone. He always went up to the line – and jumped over it.''

[kayak]

A little-known fact is that Coleman showed up for the "memorial service" also ...... they had to put him in a far corner for security reasons. I haven't heard if he stayed through the whole fiasco or not.

[concerned about politics]

When is the Bush Coleman rally? I'm in NY. I hope we get it here. We should get equal time here, too. We had to suffer through it as much as anyone else.

[Fracas]

LOL. Mo, I'm on YOUR side!

Three airplanes is a lot for 120 people, don't you think? Maybe one plane was Marines? That still leaves one plane....

Corzine's statement was nearly identical to Ferraro's - obviously the latest DNC talking points. Corzine/Torch/Lautenburg - they're all pieces of the same puzzle.

[A Citizen Reporter]

See #79, I believe that terilyn answers your question.

[justshe]

A HUGE Ping: Need to keep this thread bumped--and all need to keep the pressure on to get an answer to many questions.
Who ordered the planes? Who is paying for the Center? Who is paying for the security?

{{{A memorial service for the late Sen. Paul Wellstone, that some say more closely resembled a political rally, has raised questions as to whether or not taxpayers should be reimbursed for the cost of flying a large delegation of mostly Democratic congressmen, senators and their spouses and staffs from Washington, D.C., to Minnesota aboard U.S. Air Force jets, according to a report in Insight magazine.

According to Pentagon sources, the Air Force supplied two C-32 aircraft, the military equivalent of the Boeing 757, and one C-9, the military equivalent of a McDonnell Douglas DC-9.

According to the Insight report, the cost to taxpayers of the congressional flights, with crew, was approximately $119,961.}}}

[concerned about politics]

Three airplanes is a lot for 120 people, don't you think? Maybe one plane was Marines? That still leaves one plane....

That was to carry Hillary's fat ......

[concerned about politics]

See #79, I believe that terilyn answers your question.

Thank you. (and you too, terilyn)

[Saundra Duffy]

NOW, MORE THAN EVER - vote GOP! I hope this will wake up the voters of California. Gray Davis is ONE OF THOSE! GO, SIMON! For victory & freedom!!!

[Fracas]

I thought perhaps the press, but I like your answer better! LOL.

[Saundra Duffy]

Here's my email message to a "reporter" (Sacramento Bee) who spun the story to make the democraps look good:

O'Rourke - I read your front-page article in today's Sac Bee. Please humor me. I watched the Wellstone "memorial" service until I could no longer stomach it. I was sure my frustrations at the democrats' despicable collective behavior would be at least addressed in your article. But I was wrong. You, like the democrats, just don't get it. Too late. It backfired. How dare you SPIN that story to fit your own sick agenda. I am disgusted with all of you! The spectacle of Bill & Hillary Clinton yucking it up, laughing, all puffed up, campaigning, waving, basking in all that democrat adoration. I mean, it was horrific. They are too warped to even know they were screwing up at the time. I kept thinking about the other families of those who died in the plane crash. How do you think they felt?! It was up to reporters such as yourself to print the real story. Instead, you wrote the headline, "Will lawmaker's death be a rallying cry for liberals?" You wish! As Governor Ventura would say: "Shame on you!"

[fogarty]

Bush won't do a damn thing about this illegal use of military transport and personnel.

Too bad the air force pilots didn't open the cargo bays midflight and dump the whole lot of senators and congressmen overboard - to die like the scum they are.

[dennisw]

The sad fact is that if compelled to pay up, these scum-o-crat congress critters will pay out of their bloated campaign war chests.

[A CA Guy]

That could have been the fee alone to have Bill C show up.

[Mo1]

LOL .. I tend to be a little blunt when the Dems are concerned and what happen last night upset me

Yes I think you are correct .. that does seem like a lot of planes for that many people

[Mo1]

120,000 for one night huh?? and that was only for the planes

I'd hate to see the rest of that bill

[slowry]

Who rented the arena?

I'm quite sure the Wellstone campaign paid for it. WCCO-AM returned a co-worker's call and that's the answer she got. And I heard Jason Lewis say the same.

By the way, the headline of this thread ... I thought they were required to match that of the source, which I believe was not "Taxpayers to Pay for Wellstone Rally!!"

[#3Fan]

We pay for liberal public radio and TV, liberal schools and colleges, etc. I guess the next step is to pay for the Democrat's campaign conventions also.

[Roscoe]

Need to keep this thread bumped

OK

BTTT

[billhilly]

"A little-known fact is that Coleman showed up for the "memorial service" also ...... they had to put him in a far corner for security reasons."

They were just protecting him from those nasty republicans who assassinated Senator Wellstone. HEAVY SARCASM.