CONGRESS GETS THREE NEW PRIVATE JETS

August 6, 2009

Congress has quietly authorized $200 million for the Air Force to purchase three "military versions" of the Gulfstream G550 jet to add to a fleet currently used by members of Congress and other top government officials. This little purchase was inserted into the House's 2010 Defense Appropriations Bill and overwhelmingly passed 400 to 30 on July 30. The Air Force had requested one additional jet, but apparently Congressional advocates of the purchase couldn't reign in their desire to assure that they'll be able to continue living the "high life".

When members of Congress criticized auto executives for flying to Washington on the company's private jets, is it any wonder they'd want to keep this "little" expenditure quiet? What is so different between the weak financial situation that faced the automakers and the critical condition of the government's coffers? One difference is that the money being used to purchase jets for Congress belongs to taxpayers and should not be used as a Congressional slush fund! The automaker's decision to purchase their aircraft was between the company and their stockholders.

This expenditure was muscled through the House by two Georgia members, Jack Kingston (R)and Sanford Bishop (D). It should come as no surprise that Gulfstream just happens to manufacture its aircraft in Georgia and both Bishop and Kingston have received multi-thousand dollar campaign contributions from the parent company (i.e., General Dynamics) of Gulfstream over the past 2 years.

Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said that the Air Force had asked for only what it needed when they requested one additional jet. He added, "Congress would be the one who would best be equipped to answer why it is they have added additional Gulfstreams to the budget."

So, can we get an explanation? Congress is telling everyone to tighten their belts, make cuts and make do with less while they do exactly the opposite. This may be Speaker Pelosi trying to take revenge for her previous attempts to upgrade her flying options. Peter Roff from U.S. News and World Reports has apparently wondered the same thing. In his August 6th column he wrote:

"It may be that Speaker Pelosi has wearied of traveling back and forth to her luxury San Francisco apartment with its beautiful view on commercial flights or that the schedules to and from Washington Dulles International Airport just don't fit in very well with her plans. She is, after all, a grandmother, as her partisans like to remind us all, and the travel might be too strenuous. But it also may be that she just doesn't like having to call up the Department of Defense to ask to borrow a plane when she or her congressional colleagues want to jet off someplace.

Remember, this is not the first time Pelosi's airplane fetish has been in the news. In February 2007, ABC News reported on the Pentagon's refusal to honor her request "for use of a military plane that can fly to and from her home district in San Francisco without having to stop to refuel."

The Pentagon offered Pelosi the same plane that her predecessor, Republican Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., had used—but that wasn't good enough—maybe because of the restrictions that came with it: no more than 10 passengers; no travel to political events; members of Pelosi's family couldn't fly unless she made a request in writing (and the family would have to reimburse the U.S. Treasury for the cost of a coach ticket per person for the travel plus the cost of any food); members of Congress couldn't fly on the plane unless their travel has been cleared with the House Ethics Committee; and Pelosi's multimillionaire husband could fly for free with her only for official protocol purposes".

OK Speaker Pelosi, Representatives Kingston and Bishop, let's start with your little group. Setting aside the routine answers about it helping your constituents by creating jobs and "time savings" gained by avoiding commercial flights, what could you have been thinking? We are trying to CUT spending and ELIMINATE excess, do you understand those concepts?