Congress: America’s Jet Set

Damn, it feels good to be a legislator! According to the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, July 2, Congressional spending on overseas travel has increased tenfold since 1995, resulting in an incredible $13 billion travel budget; a travel budget, I might add, paid for entirely by you, the generous taxpayer. These “codels”, or congressional delegations, were once funded by lobbyists, until a scandal in 2005 made this practice illegal. Now, the burden rests on the shoulders of the American people, a group suffering from what has been called the worst recession since the Great Depression. Lawmakers justify their spending with vague rationalizations, claiming that these trips allow them to learn more about the world and forge stronger bonds with each other (i.e., Congressional field trips). The Wall Street Journal also reports that some members of Congress have expressed their discontent, pointing to chief executives at bailed-out institutions who are able to use corporate funds and jets to subsidize resort stays. It amazes me that, while the entire nation sneers with disgust and contempt at these spoiled and corrupt business executives, members of Congress find them worthy of emulating.

Lawmakers not only visit fabulous locales, such as Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Jamaica and the Virgin Islands, but they are also often able to bring their spouses and other family members with them. Of course, if the legislators fly commercial, they are responsible for purchasing the additional plane tickets, but since they customarily travel on government planes, this is rarely an issue. On a recent trip, a handful of Senators and their spouses jetted to France on the Air Force’s version of the Boeing 737, which costs $5,700 per hour to operate. Upon landing, the group sojourned in France for four days, enjoying the Paris Air Show, cocktails at the Eiffel Tower and luxurious accommodations.  Never mind the lavish hotel stays and diva-esque itinerary; instead, let’s concentrate on the sheer amount of money—and no doubt energy—that it takes to operate a Boeing 737. Not a day goes by that I am not inundated by advertisements urging me to “Go Green!” or “Reduce my carbon footprint”. I thought this administration was concerned with saving the polar bears and conserving fossil fuels, but it would seem as if its energy-saving tips are directed only at the public. If members of Congress are looking for a way to enjoy the world around them and build stronger relationships with each other, may I suggest a leisurely bike ride? To highlight this hypocrisy even more, last summer, Representative Brian Baird traveled to the Galapagos Islands with his wife, four other lawmakers and their family members. The purpose of the $22,000 trip: to learn about global warming.

The exorbitant spending on frivolous excursions continues. On a trip to Afghanistan to visit American troops, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic lawmakers first stopped in Italy for eight days, where they spent nearly $60,000 on lodging and meals. Topping Speaker Pelosi’s to-do list was a visit to the Pope, a speech to Italian lawmakers, and the laying of a wreath at the Florence American Cemetery. This week, scores of Congress members are spending time abroad on taxpayer-funded expeditions. While the locations have not been disclosed for security reasons, I’m confident they are just as magnificent as previous voyages. As the United States’ budget deficit reaches upward of $11 trillion and Governor Schwarzenegger contemplates the very real possibility of issuing IOUs to California’s lenders, I hope you will call your Congressional representatives and wish rays of sunshine upon them, wherever they may be vacationing, on the taxpayers’ buck.