House Orders Up Three Elite Jets August 5, 2009 By Paul Singer Roll Call Staff 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.
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 Gulfstream 550 jet (price tag: about $65 million) as part of an ongoing upgrade of its passenger air service.
But the House Appropriations Committee, at its own initiative, added to the 2010 Defense appropriations bill another $132 million for two more airplanes and specified that they be assigned to the D.C.-area units that carry Members of Congress, military brass and top government officials.
Because the Appropriations Committee viewed the additional aircraft as an expansion of an existing Defense Department program, it did not treat the money for two more planes as an earmark, and the legislation does not disclose which Member had requested the additional money.
An Appropriations Committee staffer said the military was already planning to replace its passenger fleet, and the committee “looked at the request and decided they should speed up the replacement.”
The Gulfstream G550 is a luxury business jet, which the company advertises as featuring long-range flight capacity that “easily links Washington, D.C., with Dubai, London with Singapore and Tokyo with Paris.” The company’s promotional materials say, “The cabin aboard the G550 combines productivity with exceptional comfort. It features up to four distinct living areas, three temperature zones, a choice of 12 floor plan configurations with seating for up to 18 passengers.”
The version Gulfstream sells to the military is reconfigured for the government with modest accommodations, not the luxury version sold to private customers, said a source familiar with the planes.
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.
Bishop’s office did not return several calls requesting comment for this story.
Air Force spokesman Vincent King told Roll Call: “This line item provides funding to purchase C-37 aircraft. The C-37 is the military variant of the commercial Gulfstream 550 executive jet. C-37s provide executive airlift for senior U.S. government officials including Congress and combatant commanders.”
The language of the appropriations bill specifies that of the three aircraft, the Air Force will provide “one aircraft each for the 201st Airlift Squadron and the 89th Airlift Wing.” Both are based out of Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland.
The 89th Airlift Wing provides “global Special Air Mission (SAM) airlift, logistics, aerial port and communications for the President, Vice President, Combat Commanders, senior leaders and the global mobility system,” according to the Andrews Web site.
King told Roll Call, “the 201st Airlift Squadron provides short-notice worldwide transportation for the executive branch, Congressional Members, Department of Defense officials and high-ranking U.S. and foreign dignitaries.”
An Armed Forces Press Service news story from 2004 said that the 201st counted “U.S. Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert [R-Ill.] and [then-Senate Armed Services Chairman] John Warner [R-Va.] among its frequent flyers.”
Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, said if Congress wants to buy new jets for the comfort of top government officials, “I think that all needs to be justified on the merits. ... Certainly, lawmakers can fly — and many do fly — coach and business class.” While there may be reasons for flying on top-notch private jets, “it shouldn’t just be squeezed into the bill.”
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.”
But military analysts said the private jets, despite the high price tag, may be worth the money because of the security and efficiency they provide to high-ranking public officials.
Loren Thompson, defense analyst at the conservative Lexington Institute, said, “In the case of the VIP transport for the executive branch, you can easily explain the cost [of private travel] in terms of the risk of somebody being taken hostage or having their time wasted when a critical decision is pending.”
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.
But Thompson also said that logic “applies to the top members of the executive branch more than it applies to the Member from the 13th district of Illinois.”
John Pike, director of GlobalSecurity.org, a defense information Web site, said military officials “need a long-range airplane — and [it’s] better to fly them on a small one than a big one.”
Pike said it is unreasonable to expect a three-star general and a staff of five people to attend meetings around the world with several stops in far-flung locales while traveling on commercial airlines.
posted
The problem is not the planes themselves--looks like lottsa folks get ferried around:
The 89th Airlift Wing provides “global Special Air Mission (SAM) airlift, logistics, aerial port and communications for the President, Vice President, Combat Commanders, senior leaders and the global mobility system,” according to the Andrews Web site.
King told Roll Call, “the 201st Airlift Squadron provides short-notice worldwide transportation for the executive branch, Congressional Members, Department of Defense officials and high-ranking U.S. and foreign dignitaries.”
So really the issue has no comparison to the largesse of private execs.
But this is an issue:
While there may be reasons for flying on top-notch private jets, “it shouldn’t just be squeezed into the bill.”
Transparency, transparency, transparency...
-------------------- Nashoba Holba Chepulechi Adventures in microcapitalism...
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posted
Nooo The point is that during this economic slowdown and amid dwindling tax revenues our elected officials should damned well be spending less... Much less. After whining and complaining about corporations and their spending it is monstrously hypocritical for them to then purchase WITH OUR MONEY similar jets. Corporate execs are responsible to their shareholders... It is none of our damned business what they spend their money on short of anything illegal. Congress is spending money we don't have on things they don't need.
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I agree. They had no business adding these planes. 132 Mil that didn't need to be spent. These are exactly the items we should be putting pressure on our representatives about. Can't stop this one anymore but we can let our reps know we are unhappy with the way this was carried out.
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quote:Originally posted by Relentless.: Nooo The point is that during this economic slowdown and amid dwindling tax revenues our elected officials should damned well be spending less... Much less. After whining and complaining about corporations and their spending it is monstrously hypocritical for them to then purchase WITH OUR MONEY similar jets. Corporate execs are responsible to their shareholders... It is none of our damned business what they spend their money on short of anything illegal. Congress is spending money we don't have on things they don't need.
You talk as if you fell outta the damn well. FANTASTIC ideas!! wheee...
They bought, what, three planes? c'mon...
Some of those corporate phuks soak that up in a couple of bonuses.
Look, I'm not saying they should fly in the lap of luxury. But I would like my senior reps in the gummint to fly securely, instead of some Mexican turbo-prop leaking oil that any half-junior grenade-launching puke can bring down with a souped-up cellphone.
Dig it: Elite-above-the-law CEOs have a plane 1:1, one CEO to a plane.
These planes are shared. Not saying I love the process--it sucks. But comparing the two?
Nah...
-------------------- Nashoba Holba Chepulechi Adventures in microcapitalism...
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....You could talk about spending too much in Iraq
....You could talk about spending too much on the bailouts
....You could talk about speding too much on Obamas frickin new allergy-friendly dog for all I care
but why even waste an ounce of energy on something so petty.
Who in their right mind....would try and compare the auto companies' executives flying on private jets to a hearing to request billions in auto bailouts.........to the 3 planes the the top officials are buying
An acurate comparison would be if the United States never did the bailouts that Both Bush and Obama pushed.....and the U.S. did in fact fall into financial ruins, and Obama flew to china in a brand new billion dollar plane built by NASA, and begged China for a huge bailout to save the U.S. economy. China's top governmen officials would look at obama like he's a f'n Nut.
But that's not what is happening here...I bet in some way, shape, or form....Someone connected to the Auto Industry is behind that article......it's deffinately not anybody with a clue.
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this aint shiit ...get over it!!...how bout the health care industry spending 1.4 million, per day, on lobbyists and special interests and buying off their cronies in congress!!!!..doesnt that chaff your azz??..lets get real here.
how bout this frickin war we're still in?...get the hell out of that quagmire for gods sake!!
quote:Originally posted by Ace of Spades: Is this a joke???
a whole thread about 3 planes??
....You could talk about spending too much in Iraq
....You could talk about spending too much on the bailouts
....You could talk about speding too much on Obamas frickin new allergy-friendly dog for all I care
but why even waste an ounce of energy on something so petty.
Who in their right mind....would try and compare the auto companies' executives flying on private jets to a hearing to request billions in auto bailouts.........to the 3 planes the the top officials are buying
An acurate comparison would be if the United States never did the bailouts that Both Bush and Obama pushed.....and the U.S. did in fact fall into financial ruins, and Obama flew to china in a brand new billion dollar plane built by NASA, and begged China for a huge bailout to save the U.S. economy. China's top governmen officials would look at obama like he's a f'n Nut.
But that's not what is happening here...I bet in some way, shape, or form....Someone connected to the Auto Industry is behind that article......it's deffinately not anybody with a clue.
Listen up people, if this isnt a prime example of blatant hypocrisy by our government then tell me what is. The only reason it is getting cold shouldered is because the Obama administration is in power, and we wouldnt want to be critical. If this was 2005,2006, etc....wow it would all be Bush's fault just like everything else is today according to some.
I remember watching those hearings when those congressmen were blasting the auto CEOs for flying in on corporate jets while asking for bailouts. NOW....the government needs tax payer bailouts of itself and yet it is BUYING jets let alone using what they have!
Hypocrisy is the problem, and blatant hypocrisy was the point of the thread. Not even a partisan issue. How it is being played down is though. Im not saying they shouldnt fly jets. I could care less, but when I fly into your neck of the woods on one dont come after me.
-------------------- It isn't so much that liberals are ignorant. It's just that they know so many things that aren't so.
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You do realize that Top US officials have been flying on private jets/airplanes for many years right? But the auto execs were asking for billions, yet flew into DC on private jets. I can't believe you don't see the difference between the 2 situations. If you don't, then you are just a hypocrite yourself.
PS: "but when I fly into your neck of the woods on one dont come after me." LOL...I don't think an ultralight counts as a jet
PSS: Don't get all bent....was just razzing you
-------------------- It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.
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posted
what other talking points ya got, cow?...more bs to distract what really is important?...
you're pretty funny,tho..hopefully, once you get a bit older, you will be able to think for yourself and see things without your blinders on....try to focus and some real problems that concern humanity.
posted
The Gulfstream G550 is a luxury business jet, which the company advertises as featuring long-range flight capacity that “easily links Washington, D.C., with Dubai, London with Singapore and Tokyo with Paris.” The company’s promotional materials say, “The cabin aboard the G550 combines productivity with exceptional comfort. It features up to four distinct living areas, three temperature zones, a choice of 12 floor plan configurations with seating for up to 18 passengers.”
they should be riding on the Hindenberg?
Founded in 1958, Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), is The World Standard™ in business aviation. The company has produced more than 1,200 aircraft for corporate, government, private and military customers around the world.
Sales in U.S. Dollars (mil.) 5,512 (2008) One-year % Growth in Sales 14.2 (2008) Net Income in U.S. Dollars (mil.) 0 () One-year % Growth in Net Income 0.0 () Number of Employees 9,700 (2008) One-year % Growth in Number of Employees 6.6 (2008) Fiscal Year-End Decembe
-------------------- Don't envy the happiness of those who live in a fool's paradise.
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You do realize that Top US officials have been flying on private jets/airplanes for many years right? But the auto execs were asking for billions, yet flew into DC on private jets. I can't believe you don't see the difference between the 2 situations. If you don't, then you are just a hypocrite yourself.
PS: "but when I fly into your neck of the woods on one dont come after me." LOL...I don't think an ultralight counts as a jet
PSS: Don't get all bent....was just razzing you
Of COURSE I see the difference. You dont think our government asking the taxpayers to "do their part" or "take on an extra burden" and spending money on new jets is hypocritical in this situation? Is it companies we are bailing out or is it really the government? Who is in charge here?
-------------------- It isn't so much that liberals are ignorant. It's just that they know so many things that aren't so.
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You're right--the jet lobby is in charge, and all congresspeeps have personal Lear jets, and so do all their aides, and everybody in their families. Don't go outside: with all those jets buzzing around, there's bound to be a crash, and the debris will fall on you...
-------------------- Nashoba Holba Chepulechi Adventures in microcapitalism...
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posted
Yes they do to both DEMOCRAT and Republican. Does it bother you that both parties are guilty of corruption and not just Republicans? You do know that they are both equally guilty right Jordan?
For example:
William Jefferson, a former Democratic congressman from Louisiana, was convicted in a federal court on Wednesday on 11 of 16 corruption counts, reported the Associated Press.
Jefferson had been under investigation since 2005. That August, 90,000 dollars in cash was found in the freezer of his Washington home. Prosecutors believed the money was to be used as a bribe for the former vice-president of Nigeria.
The trial lasted two months, and jurors ultimately took five days to reach a verdict. They convicted him on 11 of 16 charges, including accepting bribes, racketeering, and money laundering.
Jefferson was acquitted of the charge of violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The act makes it illegal to bribe foreign government officials, and Jefferson was the first official to ever be charged with its violation.
Jefferson became Louisiana’s first African-American congressman since Reconstruction when he was elected in 1991. He represented parts of New Orleans, and was re-elected in 2006 despite widespread knowledge at the point of bribery accusations. He was defeated last December by Republican candidate Anh “Joseph” Cao.
Jefferson’s defense lawyer, Robert Trout, has said he will appeal. The former congressman could face more than 20 years in prison.
-------------------- It isn't so much that liberals are ignorant. It's just that they know so many things that aren't so.
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sorry...you're cutting into my tanning time.. ..too nice outside to spar with a gun-totin,angry,war mongering,individual as yourself.. ..gotta go grill up them t-bones!
quote:Originally posted by jordanreed: sorry...you're cutting into my tanning time.. ..too nice outside to spar with a gun-totin,angry,war mongering,individual as yourself.. ..gotta go grill up them t-bones!
Damn! Send one of them T-Bones St Louis way
PS: cold in the middle is perfect
-------------------- It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.
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quote:Originally posted by jordanreed: sorry...you're cutting into my tanning time.. ..too nice outside to spar with a gun-totin,angry,war mongering,individual as yourself.. ..gotta go grill up them t-bones!
Question - Who was the first liberal Democrat?
Answer -Christopher Columbus. He left not knowing where he was going,got there not knowing where he was,left there not knowing where he’d been and did it all on borrowed money.
Here is another good one:
Question - What is the difference between a liberal and a puppy?
Answer -A puppy stops whining after it grows up.
btw, why is it ok to do an abortion on a baby with a developed brain and hail it as a victory for a "womans choice?"
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I still agree with Cow. Yes...there are a lot of big things going on that need attention but it is the spending of an extra dollar a day that ruins a family budget.
The request was for 1 plane. They ordered three. As far as I can tell the only reason was for personal convenience and right now we should be very careful about what we are adding to the budget.
The one thing I do like about this is that (like many parts of the stimulus) it will trickle down and employ airplane mechanics and manufacturers in a depressed industry. I have never been much of a fan of the trickle down theory but I agree it can be a good thing when sectors are struggling like they currently are.
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posted
What we should do is give Obama an allowance so he can only spend what he has. This way his Chinese parents wont be covering for his debts he makes.
-------------------- It isn't so much that liberals are ignorant. It's just that they know so many things that aren't so.
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quote:Originally posted by CashCowMoo: What we should do is give Obama an allowance so he can only spend what he has. This way his Chinese parents wont be covering for his debts he makes.
I don't recall you calling for that when Sluggo was in office.
-------------------- It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.
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quote:Originally posted by CashCowMoo: Sluggo wasnt spending as much as Obama. Are you saying Obama's budget and spending is less than GW's?
Of course Bush spent money, why do you keep whining about GW Bush as if he is still in office?
Here is something you can not deny Pagan, Obama is expanding government influence in our lives while we pay for it.
No. I'm saying the current admin is having to spend alot of money to fix all the shiit that Sluggo destroyed. Such as...um...lemme see..um...the friggin economy!!!
Wake up and stop your whining/mooing.
-------------------- It is impossible to make anything foolproof because fools are so ingenious.
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