Senator Mark Pryor (Liebermantarian -AR) and Congressman Vic Snyder (D-AR2) took no overseas trips at taxpayer expense last year. Neither did Senator Blanche Lincoln (Bought Waffler -AR). The Arkansas King of Foreign Junkets was Congressman John Boozman (R-Pinnacle Gated Compound), who says he is against wasteful spending but had no problem loading up his wife on a military airplane for free round-trip airfare to Edinburgh, Scotland, and drawing $3,623.81 in undocumented expenses from the taxpayers for those four days.
Boozman also took a Valentine's weekend trip to Brussells, Belgium, to study how to have better relations with Russia, although he and Mike Ross (BigPharm-AR4) claimed they were trying to get our allies to send more troops to Afghanistan. Boozman said it was a busy schedule, but he was also able to work in side trips to Austria, France, and Germany and pocket $2,880.55 in unitemized "expenses" and run up $6,472.08 for his share of "incidentals."
Grand Slam. According to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, based on official documents, "In April, Boozman traveled through Germany to Africa and the Middle East, with stops in Afghanistan, Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Djibouti, Ghana, Qatar and Rwanda. The trip was paid for by taxpayers, out of an account reserved for members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee." He said he was conducting an audit of some foreign aid program that the State Department auditors must not have been able to handle. According to Air Force documents, it costs $4,821 per hour for a C-40 Transport used to shuttle Congressmen on these extended foreign junkets, so Boozman's per diem payments totaling $2,812.37 for the eight-day trip were a drop in the deficit bucket.
Nice work, John. We are so happy that you and your wife could see the world at taxpayer expense, even in tough economic times that you say made you vote against transportation projects, expanded health care, and job training programs for the common people here in Northwest Arkansas.
Great find! If this sinks his primary challenge, I will honestly be surprised. It may be a more effective attack coming from Lincoln (Halter) anyway.
ReplyDeleteThere is a long history of repeated abuse. According to Gilbert Baker, Boozman has spent $85,000 in taxpayer money since 2003 to visit five continents and a "dazzling 48 countries."
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ReplyDeleteIs there SOCIALISTIC Travel? Well there are common carriers but that evades the point.
I just wonder HOW Socialistic Travel works?
Taxpayer money, as always for John-MedicalExpert-Boozman.
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And the Republicans wonder why half of us Tea Party people won't vote for an incumbant or professional politician. This is just one more reason why we need Statesmen who have never held office. Middle Class businessmen, I say.
ReplyDeleteElecting businessmen is not the answer. Trying to run government like a business is what has led to most states' inability to cope with the current economy. This mentality has also ruined the public schools.
ReplyDeleteAssuming you could construct a parallel between a business and a government (What are the raw materials? What is the finished product?), the motivations of private enterprise are different from, if not antithetical to, the motivations of the public good.
But David, didn't you learn in school that the invisible hand works for democracy just as well as it does for private enterprise?
ReplyDeleteIf you don't like what's going on, you don't have to do anything! Just suffer for a generation and it will correct itself.
(That was sarcasm for those who might think I actually believe such hogwash.)
Excellent post, Jonah. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteWell said, Jonah,Franks, and Petty
ReplyDeleteHowever, hogwash would be a healing antiseptic when applied to Boozman's record. Maybe Tea Bags might somehow have a medicinal effect.
You might be right. When I had my wisdom teeth removed, the dentist told me to bite down on tea bags if the incisions started bleeding.
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