I’m sorry, but exactly who is out of touch?
Regardless of how I feel about Romney, the drubbing he received for his now infamous bet of $10,000 with Rick Perry during one of the debates was pretty typical of how Republicans, particularly wealthy ones, are treated in the press.
What is also typical is how the latest royal vacation of Øbama and family is reported. In this time of record unemployment and weak economy, the Øbamas (separately again, at great extra cost) have embarked on yet another vacation in Øbama’s (alleged) birthplace, Hawaii. According to the Hawaii Reporter, the cost of the 17 day foray has climbed to an estimated $4,113,038! This is based on known costs, and the article lists several more costs that the WH will not release figures for. Let’s not forget that Bush was constantly criticized by the left for the roughly $225K it cost to go to boring old Crawford, TX. I think Camp David should be excepted, as it is the official “vacation” residence of the president.
Just like you, right? How much did the last vacation you took (assuming you could afford to) cost? It’s only fair that we know, since we are footing the bill. No matter where Romney goes, or what he pays, the bottom line is that it is HIS bottom line, not ours.
Another question is: what is wrong with the mansion in Chicago? Wouldn’t it be nice to go home for Christmas?
Øbama should be more cognizant of the difficulties the people that are paying for his extravagant vacation are going through, and tone down the elitist “living large” image he is projecting. On our dime.
Who is really “out of touch”?
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Apropos post for this altruistic time of the year. Pols on the national level are ALL rich (and shamelessly continue to enrich themselves during their unlimited terms). This skews every thought in their pointy heads. 1. They are used to being elitist, pompous asses, and insist on being treated as such. 2. They MUST be better able to think than you because they are rich and you aren’t. 3. They simply don’t care what we think about their lifestyles as long as it doesn’t affect the poll numbers.? Merry Christmas Citizens!!
and to all a good night??
The master is loved by his disciples & they want him to have the highest pleasures. So what if a few starve if the master is pleased.
Mmmm, let’s see.? The world cruise I’m going?on?next year will cost between $50,000 to $250,000.? Cunard is pretty cheap, only $20,000.? Do you think Obama will treat me????
For those of you who want to join me – good way to avoid election-year chaos -?here is a link:
http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/articles.cfm?id=514
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Sounds like a blast!? I hope they have internet access!!
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Stay away from the Somali coast!? 😉
just kidding, for anyone who thinks I was serious….tongue-in-cheek, British humour left over from childhood!
Bon voyage, gillie28! May your cruise be everything that you expect.
Let me go out on a limb here and posit that most contributors here would like to go on a very nice vacation to Hawaii, but do not have the ready or expected cash to pay for such a luxury. I know that is the case with me.
?bama never ceases to amaze. I wonder what the total cost of all his vacations and campaign trips are? He definitely embodies the spirit of Marie Antoinette, the unpopular French Queen. Like Marie, he has a certain taint of high crimes and large misdemeanors;? unlike ?bama, she was very probably innocent. One was imperious and profligate, the other, well, imperious and profligate; the fate of one is known, can the other be different?
Who’s out of touch? You are.
the biggest ticket item for this vacation is the?travel, pegged at?$3,629,622. ? For?Air Force One, running at about $181,757 per flight hour, to fly direct from Washington D.C. to Hawaii is about 9 hours, or $1,635,813 each way. ? Add to that the cost of the?USAF C-17 cargo aircraft that transports the Presidential limos, helicopters and other support equipment to Hawaii, another C-17 flight with the presidential helicopter, pilots and support crews for the test flights, plus the six-member crew?s per diem and hotel, and you?ve got a big chunk of the total price tag.
They are paying for their own rental and personal costs. The rest of the $$$ are for support staff, secret service, reporters. navy seals.
The cost would have been cut substantionally if Obama wasn’t forced to stay in DC due to the antics of Boehner and his ilk.
At this point in his term, Obama has taken 61 vacation days to W’s 180. The cost of flying he and his family back and forth on his many vacations are about 17,500,000.
Oh Crystal, you do not have a leg to stand on with this point. Please stop listening to the man behind the screen. However, freedom of choice, stay in Oz if you must!!! As for me, I’d rather stay in the continental US for my vacations. Yes, I have generous friends who allow me to travel outside of continental US, but my favorite vacations have been driving around from state to state. It allows me to find RED states.
Ca-chiiinnngggg!
Certainly profligate!
(Who paid for Bush’s vacation expenses? To his own home . . . in Texas . . . other destinations? What is wrong with the ?’Mansion in Chicago?)
Travel = cost per hour.? How far is it to Camp David again?? Or Chicago?
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Again, comparing 8 years of Bush to 3 of ??? Another demonstration of how Democrats define “fair”?? ;-)? And Bush didn’t have the record unemployment figures and lousy economy to live down…
Do O’s vacation days to date include days spent golfing???
But I’m sure O’s will be a working vacation, right?
crystal, “the biggest ticket item for this vacation is the travel, pegged at $3,629,622.” oh, well, that’s alright then.? Just a typical, middle-class vacation cost.
All I could find was that they paid for their own lodging (and I assume that they didn’t list their daughters as “senior staffers” like Michelle did for the half million dollar Africa trip last summer? http://campaign2012.washingtonexaminer.com/blogs/beltway-confidential/nearly-half-million-send-michelle-africa ).? Now, at the maximum lodging rate of $3500/day for 17 days (nothing but the best for the first family!), it comes to an appalling $59,500, a mere 1.5% of the total known cost.
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Let them eat arugula!
OK. Here it is: the O = 11 vacations for 70 days, 22 visits to Camp David for 54 days, 88 rounds of golf. Bush in the same time period = 28 visits to Texas for 207 days, 72 visits to Camp David for all or part of 228 days, 24 rounds of golf. Source: Washington Post. Here is the kicker – Bush wasn’t going to Hawaii or Martha’s Vineyard, and the bulk of the Texas visits were working vacations at the Western Whitehouse, where he entertained 19 world leaders. So apart from Michelle’s obscene travel spending, what is really at issue is the O’s shameless, inconsiderate, narcissistic, nouveau riche, strutting while Rome burns.
Do I hear a fiddle?
It’s not the sound of the fiddle so much as it is the smell of smoke….
The first family has to take separate jumbo jets because of weight concerns.
Separate jet for his ego??
Yep, that dog has quite a posterior from what I hear.
Bo, you mean Bo, right?
Winnie, I see your fingers didn’t run away with you this time!!!
Another modestly-priced holiday for the ex-speaker: Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, D-CA, who served as Speaker of the House and is now head of the House minority, is once again spending her Christmas at the exotic Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Ka’upulehu in Kona on the island of Hawaii….Pelosi spent the last two Christmas holidays in Kona at the same hotel in an elaborate suite that rents for $10,000 a night….Pelosi has been escorted by local police during her last two holiday visits to Hawaii Island at a cost of $34,000 to local taxpayers.??
I see the definition of “austerity”?has not reached her desk yet.
Ya beat me to it!? ?’s worst case rooms were only $3500!!? SanFranNan is really “in touch”, don’t you think?
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And she doesn’t plan to stay for only a day either….