Private Planes Again
By stealthy
@stealthy (8181)
United States
February 25, 2009 9:18am CST
Obama once more threw out a line about CEOs and private planes. Well when is he going to do something about members of Congress and their use of private planes, and the even more expensive use of military planes, to go on their junkets all over the world not just in the U.S. A lot of these junkets are just made up so the members of Congress can make these expensive trips for what are really more like vacations at tax payer expense. The Dilbert cartoon today really got it right, see photo.
4 responses
@deejean06 (1952)
• United States
25 Feb 09
What about the massive expense for the inauguration? I guess as long as he didn't use a private plane then the expense was justified? If the CEO of a private business wants to use a private plane, then I say he should do it. However things get a little sticky when these CEOs come to the American people and say that they need money to survive. Then it's a different story. If anyone of us lent money to a family member because they cried poverty and then the very next week that family member took a vacation, we would be angry. It's the same reasoning with the corporations. The simple solution is to just say no to the bailouts. If a company is mismanaged, then let it fail.
@stealthy (8181)
• United States
25 Feb 09
That would also mean no help for people facing foreclosure by the same reasoning, if they bought a house they couldn't afford, they should be forclosed on. I happen to agree with that since I have always lived frugally and saved and bought a house I could afford and now I am having to pay for people who have been spending and living beyond their means for years.
@deejean06 (1952)
• United States
25 Feb 09
I know exactly what you mean. We happen to have a small home and have been the recipient of belittling comments that our home is a "cottage". However this is exactly what we can afford. We have and always will take care of ourselves and our family members and have never asked for assistance beyond the normal loans of mortgages and car loans. We all have credit in good standing and work diligently to save for our children. The people who have to outdo the Jones' are the ones who should be criticized, not me and my fmaily. They should also be the ones to fail instead of punishing the ones who always made the correct choice, if not the grandiose one.
@Taskr36 (13963)
• United States
25 Feb 09
Well he certainly had no problem billing the taxpayers to fly a senator in on Airforce One just so he could be the 60th vote for the stimulus bill. He is more than happy to fly around members of congress on our dime. Make those puds fly coach on Southwest or Airtran and save us all a couple of bucks.
@belhaven14 (454)
• United States
25 Feb 09
You would think that he would look at cutting funding to the presidential fleet of 28 Marine One helicopters before he would continue to mock corporations for their use of private jets. Talking about the jets is just an example of how corporations spend money on rediculous things. However, I don't see corporations listening to the president on how to use money wisely when Conress is nonstop spending money on stupid things. Sometimes you just have to lead by example.
@lilwonders456 (8214)
• United States
25 Feb 09
Because the bail out CEOs are easy targets. It gets people mad. Plus they have the opinion "do as I say, not as I do". The fact that he goes after them and not members of congress shows how much of a double standard there is.
@stealthy (8181)
• United States
25 Feb 09
And members of Congress are quick to take advantage of all the corporate parties at conventions and corporate funded vacations they get to which they proably fly to on private jets that we pay for. Then members of congress turn around and get after the corporate CEOs.
