Posted on 05/16/2014 6:20:51 AM PDT by jimbo123
Florida first lady Columba Bush made a mistake and "feels horrible" about her embarrassing run-in with U.S. Customs agents late last week, a chagrined Gov. Jeb Bush said Monday.
"I can assure you it was a difficult weekend at our house," the governor said. "She knew that what she did was wrong and [she] made a mistake."
Columba Bush was briefly detained and fined at Atlanta's Hartsfield International Airport on Thursday after her arrival following a five-day shopping spree in Paris. The governor was not with her. She declared only $500 worth of merchandise on a Customs form at the airport. But during a random check, agents found receipts indicating the governor's wife was toting about $19,000 worth of clothing and jewelry bought in France.
Using a personal check, she paid $4,100 in duty and fines on the items. She was then allowed to continue to Tallahassee.
Still, the episode dogged the governor on Monday when he was forced to answer questions about his wife's run-in before signing into law a sweeping education reform package.
"It is a lot of money. But look, that's between her and me," said Gov. Bush, adding that his wife was embarrassed by the incident. "The mistake was not filling out the form at Customs properly -- that was the mistake," said the governor, who has reported a net worth of $2.4 million.
The question on many people's minds was why Columba Bush, an accomplished international traveler, disclosed only $500 in purchases.
U.S. Customs spokesman Patrick Jones said it is routine for agents to ask travelers if their declaration forms are accurate before any attempt is made to search luggage.
(Excerpt) Read more at articles.sun-sentinel.com ...
One rule for me, another for thee.
Typical globalist elite.
When most of us lie to a customs agent about a $19,000 import duty tax payment, we go to jail.
When the wife of Jeb Bush does it, the wife walks and Jeb gets embarrassed?
Just sayin’
Is that Jeb Bush’s wife? I don’t think I have ever seen a picture of her before. Someone needs to tell her about dresses with sleeves.
It isn’t right, of course. I HATE dishonesty. The fact that it happened in 1999 doesn’t make it OK. I’m not a Jeb Bush fan, but he better prepare himself for stuff like this, because it will come..
Egads!
Regardless of political ideology, isn’t it our patriotic duty as US cisitzens to do our best to avoid confiscatory taxes and dump King George’s tea into the harbor? I’m not defending Jeb/Columba but, THIS is news?
And some of us get hammered on this site for being “purists” in choosing our candidates.
You mean that puts him up a notch on the Bush/Kennedy scale?
Great observation. Almost certainly in the millions. What are the procedures for declaring duty on her purchases? How does Customs interface with AF1 regarding international travel?
Jeb has aged poorly - or should shoot the photographer before his wife does.
Time to go gently into the evening of ones political life for the Bush family.
He’ll be fatter than Christie at the rate he’s going.
This will get Bush good support from the criminal illegal alien bunch that was just released by Obama and are now registering to vote.
Not filling out the customs form properly wasn’t a ‘mistake’.
It was a lie.
She just thought she’d get away with it. The real question is how many times did she do that previously and already gotten away scot free?
This plays into the worst sterotypes of the Republican Party.
While most/many American families are struggling to pay the bills, she can afford to travel to Paris and buy 19K worth of stuff and then try to avoid the tax.
How do you think that is going to play in middle America?
Privileged and out of touch.
I remember when this happened. She said she lied to customs because she was afraid to tell Jebbie she spent so much money.
She’s a Halfling, a Hobbit.
And he’s a POS.
But series, how many of us have just flown in from Paris and remembered that we had five figures worth of loot in our suitcases that we got in the City of Light? No biggie, right?
No JEB! I’m bushed with these terds.
How Conveeeeeeenient. I bet Jeb told her to do it, and not to worry about getting caught because after all they were "Bushes."
C’mon guys, it was an act of love.
Apparently they have a somewhat tempestuous relationship.
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