just not enough to pony up and pay for it...
Posted on 04/16/2012 5:06:10 PM PDT by Sub-Driver
Panetta Regrets Cost of His Weekend Trips to California as Defense Secretary Email 0 Smaller Font Text Larger Text | Print
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said today he regrets the high cost of his weekend travels to California, and is looking for ways to save money on flights that have totaled about $860,000 since he came to the Pentagon last July.
Throughout his Washington career, Panetta has routinely returned to his walnut farm in Monterey, Calif. on weekends. He did so as a congressman, as a cabinet member and as chief of staff in the Clinton White House.
However, in the post-9/11 world the Defense Secretary is obliged to be reachable to take secure communications whenever he travels, which means he can’t take commercial flights as he did in the past.
Now, Panetta often takes a small military jet. The 10-hour round-trip flights between Washington and California are estimated to cost $32,000 each Panetta is only required to pay the cost of a commercial ticket for himself, about $630 a flight.
At a Pentagon briefing with reporters today, Panetta said that he regrets the trips to California add costs to taxpayers. He said he is looking for savings. He also defended the trips, saying his wife and family are in California and that “it’s healthy to get out of Washington periodically just to get your mind straight and your perspective straight.”
“I regret that it does — you know, that it does add costs that the taxpayer has to pick up,” Panetta said today.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
"Regrets... I've had a few, but... then again, too few to mention."
Finally he’s regretful? I wonder what happened. Is someone about to do an expose?
just not enough to pony up and pay for it...
Panetta has a nut farm? LOL. Sometimes the jokes just write themselves.
This admin has been one long part-ay on the taxpayer dime.
They will regret none of it, Panetta won’t repay it.
I’m sure he was grabbing for his check book to reimburse us while he said this.
He took a job in Washington DC. If he wants to work there he should live there. Trips ”home” for a weekend should be on his dime. Until government is held to the same standard as the private sector we will continue to see multi trillion dollar budget problems.
Does it not weigh on his conscience all the money he is spending and what else could be done with that money to solve problems?
“The 10-hour round-trip flights between Washington and California are estimated to cost $32,000 each Panetta is only required to pay the cost of a commercial ticket for himself, about $630 a flight.”
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Its only that invisible, unaccounted for, make-believe taxpayer money.
My a$$ hurts.
HAHAHAHAHA Leon, you chump.
You need to take a few lessons in raiding the public treasury from your sister-in-arms, Nancy Pelosi.
She flew herself and her family back and forth across the US, in Pelosi AirLines, courtesy the taxpaying serfs, all the time, and all the while boozing it up with all sorts of expensive liquors.
She doesn’t have a conscience - she didn’t give a rat’s posterior - why should you?
Just kick up your feet, and enjoy the view. Go for it! After all, it IS the prerogative of all of our 0.01% US Government Betters!!!!!
LIAR
In a word, no. It's his due, don'cha know.
I wonder if he gets per diem on his “TDY” trips home? That’d be at least $100.00/day tax free.
.. oh and besides “TDY” of $100.00/day tax free I wonder if like Biden — does Panetta also bill his aides-bodyguards for the time they spend on his property?
This story about how much these trips cost has been out for months and months. It’s ridiculously exorbitant how much he spends and how often he goes.
“.. oh and besides “TDY” of $100.00/day tax free I wonder if like Biden — does Panetta also bill his aides-bodyguards for the time they spend on his property?”
###
Nothing like government employess to come up with creative ways to steal from the less than 50% (and shrinking), of us that pay taxes.
Its not just the higher-ups at the Federal level. Check out the thieving policies regarding overtime, pensions and “sick” leave at your LOCAL Fire Department, for example.
I am wondering how she flies to DC now.
Did she have a ceremony where she handed a huge oversized keyring with ‘keys’ to the Gulfstream back to the people after she got dumped as Speaker?
Seriously, I have yet to see a pic of her in a commercial airport.
Then don't be sorry about it. It goes with the job. I don't see any reason for him to feel bad.
When I fly from Springfield, Missouri to Santa Barbara, CA, it cost me about $800 round trip. That is one half the distance he flies. Must be using cost flying jet blue for the $630 air fare.
I wonder if the Air Force charges a checked baggage fee also???
The actual walnut ‘ranch’ is in Carmel Valley.
The boy’s come a long way from when he used to umpire Little League games back in the 70’s.
He actually sponsored a flat tax law in the early 80’s. (I used to argue taxation policy with him at various social occasions.)
He was a little (maybe a lot) left of center and convinced a lot of people out there back in ‘76 that he was actually a conservative. He waged a campaign on going to Washington to clean it up.
Alas, Washington politics suborned any sense of decency and humility he ever had and has left him as a sad sack of establishment sh!t.
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