Amid Crises, Obama's Busy Social Schedule Means Double Duty for Air Force One

The Washington Examiner ^ | Sunday, August 31, 2014 | Byron York

[kristinn]

In the past two weeks, President Obama has twice interrupted vacation and fundraising trips to take presidential planes to Washington for a brief period, only to turn around and fly back to his earlier location — once after just a few hours in the White House. Why the peripatetic travel schedule? Well, there was a wedding and a bachelor party involved — and an expensive mix of socializing, work, and vacation.

On Thursday, the White House announced Obama would travel to Westchester, N.Y., on Friday to attend a Democratic fundraiser. The president would then travel on to Newport, R.I., later in the day for another fundraiser. Then he would return to Westchester, where he would spend Friday night. On Saturday, Obama would attend the wedding of his personal chef and family friend Sam Kass and MSNBC's Alex Wagner at the tony Blue Hill at Stone Barns near Westchester. After the wedding, Obama would fly back to Washington.

On Friday, the White House abruptly announced a change in plans. Instead of overnighting in Westchester, Obama would fly from the second fundraiser in Newport back to Washington, where he would arrive at the White House a little after 11 p.m. Obama would fly back to Westchester 16 hours later, on Saturday afternoon, to attend the wedding.

Obama took what is known colloquially as "baby" Air Force One, comparable to a Boeing 757 commercial airliner. Figures from 2013 say "baby" Air Force One cost $42,918 per hour to operate, while the larger, Boeing 747 Air Force One cost $179,750 per hour to operate. However, newer reports indicate the big Air Force One now costs $228,288 an hour to operate, so it is likely that the (somewhat) smaller version costs significantly more than the 2013 figure, too.

[kristinn]

More at the source link.

[bandleader]

I think the people of this Once Great Republic have a RIGHT to know just how much Obongo is Costing Us for the”Over-Use”of AirForce One??

[rockinqsranch]

SOMEBODY LOCK UP THAT PLAYTOY PLANE IN THE CLOSET ALONG WITH HIS GOLF CLUBS, AND MAKE HIM DO HIS HOMEWORK.

[DoughtyOne]

All this cost to move a nine year old around, with his schoolmates.

Wish they had grown up to become adults.


Ramirez's latest political cartoon LARGE VERSION 08/31/2014: LINK  LINK to regular sized version of Ramirez's latest, and an archive of his political cartoons.
In this political cartoon, Ramirez presents, "Obama vs ISIS"

ALRIGHT FREEPERS, NINETY-EIGHT PRECENT OF THE FREEPATHON GOAL HAS BEEN MET.  Lets end this.
...this is a general all purpose message, and should not be seen as targeting any individual I am responding to...

Each of us wants Free Republic to remain a resource on into the future.  Let's get behind it and end this FReepathon today!

[rktman]

Party like it’s 1999.

[upchuck]

From the last sentence of the article:

...a president who is constantly in motion, but doesn't know where he is going.

That goes without saying. Now, what is the REAL reason for POTUS constantly moving around? Perhaps the Secret Service knows?

[Polyxene]

Barry only wanted the job for the perks. He is the POS-in-Chief, NOT POTUS.

[Fresh Wind]

I suspect King Barry needs to include “official business” in his travel schedule so he can stick the taxpayer with the bill. If a trip is exclusively political, the party has to pay.

So you will notice almost every time he jets off to a round of fundraisers, there will be a brief stop to give a speech at a school or factory, and that’s the “official business” he needs to stick us with the bill.

[C210N]

If a round trip flight was solely to a fundraiser and charged to the US Taxpayers, is there any LSM reporter that would write about it? Would any GOPers complain? If, perchance, one did... would it make news?

[a fool in paradise]

He’s wasting resources so he can CLAIM he wasn’t on “vacation” by dropping in at the White House for a few hours or avoiding an overnight stay when he is out fundraising.

[Arthur McGowan]

If there is another President, the first thing he should do, after placing all the conspirators who put an illegal alien in the WH, is sell Air Force One. (Yes, I know any plane the President is on is Air Force One.) There is no reason a President needs to be anywhere but the WH or Camp David. He doesn’t need to do fundraisers, or fly over flood areas, or any of that nonsense.

The other main thing the next President can do, to prove that he “gets it,” is abolish the STFU Speech, and deliver written messages from time to time to Congress.

[Thank You Rush]

“”Now, what is the REAL reason for POTUS constantly moving around?””

I’ll be the brave one here.

BECAUSE a moving target is harder to hit?

[Thank You Rush]

“”So you will notice almost every time he jets off to a round of fundraisers, there will be a brief stop to give a speech at a school or factory, and that’s the “official business” he needs to stick us with the bill.””

That’s true but I don’t see anything on these two trips that qualifies as official business....

[Thank You Rush]

Saw pictures earlier this morning of the three females in the family dressed in black as they were headed to the wedding... Black for a wedding AND in New York in August??

[upchuck]

My understanding that the hours spent on official business and the hours spent politicking are kept separate and paid for separately.

There are plenty of watchdog groups on top of this.

[RetSignman]

Gosh, I hope all that wear and tear on AF1 doesn’t cause it malfunction in mid air and crash into a mountain or somethin’.

[Izzy Dunne]

what is the REAL reason for POTUS constantly moving around?

So Clueless Joe won't find him.

[mikrofon]

POTUS == Perquisident of the United States

[Fresh Wind]

So, suppose Barry hops on AF1 and flies to LA. While he’s there he gives a speech on education at a school, then attends a fundraiser, and then flies back to DC.

Who pays?

The taxpayers pay for AF1 to get him to LA and from the airport to the school. The party pays for him to get from the school to the fundraiser location, and then back to the airport. The taxpayers pay for AF1 to get him back to DC.

Not true?

[Old Yeller]

Wasting taxpayers money because he can.