Free Republic

WASHINGTON, June 27, 2007 – A New York State-based business owner made a seven-figure donation in frequent-flyer miles to the Fisher House Foundation as part of a Memorial Day-weekend promotion sponsored by CNN, a Fisher House official reported. Advertising and public relations executive Eric Mower donated 1 million frequent flyer miles that he’d accumulated during business travel with Delta Airlines over the past few years, said Pam Lea-Maida, program manager for Fisher House’s “Hero Miles” program at the organization’s headquarters in Rockville, Md. Air mileage donated as part of the program is used to provide transportation for family members...

Private groups flew Southern California congressional representatives across the globe on trips worth nearly $700,000 over the past five years, according to a report issued Tuesday. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Los Angeles, was the area's most frequent flier, according to the data collected by PoliticalMoneyLine, an online service that monitors campaign finance disclosure forms. Waters accepted 52 trips -- including jaunts to Cuba, Puerto Rico and Jamaica's Montego Bay -- at an estimated total of $132,219. At the bottom of the list was Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Sherman Oaks, who took one $340 trip to San Diego at the expense of the...