Tax payer funded vacations

[stormkroe]

The story is here

Cost to Taxpayers: $115,500.87
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch today released records detailing the government funds expended on First Daughter Malia Obama’s March 2012 Spring Break vacation to Mexico. According to the records, obtained from the U.S. Secret Service as a result of a Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed on September 20, 2012, the total cost of the trip amounted to $115,500.87 (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Secret Service (No. 12-cv-01562)).
The following is a breakdown of the costs as detailed in the documents:
Ground transportation: $23,964.81
Lodging: $21,682.92
Airfare: $47,767.34
“Vouchers”: $21,636.14 (not itemized)
Support Charges: $449.66 (travel for one from Mexico City to Oaxaca, not itemized)

Just wondering what you guys think of this. Is it normal? Should things like this be paid for from the President's personal salary? I'm not clear on all the perks of the White house, but it seems pretty pricey.

 

[Jhhnn]

The story is here

Just wondering what you guys think of this. Is it normal? Should things like this be paid for from the President's personal salary? I'm not clear on all the perks of the White house, but it seems pretty pricey.

She can't go anywhere w/o Secret Service protection.

 

[Slick5150]

Yes, it's normal.
No, it's not news.
Yes, I'm sure Fox News will claim he's fleecing America somehow.

 

[Brainonska511]

I don't see the problem if she (or the family) paid for her own expenses. The other stuff is just the way it is - security costs money and it is necessary for the President and his family. Do you expect them to live in a bunker for 4-8 years?

 

[RabidMongoose]

That doesn't sound like a tax payer funded vacation. It sounds like the secret service costs of someone going on a vacation on their own.

 

[Incorruptible]

If they pay for it personally then its alright but if they used any tax dollars then it just shows how much of pos they are. Tax dollars should not be used for this nonsense.

 

[Jadow]

better than having the daughter of the president kidnapped or worse

 

[stormkroe]

better than having the daughter of the president kidnapped or worse

I agree. The article just stated that the $115,000 was the amount of 'government funds' used. It doesn't state if the Obama's paid anything over and above that amount.
I in no way expect them to live like recluses during (or after, for that matter) their stay in the white house, I just didn't know if the responsibility for paying is expected to fall no taxpayers. Lots of circumstances raise the price of vacations, and anything else for that matter, but where is the line for those circumstances costing taxpayers vs the officials taking the vacation? I'm keeping opinion out of this, this is purely an informational question.

 

[Matt1970]

Cost to Taxpayers: $115,500.87
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch today released records detailing the government funds expended on First Daughter Malia Obama’s March 2012 Spring Break vacation to Mexico. According to the records, obtained from the U.S. Secret Service as a result of a Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed on September 20, 2012, the total cost of the trip amounted to $115,500.87 (Judicial Watch v. U.S. Secret Service (No. 12-cv-01562)).
The following is a breakdown of the costs as detailed in the documents:
Ground transportation: $23,964.81
Lodging: $21,682.92
Airfare: $47,767.34
“Vouchers”: $21,636.14 (not itemized)
Support Charges: $449.66 (travel for one from Mexico City to Oaxaca, not itemized)

Cost of having the U.S. Secret Service come back from Mexico without any sexually transmitted diseases: Priceless.

 

[Darwin333]

I agree. The article just stated that the $115,000 was the amount of 'government funds' used. It doesn't state if the Obama's paid anything over and above that amount.
I in no way expect them to live like recluses during (or after, for that matter) their stay in the white house, I just didn't know if the responsibility for paying is expected to fall no taxpayers. Lots of circumstances raise the price of vacations, and anything else for that matter, but where is the line for those circumstances costing taxpayers vs the officials taking the vacation? I'm keeping opinion out of this, this is purely an informational question.

Shrug, I think a tad over a hundred grand is well worth not having some entity kidnap the President of the United States daughter and use her to extort him to do things not in our best interest. I am also smart enough to know that having someones child as leverage is HUGE and virtually impossible for the parent(s) to remain "unbiased".

Hell, even if it doesn't work to extort him, the sheer time the President would spend getting his child back, and the secret service that we all agree goes with him, would be absurdly more expensive than a dozen of these trips.

 

[MomentsofSanity]

The government still pays millions a year for former presidents who are raking in tens of millions on speaking engagemente etc... Nothing in this is outrageous.

How about we change the thread title to protecting the first family isn't free?

 

[Schmide]

Considering Obama took around 80 days vacation in his first 4 years and Bush took over 1000 in his 8 years, 100k+ for mai tais is well justified.

 

[stormkroe]

The government still pays millions a year for former presidents who are raking in tens of millions on speaking engagemente etc... Nothing in this is outrageous.

How about we change the thread title to protecting the first family isn't free?

Nah, my question was about taxpayer funded vacations. I didn't know if it was a normal thing, where the lines are drawn, etc. It doesn't affect me in any way really, and if tax dollars are going directly to protect the president's (or anyone's for that matter) kid, then feel good about having cut and dry good tax use for once.

 

[Darwin333]

Considering Obama took around 80 days vacation in his first 4 years and Bush took over 1000 in his 8 years, 100k+ for mai tais is well justified.

There are exactly 2944 days in 8 years, are you saying that President Bush spent over one third of their entire presidency on vacation???? I don't buy that any president has or even remotely could get away with that.

 

[MomentsofSanity]

What I'm curious on, and I'm sure judicial watch didn't really care td out is, what would her protection expenses have been had she not gone to Mexico. How much is it truly above the norm?

 

[Anarchist420]

Dr. Paul and Mrs. Paul would've paid for their own kids so I have issue with Obama using govt funds especially considering how much materially richer the Obamas are than the Pauls are.

 

[stlc8tr]

There are exactly 2944 days in 8 years, are you saying that President Bush spent over one third of their entire presidency on vacation???? I don't buy that any president has or even remotely could get away with that.

The most commonly cited figure is 1,020 days (487 days at Camp David, 490 days at his Crawford ranch, and 43 days in Kennebunkport).

 

[PottedMeat]

There are exactly 2944 days in 8 years, are you saying that President Bush spent over one third of their entire presidency on vacation???? I don't buy that any president has or even remotely could get away with that.

i don't think there's such a thing as a 'vacation' for any president from inauguration till the day they leave office. more like 'i wanna work out of hawaii/texas/maine two weeks from now'

 

[the DRIZZLE]

The most commonly cited figure is 1,020 days (487 days at Camp David, 490 days at his Crawford ranch, and 43 days in Kennebunkport).

I don't necessarily consider the time the President spends working from one of his homes other than the White House being on vacation. Does Obama's vacation time include the time he spent at home in Chicago?

 

[stormkroe]

The most commonly cited figure is 1,020 days (487 days at Camp David, 490 days at his Crawford ranch, and 43 days in Kennebunkport).

Yeah I was just checking out that number. It's hilariously high, to the point that I find it odd that no one was throwing a fit about it during his term. Then I read that most of this 'vacation' was actually 'doing his job somewhere other than the white house'. Makes more sense, and actually makes me angry that, once again, facts are glossed over when referring to Bush. I've said it before, there's PLENTY to hate the guy for without lying/exaggerating things.

 

[Incorruptible]

Dr. Paul and Mrs. Paul would've paid for their own kids so I have issue with Obama using govt funds especially considering how much materially richer the Obamas are than the Pauls are.

This, Ron Paul used private security out of his own pocket and not SS which is a form of welfare. Why cant obama pay for his own security

 

[Matt1970]

i don't think there's such a thing as a 'vacation' for any president from inauguration till the day they leave office. more like 'i wanna work out of hawaii/texas/maine two weeks from now'

This. A President is never really on Vacation.

 

[halik]

I don't see the problem if she (or the family) paid for her own expenses. The other stuff is just the way it is - security costs money and it is necessary for the President and his family. Do you expect them to live in a bunker for 4-8 years?

This; moving along.

 

[Schmide]

Makes more sense, and actually makes me angry that, once again, facts are glossed over when referring to Bush.

That's because you can't find any record in any GAO report. Not for any trip business or pleasure. The dude hid everything, the war, his trips, people who came to visit. It's like we had 8 years of void.

 

[techs]

This thread is a perfect example of why the Republicans are burying themselves.
First off its just an outright lie since the government didn't spend one penny on the kids vacation. Obama paid for it. The government only paid for the protection of the Presidents kids. Just like it has for Bushes kids, Clintons kid, etc.

Its these made up "news stories" that show how bereft of ideas the Republicans are. It is just like Fox news going on for days over how many vacation days Obama has taken when Bush took many many more days. Its like the ridiculous figure of 200 million dollars a day the Republicans claimed Obamas trip to India cost.

Rational people look at crazy Republican shit like this and just think this is the reason they can't let these people back in power.