[McDermott's] roughly $21,000 five-day visit to Bali in November apparently is the most-expensive trip by a member since Congress tightened rules on privately funded travel in 2007 to reduce influence peddling.
well, someone had to be number one.
By comparison, McDermott's longtime Democratic colleague, U.S. Rep. Norm Dicks of Bremerton, took two trips during the same six-year period. Those trips, one to Hawaii on U.S.-China relations, and one to Madrid on U.S.-Russia relations, each cost about $8,500.
that's funny. i didn't realize that china is in hawai'i, or that russia is in spain.
mcdermott is doing what he's supposed to be doing for our state: making sure that washington gets its exports across the pacific ocean.
oh, and by the way...
The tab for McDermott's portion of the Indonesia visit included $9,548 airfare from Seattle to Bali to Washington, D.C., as well as about $1,281 for lodging and $760 for meals. It also included indirect expenses, including $2,500 for interpreters, $400 for lodging for security escorts, $3,000 for meeting space and a reception, and other expenses such as per-diem costs for support staff.
The costs of such privately funded trips are easier to track than official congressional delegation trips. Those so-called CODELs are paid for by the government. Many such trips are taken aboard military-owned aircraft.
so corporate america wants baghdad jim to go make life easier for them in indonesia, and they pay for the trip? okay. so long as it benefits the state, i trust jim mcdermott to do the right thing. that's why i vote for him, after all, and that's why his seniority in congress is an asset.
that doesn't mean i oppose term limits, though.
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West Seattle Blog
