'Nancy Pelosi's Air Force' Grounded by Fellow House Democrats
By Peter Roff, Thomas Jefferson Street blog
It looks like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is going to have to fly commercial for a little while longer.
According to various news reports appearing throughout the day on Tuesday, House Democratic leaders have reversed themselves and will no longer seek to purchase three Gulfstream luxury business class passenger jets to be available for use by congressional lawmakers, including Speaker Pelosi, who has famously battled with the air force in previous years over aircraft made available to her.
As I wrote here on Thomas Jefferson Street on Thursday, a February 2007 ABC News report discussed the Pentagon's refusal to honor Pelosi's request "for use of a military plane that can fly to and from her home district in San Francisco without having to stop to refuel."
The purchasing provision, part of the FY 2010 Defense Department Appropriations Bill, specified $550 million for the three Gulfstream jets and five military-style versions of the Boeing 737 passenger plane. It was initially approved by the House just before it left town for the August recess.
The deal to create what congressional critics referred to privately as "Nancy Pelosi's Air Force," was widely criticized, even by Senate Democrats like Missouri's Claire McCaskill, who said the plan to buy the planes "kind of makes me sick to my stomach" while promising to help kill the measure once it reached the north side of the Capitol.
Through a spokesman, Speaker Pelosi indicated she supported the decision not to give the Defense Department any more jets than it had requested, a sentiment echoed by House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman John Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, who, once the deal hit the media spotlight, told the press, "If the Department of Defense does not want these aircraft, they will be eliminated from the bill."
The original Pentagon request was for $220 million to purchase one Gulfstream and three Boeing aircraft.
- Check out our political cartoons.
- Become a political insider: Subscribe to U.S. News Weekly, our new digital magazine.
- On Facebook? Become a fan of the Thomas Jefferson Street blog.
Tags: Nancy Pelosi
Tools: 
Share
|
| Comments (10) | Print
Reader Comments
Peloci's jet
Does Pelosi allow space "A" military people to fly on her trips to and from Ca?
WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF THE BILLS SENT TO CONGRESS
I PULLED UP THE HEALTHCARE HR3200 BILL AND DID NOT RECOGNIZE A SINGLE PERSON... NOT AN ELECTED SENATOR OR REPRESENTIVE.
SO IF THEY ARE NOT AUTHORING THE LAWS AND REGULATIONS THEY ARE SUPPOSE TO BE REPRESENTING US TO BE SURE THAT OUR INTEREST AND THE SECURITY OF THIS COUNTRY IS COUNTING ON.....WHO IS???
THE FACT THAT THEY PASSED A 700 BILLION BILL WITHOUT READING IT AT ALL...INDICATES TO ME THAT THE ENTIRE LOT OF THEM ARE NOT REPRESENTING THE PEOPLE OF THIS COUNTRY.
BUT MORE THAN THAT; THE QUESTION SHOULD BE "WHO IS RUNNING THE SHOW"?
WE'VE SENT THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE TO WASHINGTON YEAR AFTER YEAR THINKING THEY WOULD BECOME SMARTER BUT; A LAST, THINGS PROGRESSLY GET WORSE.
SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM...TAKES LAWERS OUT OF LAW MAKING...
IT IS THE ONLY INDUSTRY WHERE THEY MAKE LAWS TO GENERATE DISPUTES AND CONFLICTS...AND MAKE THEIR LIVING OUT OF THE GRIEF THEY CREATE.
YOU WANT LESS EXPENSIVE HEALTH CARE COST....REDUCE THE UNBELIEVABLE LAW SUIT SETTLEMENTS TO A REASONABLE AMOUNT AND THE INSURANCE COMPANIES WILL NOT HAVE TO CHARGE SUCH HIGH RATES TO PROTECT THE MEDICAL PROFESSION.
THIS IS NOT A GENIUS TALKING. MAKE THIS THE FIRST STEP ALONG WITH AUDITING THE INSURANCE COMPANIES TO BE SURE THEY REDUCE RATE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REDUCED RISK.
OBSERVE THE RESULTS AND PROCEED FROM THAT FIRST STEP.
I find it interesting
That Speaker Pelosi, who is supposedly so big on "Green Energy" wants a private jet, at all. Give her a horse -- provided one wants to carry her that far!
advertisement
