Keeping It All In Perspective

The Hawaii State Capitol.Picture taken from at...

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On Saturday, the Hawaii Reporter reported that while President Obama and his family are enjoying an estimated $4,113,038 vacation in Hawaii at taxpayer expense, former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is also visiting Hawaii. Ms. Pelosi is spending her Christmas at the exotic Four Seasons Resort Hualalai at Historic Ka’upulehu in Kona on the island of Hawaii, at a cost of $10,000 a night. There has been a bit of a ruckus on some internet sites about this, but I am here to offer a different perspective.

Ms. Pelosi is married to a very successful businessman. Admittedly, there may have been some interesting aspects of Congress throwing business his way or insider trading, but the fact remains that he is a successful businessman. In my mind, he (and his wife) have earned the right to stay in a $10,000 a night hotel room. Good for them. Her visit has cost the local taxpayers in Hawaii $34,000 for police escorts, but again, as a Congresswoman, she is entitled to security.

When President Bush left Washington on vacation, most of the time he went to his ranch in Texas or his father’s house in Maine. The expense to the taxpayer was minimal. President Obama is a very expensive President. At a time when many taxpayers can’t even afford to go out to dinner and the government is in serious deficit, it seems a little excessive for the President to spend more than $4 million dollars on a vacation.

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