Travelin' Norm Clever Peasantry
There has been much talk lately concerning House Majority Leader Tom Delay’s ethical slips. A great deal of the attention that has been directed towards Mr. Delay’s has had to do with trips that were paid for by lobbyists. Who knew that we had our very own version of Tom Delay right here in Minnesota?
One of the leaders in the recent uptick in privately funded travel is Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., who ranks 15th in Congress in the number of free trips since 2000, even though he has only been in office since Jan. 2003. Coleman has taken 36 trips with a combined tab of $57,617.
Among Coleman's free travel: visits to Punta Mita, Mexico, and Barcelona, Spain, care of the Aspen Institute; a fact-finding trip to Maputo, Mozambique, paid for by World Vision, Inc.; and four trips to Las Vegas, two of them funded by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
Sen. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., is at the bottom of the pack, listing one free trip: a March 2001, tour of Alaskan oil drilling sites funded by Alyeska Pipeline Services Co. and Era Aviation.
A spokesman for Coleman said his frequent privately paid travel is a reflection of his work on the Foreign Relations Committee, as well as his draw as a speaker after a dramatic 2002 election in the wake of the death of Sen. Paul Wellstone.
My question would be whether or not his staff has been on some of these trips (and how many went.) I’m sure they have. Do they have to claim any expenses? Email Kevin Diaz and ask him to find out.right here in Minnesota?
One of the leaders in the recent uptick in privately funded travel is Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., who ranks 15th in Congress in the number of free trips since 2000, even though he has only been in office since Jan. 2003. Coleman has taken 36 trips with a combined tab of $57,617.
Among Coleman's free travel: visits to Punta Mita, Mexico, and Barcelona, Spain, care of the Aspen Institute; a fact-finding trip to Maputo, Mozambique, paid for by World Vision, Inc.; and four trips to Las Vegas, two of them funded by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
Sen. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., is at the bottom of the pack, listing one free trip: a March 2001, tour of Alaskan oil drilling sites funded by Alyeska Pipeline Services Co. and Era Aviation.
A spokesman for Coleman said his frequent privately paid travel is a reflection of his work on the Foreign Relations Committee, as well as his draw as a speaker after a dramatic 2002 election in the wake of the death of Sen. Paul Wellstone.
My question would be whether or not his staff has been on some of these trips (and how many went.) I’m sure they have. Do they have to claim any expenses? Email Kevin Diaz and ask him to find out.
Coleman’s travel is completely unique in the Senate. His predecessor only made 15 privately funded trips during his last 2 years in the Senate; something Coleman has more than doubled. "
Since Dave is constantly bitching, whining and moaning about the overwhelming (in his own mind, anyway) pro-liberal, anti-conservative bias in academia, what better way to test his claims than to give him his own college class to teach?
Seriously, I propose that some college or university in the U.S. -- ideally, one that Dave has viciously slagged in the last little while -- invite Dave to teach a single, one-term course. Since Dave is perpetually slobbering about the under-representation of right-wing moonbats on the faculty, what better way to address this than to give Dave his very own course to try to set things right. So, let's hammer out the details, shall we?
First, would Dave agree to do it? It's hard to see how he could refuse and not become the laughing-stock of the entire galactic quadrant. How could he possibly justify being such a total pain-in-the-ass for years regarding alleged liberal bias on campus, only to refuse the opportunity that's handed to him on a platter? Really, there's no way he could turn down such an offer and have anyone (well, anyone sane, that is) take him seriously any more. So I think we're safe in assuming that Dave really couldn't weasel his way out of this.
Coleman’s travel is completely unique in the Senate. His predecessor only made 15 privately funded trips during his last 2 years in the Senate; something Coleman has more than doubled. Continue reading "Travelin' Norm"
