Get the K-Y folks...we getting screwed again! The President is back from his vacation in Hawaii. Now, we get to pay the bill for his 16 day luxury fiesta, the cost of which is enough to choke any taxpayer. We all know that President Obama flew to Hawaii for a luxury vacation, but it was not complete without forcing a couple of Army Captains to move their wedding to which he had been invited but declined in order to go golfing with the Malaysia’s prime minister, who is a known sponsor of terrorist organizations such as the Muslim Brotherhood. We also know that the Obama’s are notorious for racking up quite the tab at our expense for lavish vacations. However, aren’t you just a bit curious about the breakdown of the bill this time around? While friends who accompanied the President paid for their own home rentals near Kailua Beach, we get to pay the bill for expenses accrued by the First Family, including everything from a stand-by ambulance to refueling Air Force One to the tune of a multimillion dollar tab. We are not saying that the President doesn’t deserve a vacation, but it is hard to justify the cost to our wallet, especially when we see just how hard of a hit it’s going to be. Helping us see the impact another vacation had on the American taxpayer, the research center Watchdog kept up with the sticker price of Obama’s holiday, which will be billed to the US citizens. First, let us start with the Honolulu Police Department that was charged with escorting and guarding Obama, the First Lady, the First Daughters, and even Bo (the ‘first dog’) around the clock during their vacation. HPD spokeswoman Michelle Yu just released information stating they spent $277,000 on overtime costs this year on this 16 day vacation alone. While that’s $16,000 less than 2013, it is $60,000 more than 2012. Then, there is the Emergency Management Services and Secret Service. The ambulance alone cost taxpayers about $15,890 for the two-week stay. The Secret Service refused to disclose to the media the total cost, but adding in meals, overtime, travel, gas, and expenses, one could only imagine. Some are flown in separately from the initial presidential detail. The Ala Moana Hotel housed many, with literally dozens checking in the day before the President’s arrival. The “reduced” government rate is $2oo a night or roughly $3200 each. Next, there were Navy SEALS, Coast Guard details, and other units that were given per diem to attend. Department of Defense pays $702 a day for out of CONUS rates and $129 a day for CONUS. Therefore, each soldier shoulders their expenses but can charge up to $832 a day for such details if justifiable, which this detail is. They were placed in private housing near Kailua Beach at a rate of $250 per night. Then there are the flights for Obama’s “guests” and the First Family. While the records for this year have yet to be released, it is estimated to be bigger than the December 2013- January 2014 spending spree. Records obtained by Washington, D.C.-based Judicial Watch said “the flights to and from Honolulu for the December 2013-January 2014 Christmas vacation totaled 36.9 hours at $210,877 an hour, which comes to a flight expense alone of $7,781,361.30.” That was an increase of $3.7 million in flight expenses Judicial Watch reported the Obamas incurred for their 2012 Honolulu Christmas vacation. (Watchdog) And that does not count the cost of the USAF C-130 cargo craft that transports such things as presidential limos, secret service vehicles, helicopters, and other support vehicles. While the total number of flights or the amount has never been disclosed to the public, according to the US Government Accountability Office the round-trip flight time between Andrews Air Force Base and Hawaii is 21.5 hours with estimated operating cost of $12,000 per hour. The US Marine Corps provides the presidential helicopter, along with pilots and support crews for the test flights. They travel on a separate C-17 flight. The cost to the taxpayer is roughly $258,000, not including costs for the four-to-six-member crew’s per diem and hotel. The “home” the Obamas rent is the same five-bedroom oceanfront villa on Kailuana Place they’ve secured for the past four years. The multimillion dollar property is leased from Sūmit Capital LLC, a New York investment firm headed by Soumyo Sarkar and his wife Chinyu Sarkar Because he is the President, certain “security upgrades” had to be made. These upgrades include but are not limited to bulletproof glass, additional phone lines, and other detection and defense systems installed at no cost to the Sarkar family. Instead, the taxpayer foots the bill. Since the home sits on the beach, our costs include the Coast Guard crafts that continuously patrol the harbor it sits near. There is also the charges for officials to use personal watercraft and smaller boats to patrol the ocean and canal surrounding the home. The administration also rents cars for staff and security, and pays additional travel costs and Christmas bonuses for Secret Service and White House staff traveling ahead of the president. There is also the cost of the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate (including the above photo of Mitch McConnell), State Department representatives, foreign “guests”, additional Secret Service details, and White House staff that traveled ahead of the President to prepare for his arrival. As stated by Watchdog and Judicial Watch, those numbers have never been disclosed by the self-proclaimed “most transparent” administration. While people complain about Reagan, Bush, Clinton, and Bush Jr. and how many vacation days they took compared to Obama, it’s not about the amount of days, but the cost to YOU! All those presidents combined, including the hours on Air-Force One, did not total these heights. Since the liberal left always likes to compare Bush Jr. and Obama, maybe they should educate themselves on the stark contrast between a Bush Family Christmas versus a lavish Obama tropical holiday.
Posted on: Sat, 17 Jan 2015 03:50:54 +0000
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