(Photo: Mike Baird/Flickr/CC-BY)
According to Fox News, first lady Michelle Obama is under fire for taking a private, luxurious trip to Spain with daughter Sasha and several Obama family friends. Of course, the so-called private vacation has quickly turned into a public affair, as the media is already criticizing her every movement. Now everyone wants in on everything the first lady’s private vacation entails.
Travel warning issued for Spain, where first lady vacations
While her husband celebrated his 49th birthday in Chicago with talk show mega-star Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama, with 9-year-old daughter and friends of the family, went on what the White House described as a four-day “private trip” to the beautiful southern coast of Spain. While some are avoiding talking about the trip’s price, others are voicing concerns of safety.
Fox News reports that the State Department had advised Americans traveling to Spain to take caution as “racist prejudices could lead to the arrest of Afro-Americans who travel to Spain,” a message posted on its website. The wording, however, can no longer be found, as it appears it was quickly pulled when the first lady and daughter Sasha left on their trip. State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley, when asked if there was a travel warning for Spain, said, “I don’t believe so.”
The costs of the first lady’s vacation trip to Spain
The biggest worry concerning the first lady’s vacation trip to Spain is the overall cost of the trip and the affect it has on taxpayer money. On Thursday, New York Daily News writer Andrea Tantaros trash-talked Michelle Obama, calling her a “modern day Marie Antoinette” for taking such a lavish vacation while most of the U.S. is financially struggling. According to the Yahoo News, the first lady and companions are staying at the luxury Hotel Villa Padierna, often described as one of the world’s top 10 hotels, with rates that range from $500 to $2,500 a night.
Whether it was the Obama delegation or Secret Service that chose the location, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has stated that the first lady will pay for her own personal expenses, as will the private entourage traveling with her. The overall cost of the trip, however, will not be fully covered with personal out-of-the-pocket money, given that the first lady has full-time Secret Service protection and has to travel on board an official Air Force charter plane, which is covered by taxpayers.
Just another colered on public assistance and in public housing.
Yeah…Right…Michelle Obama is the only first lady to ever take a trip like this. (And, as the article states, she's paying her own expenses, and her guests are paying for their own expenses.) So, let's see…Whether she travelled alone, or not, there would still be Secret Service expenses, and whether Laura Bush went on a trip like this, there would still be taxpayer expenses. It really would'nt matter which political party controlled the Whitehouse. Remember, that two can play this game. Let's do some checking on what the Bush travel expenses were, and on, and on. What baloney, and what phony outrage. This is what happens when a political party would rather not debate real issues because they're afraid they'd lose that debate.
Blog is very well written. I am also agreed that she is “modern day Marie Antoinette” for taking such a lavish vacation while most of the U.S. is financially struggling.
From what I have read, it is over USD1M for a few days in Spain, even if she pays for her own expenses such as hotel and meals. Of course, with an "official" component of lunching with the King & the Queens, the taxpayer would pick upi that part of the holiday.
Air Force 2 round trip $180,000
Air Force 2 on the Ground for 5 days $250,000+
Hotel & meals $300,000
Per diem $75,000
limo cars $70,000
Overtime pay $150,000
Miscelleneous +
total $1,025,000 ++
According to what I have read, even if the first lady and friends pay for their own expenses, the tax payer costs are exceding $500,000, including the per diem, lodging, meals and transport of the entourage such as secret agents, i.e.
Air Force round trip 180,000
Hotel & meals 300,000
Per diem 75,000
limo cars 70,000
total $625,000
This does seem a lot for a few days when the country is tightening its belt
President B.O. earns 400,000 annually yet Michelle Antoinette, our nations's First Sow has spent 375,000 on just one vacation to Spain. It's time for B.O. to pay us back the millions of dollars he's squandered on parties, golf outings, and vacations.