Air Pelosi ~ I’ll C-20 and Raise You!

Pentagon Rejects Speaker Pelosi’s Request for Military Aircraft
abc news
This is a long article, 4 pages, so I am just putting some of it here– Wild Thing…………………

A source close to the controversy over the request made by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., for use of a military plane that can fly to and from her home district in San Francisco, Calif., without having to stop to refuel, tells ABC News that the Pentagon has rebuffed Pelosi’s request.

The source says that Pentagon officials and the Bush administration have instead offered Pelosi use of the same plane made available to former Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois: a C-20, which seats about 12 passengers and five crew members.

A C-20 can make the 700-mile flight to Hastert’s Aurora, Ill., district easily but would generally have to stop to refuel to complete the 2,800-mile trip from Washington D.C. to the San Francisco Bay Area, depending on the headwinds.

Pelosi has expressed concern about having to stop and refuel, primarily for security reasons, her office says. Since 9/11, the Speaker of the House — second in line behind the Vice President in the line of presidential succession — has been able to use a military plane for travel, for security reasons.

Pentagon spokesman Cmdr. J.D. Gordon outlined the rules and restrictions governing Speaker Pelosi’s use of the C-20:
* No more than 10 passengers (C-20’s seat only 12 passengers, not including up to 5 crew members);
* No travel to political events;
* Members of the speaker’s family cannot fly unless the speaker makes a request in writing. The Pelosi family has to reimburse the U.S. Treasury for the cost of a coach ticket per person for the travel, as well as for any food;
* Members of Congress cannot fly on the plane unless their travel has been cleared with the House Committee on Standards (the Ethics Committee);
* Pelosi’s husband can travel for free, but only for official protocol purposes.

In response to the Pentagon offer, Pelosi spokesman Brendan Daly tells ABC News, “We appreciate the Defense Department’s continuing concern for the Speaker’s security. We are reviewing their letter.”

Pelosi responded to Republican critics who have accused her of making unreasonable demands on the Pentagon for a luxurious airplane her Republican predecessor never requested.

“I want an aircraft that will reach California,” Pelosi told reporters Wednesday afternoon, insisting that she doesn’t care what kind of plane it is as long as it can fly nonstop to her home district. “

Because the C-20 generally would need to stop and refuel to make it all the way to the Bay Area, Pelosi requested a plane that could make it to California without having to stop along the way, and asked for clarification from the Pentagon about whether friends and colleagues could accompany her.

Various Republican officials in recent days have claimed that Pelosi has requested a C-32 plane for her travels — a luxurious and specially configured version of the Boeing 757-200 commercial intercontinental airliner.

The plane seats 45 passengers with business-class accommodations and a crew of up to 16, depending on the mission. It features a communications center, a fully enclosed stateroom for the primary passenger, a changing area, a conference facility, an entertainment system, and a convertible divan that seats three and folds out to a bed. The C-32 can cost as much as $22,000 an hour to operate. It’s normally used by the first lady, the vice president, Cabinet officials and members of Congress upon request.

Witchy Woman from the Eagles (1973) ROTFL

Wild Thing’s comment……..
She wanted 42 business class seats, a bedroom with a bed and an entertainment center. The plane she wanted had a crew of 16. $300,000 roundtrip.
The terrorists would think losing her would be tantamount to loosing Zarquawi or Bin Laden. They’ll put out an all point bulletin to stay away from her plane so she propbably doesn’t need too much protection. She doesn’t fight in the trenches, but behind the scenes, she undermines those trying to do the fighting. Maybe that female astronaught could be her personal driver. Just wear those diapers and drive straight through. heh heh
On a serious note, Ben Stein’s article from weeks ago was excellent, he described how the Democrats, unable to impeach Bush, have decided to simply marginalize him by conducting their own National and Foreign Policy agendas. Pelosi and the Dems want their own Air Force One, with their own press corps in tow, hoping all over the globe, meeting with Foreign leaders, making their own deals and treaties, and generally speaking for the nation, as if the President didnt exist. Air Force One is a very powerful symbol of American authority, and the Dems know they wont get their hands on one of the big -47s, so the 757 is their next best hope. The refueling and security issues are just a ruse, something they can use to get a willing media to back them.