Old story, new details , none of which are surprising.
LIBERTY ALERTS, CORRUPTION CHRONICLES
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch, the organization that investigates and fights government corruption, announced today that it has obtained records detailing costs associated with a trip made by President and Mrs. Obama and key members of the administration to Copenhagen, Denmark, for the expressed purpose of securing the 2016 Olympics for the city of Chicago. Expenses for the two-week trip appear to have far exceeded $467,175, in light of the fact that costs associated with the aircrafts ‒ two Boeing 747s and several Air Force cargo planes – have not been made available.
According to the records obtained from the Obama Department of Defense (DOD), President and Mrs. Obama; Secretary Ray LaHood; Secretary Arne Duncan; Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President Valarie Jarrett; and representatives of the White House Office of Olympic, Paralympic, and Youth Sport visited Copenhagen from September 21 through October 3 in an effort to convince members of the International Olympics Committee (IOC) to select Chicago as the location for the 2016 Olympics. The Obama administration ferried dozens of other participants, including supporting staff members, to Copenhagen. However , the DOD has redacted many of their names.
Among the itemized costs associated with the Olympics trip (totaling $467,175):
Judicial Watch obtained the documents pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request submitted to the DOD on October 5, 2009. FOIA law required the DOD to respond within 20 days. However, the DOD took 26 months to release the records. In September 2009, Judicial Watch submitted an open records request with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley’s to obtain records related to the Olympics bid, and the mayor’s office has failed to respond. Therefore, Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit against the mayor’s office on November 10, 2009, seeking those records.
“Barack and Michelle Obama wasted taxpayer dollars on a junket that seemed designed for one purpose – to take care of their Chicago cronies who stood to gain financially from the Olympics racket,” says Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The fact that Valerie Jarrett needed an ‘ethics waiver’ to lead this failed bid to bring the Olympics to Chicago tells you almost all you need to know about the scandalous nature of this trip.”
http://www.themoralliberal.com/2012/01/10/jw-obtains-documents-revealing-cost-of-obamas-failed-bid/
(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch, the organization that investigates and fights government corruption, announced today that it has obtained records detailing costs associated with a trip made by President and Mrs. Obama and key members of the administration to Copenhagen, Denmark, for the expressed purpose of securing the 2016 Olympics for the city of Chicago. Expenses for the two-week trip appear to have far exceeded $467,175, in light of the fact that costs associated with the aircrafts ‒ two Boeing 747s and several Air Force cargo planes – have not been made available.
According to the records obtained from the Obama Department of Defense (DOD), President and Mrs. Obama; Secretary Ray LaHood; Secretary Arne Duncan; Senior Advisor and Assistant to the President Valarie Jarrett; and representatives of the White House Office of Olympic, Paralympic, and Youth Sport visited Copenhagen from September 21 through October 3 in an effort to convince members of the International Olympics Committee (IOC) to select Chicago as the location for the 2016 Olympics. The Obama administration ferried dozens of other participants, including supporting staff members, to Copenhagen. However , the DOD has redacted many of their names.
Among the itemized costs associated with the Olympics trip (totaling $467,175):
- $235,659 Hotel rental for seven “offices” plus transportation and communications (through October 2, 2009)
- $33,044 Cost of extra day in hotel (October 3, 2009)
- $129,276 Travel vouchers for hotel, mileage, reimbursed expenses, and flight costs for persons attending
- $69,196 Flight costs for press
Judicial Watch obtained the documents pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request submitted to the DOD on October 5, 2009. FOIA law required the DOD to respond within 20 days. However, the DOD took 26 months to release the records. In September 2009, Judicial Watch submitted an open records request with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley’s to obtain records related to the Olympics bid, and the mayor’s office has failed to respond. Therefore, Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit against the mayor’s office on November 10, 2009, seeking those records.
“Barack and Michelle Obama wasted taxpayer dollars on a junket that seemed designed for one purpose – to take care of their Chicago cronies who stood to gain financially from the Olympics racket,” says Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “The fact that Valerie Jarrett needed an ‘ethics waiver’ to lead this failed bid to bring the Olympics to Chicago tells you almost all you need to know about the scandalous nature of this trip.”
http://www.themoralliberal.com/2012/01/10/jw-obtains-documents-revealing-cost-of-obamas-failed-bid/