Taxpayers are footing the bill so members of Congress like Rep. Dan Burton (R) and U.S. Rep. Julia Carson (R) can drive around in style. A Cadillac DeVille for Burton costs $702 a month, while the Chrysler 300 Carson drives ranks as the most expensive car in Indiana's congressional fleet at $768 a month. Burton's primary opponent, Dr. John McGoff, held a press conference today to complain about Burton's wasteful spending. "I'm sure the average Hoosier taxpayer struggling to pay their own bills will be comforted to know that they are paying for Dan Burton to enjoy a luxurious Cadillac DeVille for over $700 a month," said John McGoff, an Indianapolis doctor. Burton's office also leases a Dodge Caravan for over $400 a month.
McGoff's campaign issue prompted a closer examination by the Star of this wasteful spending by our congressional delegation. According to the Star's Maureen Groppe, only U.S. Reps. Steve Buyer (R) and Brad Ellsworth (D) among Indiana's congressional delegation do not spend taxpayer funds on leased automobiles. The last I heard Carson was no longer driving due to her declining health. I wonder who gets the privilege of driving around in that expensive Chrysler 300 at taxpayers' expense? Yet another effective hit by McGoff in his uphill battle to unseat Burton.
20 comments:
Both of them ought to be ashamed.
Don't even try, Wilson. There is no excuse for this.
$768 per MONTH for a LEASE is an awful expensive lease - especially on a "midrange" vehicle like a Chrysler 300.
Wonder if longtime Democrat activist Tom O'Brien had anything to do with this deal???
Off the subject. Saturday at 11:00 is the Labor Day parade starting at North and Penn.
Fart, Bling, and the queen of the ghetto mafia old lady Carson are the Masters of cerimonie's. Bring your protest signs and your bart lies signs and boo the bastards when they pass you on the parade route.
And some folks think it is morally wrong to cheat on taxes. Paying your "fair share" is for suckers. Look at where you money goes, cars for elected hacks.
Nice quality of commenters you are now drawing here - particularly the anonymous nobody at 4:34pm who can't even spell! Isn't it wonderful doing pro bono legal work like this blog to cater to your new IndyU crowd?
From the Star story:
"House members are given office allowance of more than $1 million a year to spend on staff salaries, travel, district office space, supplies and mail.
In 2005, the most recent year for which comparison data is available, Burton spent 97 percent of his allotted $1.3 million. About 60 percent of his colleagues spent a lower portion of their funds that year, according to the National Taxpayers Union, which tracks office spending.
Carson spent only 80 percent of her $1.3 million, the 12th lowest amount in the House."
And she's #32 out of 535 on the 'missed votes' team (95th percentile):
http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/110/house/vote-missers/
By comparison, Brad Ellsworth (in the 8th District) missed 0.1 percent of the votes (just ONE single vote missed!) and his staff salary was $142,639 for Q1 07 vs. $186,717 for Ms. Julia (down from a whopping $259,083 in Q4 06. Her modus operandi is for each successive quarter to out-spend the preceding one, with a big jump in Q4. Don't know why - Christmas bonuses, perhaps?
Note how data IS available beyond 2005?
I hope I spelled every word correctly, Wilson. That surely throws you off track.
I was at this press conference today... there is more to this story.
Carson spent among the least? Bully for her, but that's nothing more than being tops among the dregs. The level of integrity in the Congress is contemptable.
Wilson, not everyone has time to sit and read a dictionary to learn how to use big words and spell correctly, nor do they care to.
Not saying its a bad thing, it does make you a well educated person with a very articulate vocabulary. Just saying the you are not perfect either. We all have faults. You live in a glass house as well, be careful who you throw stones at.
And, Burton is a wasteful spender as well.
How the hell can a Chrysler 300 be leased for over $700/month? I just went to Chrysler's website. I took a 300C (top of the line for most people) with the 5.7L Hemi V8 and all wheel drive. I put in a few expensive options and the MSRP totaled a tick over $40,000. I selected the shortest lease term possible, 24 months, and a discount of $4,000 was applied. (Chrysler is having a end of year clearance so the discount was automatically applied.) It had $3,787.50 down.
The lease payment was still only $606/month. If you selected 39 month lease term the payment was only $439/month.
Where is McGoff getting these numbers? Are fuel costs being included because that's the only way I could see a Chrysler 300 costing $700/month.
Wilson, dear heart...the subject of the post was not the spelling abilities of others.
It was your former boss's car, which we pay for.
Sounds like her car lease might have been negotiated by Fred Glass.
Brilliant negotiator that he is.
It's this simple: she can evidently be frugal, as is the case with her staff. But the car lease is just plain stupid.
But we all know how important a big car is in some communities.
How about one of them dialing in a hybrid, or something that isn't a gas guzzler?
Wolfrham Hart, McGoff has nothing to do with Carson's numbers, they come from The Star.
Burton's lease figures come straight from his quarterly expense report.
Carson should be ashamed of herself, but she's too stupid.
Everyone in Washington must pity the voters of Indianapolis... especially for the ones who voted for her.
I am ashamed of Julia Carson and the freak show she calls "advisors".
Carson will lie looking straight into your eyes. This is an excerpt from her website:
"Trustee Carson employed an aggressive workfare program and anti-fraud procedures to quickly erase the enormous debt while providing much needed emergency services to the poor of Indianapolis. Julia Carson’s fiscal acumen and management skill lead her to being named for the second time as the Indianapolis Star’s Woman of the Year."
Fiscal acumen? Management skills? IndyStar two-time Woman of the Year?
I'm getting sick reading the lies contrived by democrap spin artists; just another example of the RedStar's political leaning.
These self-serving spin hypocrits continue to manipulate the black citizens for the senventh district. Wake up folks! Read! Study! Get to know the person you're voting for rather than the color of the candidates' skin.
Well, there's a first...The Star being called leftist.
One of the stupidest comments I've ever read on the blog.
They're slow over at the paper, but they're not leftist. Far from it.
Harken back to the 70s, when the Pulliam family ran it with an iron fist...further right than Gengis Khan...
Ideologically, it's a better paper than it's ever been. Fairly even-handed. Which is such a switch for this town. Content-wise, well, it's sad.
Scribe, in the end the source of the numbers isn't that important if they are correct numbers. What I'm frustrated by is those numbers for Carson's Chyrsler 300 seem impossible to achieve and makes me wonder if something behind the scenes is occuring.
I'm not a person who screams that something is corrupt just because I'm mad about something a politician does. However, based on some raw numbers, a little investigation, and a little logical reasoning I have to wonder if someone, either Julia Carson or one of her handlers, is exploiting a situation. Chrysler's own website can't produce lease numbers that high so something is going on.
At least Dan Burton's lease numbers make sense. A DeVille costs more so the lease numbers will be higher.
I can see politicos leasing a vehicle. I can see them leasing something large and comfy since they do a lot of travel. I don't have a problem with that. If they're using taxpayer money I would hope they are resonable with it. A Chevy Impala, a Ford 500/Taurus, a Chrysler 300 with the V6 (which could be Carson's car since the original Star article doesn't say), or a minivan probably wouldn't upset taxpayers. If you want a Caddy buy it yourself.
Dear Anonymous 8:23 AM,
"Harken back to the 70s, when the Pulliam family ran it [Star} with an iron fist...further right than Gengis Khan..."
"Harken back?" "Iron fist" Gengis Khan" Phoenix University must be very proud of you.
Go back to sleep, Einstein. It's 2007. You must be a waiter at 300 East... or a Carson advisor which likely wears the same hat.
Sounds like Julia is leasing another vehicle for someone else and using her congressional budget to do it.
I wonder for whom? I'd like to see the actual documentation on that lease.
I agree that Julia's lease on that car is outrageous but....she did work hard all of her life to support her children which is more than Dan Burton did for his out of wedlock son. Not one penny. Where I come from that says "runaway pappy" and he should be in jail instead of in Congress.
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