State Officials Use of Planes...

[SHANEA]

Airplane fleet draws scrutiny State officials still using tax-funded aircraft 5 years after calls to sell them

 

[okiehiker]

This is a thorny question...

I personally do not care for the current governor of Texas.  However, he is chief executive of a state with a gdp of $1.09 trillion, making it the 15th largest economy in the world. 

I am sorry, but like him or not, it makes absolutely no economic sense whatsoever to have him standing in lines at airports, even before today's environment of delay and screening, etc. 

When I was growing up in New York City, my father's company required him to have a driver.  He preferred to take the train, but the company could get work out of him while travelling to and from work, on a plane to meetings, etc. 

His employer was a lot smaller enterprise than the state of Texas...

Even for a lot of personal travel, it makes sense for states to provide their governors with transportation.

[SHANEA]

This is a thorny question...

I'll just say that I agree to disagree and leave it at that, especially with regards to political and personal travel.  But, then again, I disagree with the amount of times that Air Force One is cranked up on political and personal junkets, especially with the price of fuel these days.

I guess I don't view anyone's time more important than my own.  If I can sit in an airport over night waiting on a flight that was canceled, then so can any politico.   Maybe if enough politico's would get out and interact with the common "man" and experience the same problems and issues, then things would be done, and not at the behest of special interest groups. 

Also reminds me of the special situations that politicos believe they are entitled too.  I seem to recall a certain candidate for the office of governor's vehicle getting pulled over for speeding and one the of the cronies getting into it with DPS over who was being carried and that they were late.  Anytime I get pulled over for speeding, I cite the precedent of the Perry Doctrine...