The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that at least six lawmakers are under investigation for misusing taxpayer money intended for overseas travel expenses (Congressional rules allow members of the House and Senate to receive daily allowances for meals, cabs and other official travel-related expenses).
The House Ethics Committee is looking into whether some of these funds were instead used to purchase gifts, or pay for spouses’ travel.
According to The Journal, the amount allotted can “add up to more than $1,000 a trip for longer visits to expensive regions.” But as it is common for lawmakers’ “meals and expenses [to be] picked up by other people, such as foreign government officials or U.S. ambassadors…That can leave lawmakers with leftover money [which they] routinely keep or spend on gifts, shopping or to cover their spouses’ travel expenses, according to dozens of current and former lawmakers.”
While several Members have been questioned by Ethics — including Reps. Robert Aderholt (R-AL), G.K. Butterfield (D-NC), Alcee Hastings (D-FL), Solomon Ortiz (D-TX), Joe Wilson (R-SC), and former Rep. Mark Souder (R-IN) — some staff are questioning whether the alleged misuse of taxpayer dollars really warrants an investigation, According to The Journal, a spokeswoman for one of the Members said: “Focusing on personal purchases under $2 while over 14 million Americans are out of work does not reflect the priorities of the American people.”
We agree that Congress should be concentrating on our greatest economic and fiscal challenges. And it is important to note, as did The Journal, that there is currently “no system for lawmakers to return excess travel funds when they return to the U.S.”
But if Washington is unwilling even to control its spending on the small things ($2 bucks!!), how are American taxpayers supposed to trust them to tackle the country’s nearly $13.4 trillion debt?
