House Travel Stipends Probed

[Freddie Stubbs]

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Congressional investigators are questioning a half-dozen lawmakers for possibly misspending government funds meant to pay for overseas travel, according to people familiar with the matter.

The investigation follows a Wall Street Journal article in March that said lawmakers had used daily cash stipends, meant to cover certain costs of official government travel overseas, to cover expenses that appeared to be unauthorized by House rules. An independent ethics board has referred the matter to the House ethics committee.

Congressional rules say the daily travel funds, called a per diem, must be spent on meals, cabs and other travel expenses. But when lawmakers travel, many of their meals and expenses are picked up by other people, such as foreign government officials or U.S. ambassadors.

That can leave lawmakers with leftover money. Lawmakers routinely keep the extra funds or spend it on gifts, shopping or to cover their spouses' travel expenses, according to dozens of current and former lawmakers.

Read more: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704323704575461913267776270.html?mod=WSJ_hps_LEFTTopStories

[wordpix]

1. Joe "You Lie" Wilson among them---more evidence our Congressmen are bought & paid for

..."when lawmakers travel, many of their meals and expenses are picked up by other people, such as foreign government officials or U.S. ambassadors."

Aren't there rules against being bought by foreign dignitaries?

[Lightning Count]

2. Odd. When I travel most of my meals are picked up by....me. nt

[ixion]

3. Our politicians live like royalty on our dime

this is one of the primary problems we face, in my opinion.

[dotymed]

4. Hell yes,

automatic pay raises, they "earn" many times over what their average constituent does.
IMO, they should "earn" the same pay that is "average" among their constituents.
If we can't have universal healthcare...neither can they.
They should pay in to and rely on SS, just like the rest of us.
No lucrative lobbying positions, ever, after having been a legislator.
No obscene retirement packages that guarantee them a public paid for great income for life.
We can't have representation for average people by million and billionaires.
Funny, they all(most) seem to become wealthy during their time as legislators....
Freedom for all, my ass.

[Freddie Stubbs]

5. Congressmen who represent affluent districts should be paid more than

congressmen who represent impoverished districts?

[atreides1]

6. No

They should learn to live within their means.

[ixion]

7. the lowest common denominator

take the lowest average from all the districts, and there's the what they get.

Politics should be a civil service, not a career path.

[Freddie Stubbs]

8. Then you likely get Congressmen who are already wealthy and don't need the money

[ixion]

9. As I said, it needs to not be about the money, and not something people want to do

much like jury duty.

Keeping the glamor and power and money out of it will keep the "what's in it for me" folks away quite nicely. They'd have their lawyers working on ways to get them out of having to waste their time, again, just like they do with jury duty.