After complaining that a sign was put on public property, for partisan reasons, The Wichita Eagle, June 20, 2005, announced that Todd Tiahrt and his wife attend an annual conference in Hawaii at a cost from between $5,000 to $15,000, and all of it is taxpayers money. The American Association of Airport Executives puts on the conference.
Even if Todd can justify this, why does he need his wife along? She would probably argue that it is OK because she doesn’t actually get involved in politics. She just parties it up at the taxpayer’s expense. For her it’s not politics – it’s time to PAAARRTTYY!
So it’s a rip-roaring fun time for all- and all is paid for by the taxpayers. Mr. and Mrs. Tiahrt are not alone. Sen. Sam Brownback and Rep. Jerry Moran also took business trips to exotic locations. And so did House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. Tiahrt said in an earlier interview, ‘his constituents don’t care if their leaders fleece them.’
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
Monday, June 13, 2005
It is official: Tiahrt’s tanker deal has sank like a rock
It is now official; according to The Wichita Eagle, June 13, 2005, Boeing’s tanker deal has gone down for the final count. It sank.
Rep. Todd Tiahrt and Sen. Pat Roberts – both from Kansas, pushed for the new military tanker transport program on Capitol Hill. Tiahrt's tanker support was so strong that he was nicknamed "Tanker Tiahrt" by colleagues.
Also according to the Eagle:
“What was once the lonely complaint of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. --that an Air Force plan to lease 100 767 jets as tankers was unnecessary and too expensive -- is now accepted wisdom on much of Capitol Hill. And while no one has suggested that Congress' most forceful tanker supporters did anything illegal, the program's critics are saying lawmakers contributed to the atmosphere that bred scandal. Their pursuit of jobs for their constituents, no matter the cost, pressured the Air Force and Boeing to push ahead with a flawed program, McCain said.”
Tiahrt, realizing he has nothing to show for the time he has wasted representing the Wichita district of Kansas, has refused to face that reality. According to the Eagle:
"We did everything right" on Capitol Hill, he said. The failed tanker plan, he added, came from "Boeing shooting itself in the foot and (McCain) having animosity toward the company."
Adding to the problem is the buy-out of Boeing by Onex Corp. This has meant not only lay-offs but pay cuts and reduced health benefits for those still trying to work at the former Boeing facility.
And what will Tiahrt do about all of this? Nothing-- he is a good capitalist and realizes that the rights of an employer are always more important than the rights (Actually a total lack of rights) of workers. Tiahrt wanted to get the jobs, not protect jobs that already existed.
Is this likely to hurt him at re-election time? Don’t count on that. The Democrats are in disarray and he can always count on the doped-out religious fundamentalists, whose churches continue to turn out their zombies, during election time, no matter how bad Tiahrt rips them off.
Rep. Todd Tiahrt and Sen. Pat Roberts – both from Kansas, pushed for the new military tanker transport program on Capitol Hill. Tiahrt's tanker support was so strong that he was nicknamed "Tanker Tiahrt" by colleagues.
Also according to the Eagle:
“What was once the lonely complaint of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. --that an Air Force plan to lease 100 767 jets as tankers was unnecessary and too expensive -- is now accepted wisdom on much of Capitol Hill. And while no one has suggested that Congress' most forceful tanker supporters did anything illegal, the program's critics are saying lawmakers contributed to the atmosphere that bred scandal. Their pursuit of jobs for their constituents, no matter the cost, pressured the Air Force and Boeing to push ahead with a flawed program, McCain said.”
Tiahrt, realizing he has nothing to show for the time he has wasted representing the Wichita district of Kansas, has refused to face that reality. According to the Eagle:
"We did everything right" on Capitol Hill, he said. The failed tanker plan, he added, came from "Boeing shooting itself in the foot and (McCain) having animosity toward the company."
Adding to the problem is the buy-out of Boeing by Onex Corp. This has meant not only lay-offs but pay cuts and reduced health benefits for those still trying to work at the former Boeing facility.
And what will Tiahrt do about all of this? Nothing-- he is a good capitalist and realizes that the rights of an employer are always more important than the rights (Actually a total lack of rights) of workers. Tiahrt wanted to get the jobs, not protect jobs that already existed.
Is this likely to hurt him at re-election time? Don’t count on that. The Democrats are in disarray and he can always count on the doped-out religious fundamentalists, whose churches continue to turn out their zombies, during election time, no matter how bad Tiahrt rips them off.
Thursday, June 02, 2005
Tiahrt’s great tanker deal goes belly up
It was several months ago we saw a confident, smiling, even exuberant Todd Tiahrt bragging that he had gotten Wichita the new Boeing Tanker Deal. His picture was on the front page of The Wichita Eagle, showing his pride.
But recent news raises a question. Can Tiahrt DO ANYTHING RIGHT?
The latest news from The Wichita Eagle, June 1, 2005, is that a large scandal has brewed over Being’s tanker deal. The new Defense Department investigation of the Boeing aerial refueling tanker scandal found several top Pentagon officials failed to properly award and overview a contract worth more than $23 billion.
Improprieties by Boeing and Pentagon officials have put tanker replacement, which once promised 1,000 new jobs for Wichita, on hold.
So the big tanker deal that Tiahrt worked so hard on is now just a distant memory. The contract could easily go to another company.
And let’s not forget that the apples don’t fall far from the tree. Tiahrt worked with some greasy palms and that means that the same sleazy methods were likely used by him to get the deal in the first place
But recent news raises a question. Can Tiahrt DO ANYTHING RIGHT?
The latest news from The Wichita Eagle, June 1, 2005, is that a large scandal has brewed over Being’s tanker deal. The new Defense Department investigation of the Boeing aerial refueling tanker scandal found several top Pentagon officials failed to properly award and overview a contract worth more than $23 billion.
Improprieties by Boeing and Pentagon officials have put tanker replacement, which once promised 1,000 new jobs for Wichita, on hold.
So the big tanker deal that Tiahrt worked so hard on is now just a distant memory. The contract could easily go to another company.
And let’s not forget that the apples don’t fall far from the tree. Tiahrt worked with some greasy palms and that means that the same sleazy methods were likely used by him to get the deal in the first place
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