Mark Sanford spent over $63,000 on charter jets for two trips

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090917/ap_on_re_us/us_sc_governor_charters

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, already facing scrutiny for expensive taxpayer-funded flights, relied on charter jet services costing more than $63,000 when traveling in Europe on two state business trips, an Associated Press investigation has found.

Sanford, his commerce secretary and two other state officials charged taxpayers more than $43,000 for use of a seven-passenger executive jet for several days of travel from France to Germany and Estonia during a June 2007 trip, state records show. Also, taxpayers paid more than $20,000 so the governor and three state officials could fly a seven-passenger charter jet earlier this year when traveling from Poland to the Czech Republic, Germany and Switzerland, according to the records.

Commercial flights readily available for those trips would have saved the state $41,223, according to the average of current ticket prices listed on a Web booking site... The use of expensive charters surprised a former state economic development director who said less costly commercial travel in Europe was the norm during his tenure under former governors Democrat Dick Riley and Republican Carroll Campbell. Also, two other former governors confirmed they flew commercial unless traveling to remote areas. "We traveled by train and regularly scheduled flights," said J. Mac Holladay, who served as head of the state Development Board...

Throughout his political career, Sanford has cast himself as a frugal conservative, known to demand that state employees use both sides of Post-It notes. His 2002 gubernatorial campaign included attacks against other state officials for what he called wasteful travel expenses...

Sanford. He's a lying hypocrite.

Man we should make these dipshits fly commercial. If it's good enough for it's good enough for them.

Gotta cut back somewhere, and look at all those Post-it notes trashed! Part of one perfectly good side completely wasted! It's a waste, a travesty! Excuse me, the bar cart's here, and I just can't resist a little drinkie-poo. Twenty bucks for an old fashioned? Just put it on the expense account; the people of South Carolina are good for it!

He's going to start explaining some more. I don't know what biblical figure he will liken himself to because there weren't chartered planes in the Bible. I'm sure there will be somebody.