Let Ron Paul Fly First Class; He's Still Saving the Treasury Money (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | Ron Paul isn't the most frugal member of Congress when it comes to booking his airline tickets, but he's not alone either. According to the Associated Press, Paul's congressional office frequently purchased more expensive airline tickets for the Texas congressman instead of using discounted airfare sites that would have saved the government money.

This is an example of examining an issue way too close. Granted, there are plenty of trips back home to meet constituents that can be planned well in advance. But watch C-SPAN just once and it's readily apparent the House and Senate keep odd schedules. Extended debate and prolonged votes can make it difficult for a member of Congress to know exactly when they will be able to leave Washington for their home state. Last-minute flight changes require a more expensive type of airline ticket, so it might just be easier to pay what they pay. I don't know -- it's not my job.

Huffington Post reported Paul has returned a portion of his office allowance back to the Treasury every year. That means even if he isn't the most frugal travel shopper, he does save money in other ways.

Associated Press looked into the travel habits of Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and Paul -- the two members of Congress who were running for the GOP presidential nomination at the time. Bachmann's office provided the AP with some documents, but Paul's office provided everything that was requested. It's unlikely either candidate was hiding anything, but it's more likely there really isn't a news story here.

Paul also took advantage of first-class seating even when lower cost seats were available for the government to purchase. I'm certainly no Paul fan, but I can't blame a congressman for wanting a larger seat where he can unwind and, perhaps even catch up on correspondence and reading materials. I doubt he uses that flight time for those purposes, but it's nice to think it might happen.

Bottom line: Let the man fly first class. He's still saving money in other ways.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oped/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20120117/cm_ac/10843173_let_ron_paul_fly_first_class_hes_still_saving_the_treasury_money

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