Wednesday, October 22, 2008

$150,000 worth of clothing...

Cindy McCain wore a $300,000 gown during the GOP convention. While it is in bad taste to spend so much money on clothing while millions of American children go to bed hungry every night, she is rich enough to afford it. Besides bad taste, I didn't see a problem with how she spent her money.

Today it came to light that the RNC has bought more than $150,000 worth of clothing and make-up for Palin and her family since the GOP convention. I don't know if the people who donated their money to the Republicans knew that their moneys would be spent clothing Ms. Palin and her husband. I did not give them money so I can't say. But given the poor condition the McCain-Palin ticket is, I would have thought that they could use the $150,000 in a more productive way to help their campaign. It's not like Palin doesn't have a wardrobe. Plus, if you are running as a 'real American' with 'folksy nature', spending twice as much on clothes as a middle class family of four earns a year is not going to earn you any dividends.

It also came to light today that the Palin family traveled with her but the travel costs were covered by her expense account as the Governor of Alaska. She apparently modified the expensereports to justify their travel as 'business' travel.

These are some major corrupt practices. I wonder what the explanations are going to be.

6 comments:

Ani said...

Loved this part of the AP story on her travels:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081022/ap_on_el_pr/palin_family_travel

In January, the governor, Willow and Piper showed up at the Alaska Symphony of Seafood Buffet, an Anchorage gala to announce winners of an earlier seafood competition.

"She was just there," said James Browning, executive director of Alaska Fisheries Development Foundation, which runs the event. Griffin said the governor's office received an invitation that was not specifically addressed to anyone.

When Palin amended her children's expense reports, she listed a role for the two girls at the function — "to draw two separate raffle tickets."

In the original travel form, Palin listed a number of events that her children attended and said they were there "in official capacity helping." She did not identify any specific roles for the girls.
[...]
The organizer of an American Heart Association luncheon on Feb. 15 in Fairbanks said Palin asked to bring daughter Piper to the event, and the organizer said she was surprised when Palin showed up with daughters Willow and Bristol as well.

The three Palin daughters shared a room separate from their mother at the Princess Lodge in Fairbanks for two nights, at a cost to the state of $129 per night.

The luncheon took place before Palin's husband, Todd, finished fourth in the 2,000-mile Iron Dog snowmobile race, also in Fairbanks. The family greeted him at the finish line.

When Palin showed up at the luncheon with not just Piper but also Willow and Bristol, organizers had to scramble to make room at the main table, said Janet Bartels, who set up the event.
------------------

Now that what I call the "real America"--never missin' a buffet opportunity....

Haik said...

Imagine how corrupt they are when in such relatively transparent environment they still do such tricks. Just imagine what happens during their "daily routine".

Ani said...

Just for fun, here's a story and a slideshow from Huffington Post showing her clothes--after makeover and before (love those ruby slippers--if she clicks them together three times she can go back to Alaska, fingers crossed!!):

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
2008/10/22/palin-clothes-spending-ha_n_136740.html

Armen Filadelfiatsi said...

Funniest part is how the clothes are going to be "donated." I can see all sorts of bums going around with Sarah Palin's thousand-dollar dresses on--bums with excellent figures.

In any case, this is a minor story. Palin's not being qualified is the main story. And she clearly is not qualified to be President or Vice-President.

Ankakh_Hayastan said...

It's the small stuff that brings politicians down.

Remember the Clinton era 'blue dress'? It almost brought him down. People did not understand that he lied under oath. They were more concerned about the extramarital affair.

W has repeatedly violated the constitution but he was not impeached. What he did was far more complicated for an average voter to understand. Plus, we are at war so you don't shake the foundations of the executive branch at times like this.

Ani said...

McCain should have watched this movie before he picked Sarah:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0042192

http://tinyurl.com/66d965

Sarah Palin: future media star?

Hollywood looking to capitalize on candidate's fame
[...]
Love her or hate her -- there doesn't seem to be much middle ground with Palin -- the 44-year-old hockey mom has captured the public imagination in a way no politician has since, well, Barack Obama.

But as more and more polls cast doubt on the McCain-Palin ticket, producers and agents across the entertainment world are discussing possibilities for capitalizing on her fame, ranging from an Oprah-style syndicated talk show to a Sean Hannity-like perch in cable news or on radio.
[...]