Bailout Debate, Part 2: Corporate Jets, SO WHAT?

Several of the Representatives brought up the fact that, gasp, CEOs of big companies fly in corporate jets.

Rep Ackerman (D-NY):

"There's a delicious irony in seeing private luxury jets flying into D.C. and people coming off of them with tin cups in their hand. It's almost like seeing guys show up in the soup kitchen in high hat and tuxedo...Couldn’t you all have downgraded to first-class or at least jet-pooled together?"

Look, these guys are payed like $5000/hr. I can see how it would be silly to have them waste time going through security pat-downs at Detroit Metro. You want them kept busy.

How many of the congressmen have accepted free rides in the "private jets" of lobbyists? How many have used taxypayer funded military transport?

And what about this private jet here, the Obama express?


Hitting the CEOs for flying corporate planes is nothing more than grandstanding and class warfare.

That being said, apparently the CEOs don't have anyone with half a brain working for them in PR--surely, some in the business could have predicted that the press and Congress would jump on them if they showed their high status.