 4/10 Good --- weblogs.newsday.com http://weblogs.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/politics/blog/index.xml
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Wednesday, July 23, 2008 --- 81 days ago http://weblogs.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/politics/blog/2008/07/israel_ac
 Somehow we missed it until now, but LI USReps Steve Israel and Gary Ackerman both make cameo appearances in a USNWR story about Congressional junketing over the Memorial Day recess. Both took their wives along for the ride, according to the story: "Ten lawmakers went on a weeklong, taxpayer-paid trip from May 23 to 30 for meetings of the Transatlantic Legislators' Dialogue in Ljubljana, Slovenia, with subsequent stops—and la dolce vita—in Venice and Naples. The dialogue unites lawmakers with peers from the European Parliament. Seven in the U.S. delegation had a spouse along, says Lynne Weil, spokeswoman for the House Foreign Affairs Committee. "The group was rounded out by six aides and the House chaplain, according to reports on official foreign travel, which do not list accompanying spouses. The reported costs were $53,992, a figure that understates the bottom line since most lawmakers flew on military planes and the Pentagon refuses to release details such as the aircraft, manifest, and estimated cost. Spouses fly free aboard such flights, Weil says. "A draft itinerary leaked to the Washington Post showed the lawmakers were to visit a Slovenian castle, dine near Naples at a Michelin two-star restaurant, and, at their own expense, take in opera in Venice. The group was led by House Democrat Shelley Berkley of Nevada. Her spokesman, David Cherry, confirmed the outings but stressed the business at hand: from a wreath laying at a ... |
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