It all started last week when wacky Republican Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota was looking to score a few points at Mr. Obama’s expense while making a bit of a name for herself (“Hey everybody, look at ME”). So she appeared on CNN’s “360 with Anderson Cooper” with the stunning revelation that the presidential trip abroad would cost taxpayers $200. million per day. That’s $200. million dollars PER DAY people!
“He’s taking 2,000 people with him. He’ll be renting out over 870 rooms in India. And these are five-star hotel rooms at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel. This is the kind of over-the-top spending. It’s a very small example, Anderson,” Bachmann told Cooper. Former GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh and FOX News personality Glenn Beck were all quick to jump on the “Blame Obama” bandwagon, adding their own spin that Obama directed the U.S. to station 34 navy warships (which is 10% of the entire naval fleet) off the coast of Mumbai for security reasons.
The only problem with all of this is — IT’S NOT TRUE!
Not only did the U.S. military not block off 10% of it’s entire naval fleet solely for one presidential visit, but the presumed $200. million per day figure is even more than the daily cost of the Afghanistan war!
For security reasons, the Secret Service does not make public the safety arrangements or the cost incurred in protecting a traveling president. But Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell made a unique exception in this case, calling the warship claim “absolutely absurd,” and making clear that any claims of $200. million are “just comical. Nothing close to that is being done.”
It appears the rumored story got its start with the Press Trust of India, a small Indian publication that was only making an assumption and could not possibly know the cost or details associated with protecting a visiting U.S. president. The story made its way to the Internet, then on to the rounds of various popular social networking sites, including Facebook. Congresswoman Bachmann got wind of it, saw an opportunity to garner some attention, then ran with it. And now after looking like a complete jackass that the story was not only false, but incredibly silly — neither Bachmann nor Beck nor Limbaugh have issued a retraction or an apology.
Is anyone surprised?
"And now after looking like a complete jackass that the story was not only false, but incredibly silly — neither Bachmann nor Beck nor Limbaugh have issued a retraction or an apology. Is anyone surprised?"Nope.This is what happens when the loudest voices in a society are Fools, Liars, Nutjobs and other assorted deeply flawed and dangerous people…smh.