The Price of Kuhl's Brazil Trip: $0.00671 Per Constituent

Congressman Kuhl just posted the total amount of his portion of the bipartisan Brazil delegation on energy independence: $4,028.93, or $0.00671 per constituent. Rottenchester found the post "snotty". But, when WHAM-13 has expended countless hours trying to do a hit job on Congressman Kuhl "getting to the truth", such a response is warranted. Now they're attacking the figure which Congressman Kuhl released since it may not include the cost of the military air transport. Of course, this expense would have been incurred anyway even if Congressman Kuhl didn't go, as his non-participation would not have cancelled the trip. Frankly, given that this trip helped in gathering information on energy independence, is encouraged by the State Department to foster diplomatic relations, and our congressman was invited by the Democratic organizer of the delegation, I would think that this should be a positive for Kuhl. It shows that he takes energy independence seriously, he's willing to help this country foster diplomatic ties, and it shows his bipartisan spirit by being invited to attend and represent our interests over there.

If only WHAM-13 cared so much about every other dollar that the feds waste rather than do a full "investigative report" on the legitimate spending of four grand...

The Brazil Trip

Following up on my post from yesterday, the Hornell Evening Tribune has a story on the controversy. Frankly, this story has no legs. Massa, in his usual hyperbole, said, "In the middle of winter, Randy Kuhl is on a summer vacation in Brazil." Um, Eric, if you think we're in the middle of winter now, just wait til that period of time between December and March! I mean, really, how long have you lived here???

This is the most interesting piece of the article, which hasn't been discussed much in the blogosphere:

Congressional delegations, according to Kuhl, allow members of Congress the opportunity to broaden their perspectives and better understand U.S. relations abroad. The trips, he said, are encouraged by the State Department and help create relationships and partnerships with other countries.

"It also provides a frame of reference so the Congressional leaders can come back to Washington and propose new legislation to improve the United States," Kuhl said. (Emphasis added)

So while Massa is still flipping out over losing last year and attacking Congressman Kuhl every chance he gets, our Congressman is on a bipartisan fact-finding mission, which is encouraged by the State Department, in order to foster diplomatic realtions with another country and gather more information on how to make America more energy independent in the future. 'Nuff said!

Sugar is the New Oil

I don't know about you, but Jimmy Smit's new drama, Cane, is definitely becoming one of my favorite shows of all time. And the idea that sugar-based ethonal can help our country succeed in becoming more energy independent is gaining traction on Capitol Hill. That is why Congressman Kuhl is joining 10 of his congressional colleagues on a bipartisan fact finding mission to Brazil, which is being lead by U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY), to see how sugarcane has helped its country's energy needs.

Of course, Rottenchester and ladkiddo over at rochesterturning are poking fun at this trip, and Eric Massa had a field day with it at his press conference today, but frankly, this country is yearning for more avenues towards energy independence and this bipartisan trip is a perfect way for Congressman Kuhl to see first hand how Brazil is achieving it through cane.

Also, to answer ladkiddo's question on whether "this [trip was] mentioned in any of his town hall meetings," the answer is yes!

Finally, reading Massa blagging on about home heating assistance money, a.k.a. HEAP, reminds me of when my mother worked for my native county's Social Services Division downstate, her main job handling HEAP applications for over 10 years; she retired earlier this year. The amount of fraud she witnessed was unreal. True, she did have clients who had real hardships and needed this assistance, but they were few and far between the ones trying to manipulate the system by not reporting their true income (as an aside, at one time they were called "recipients," but that wasn't too PC, so that changed to "customers" and then finally "clients" to make everyone feel warm and fuzzy inside). As my mother would say, "HEAP is a joke!"