SecDef Panetta's Commute

A letter from airline pilot Jeff Filice published in today's (4/21/2012) Wall Street Journal:

Why should any citizen have to pay the bill for Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to commute between where he chooses to live and his place of work ("Panetta Says He Regrets Expense of Trips Home," U.S. News, April 17)?

I am an airline pilot based in Boston, but I choose to live in Atlanta. I am responsible for getting myself to and from work at my own expense and on my own time. I am prohibited by the Internal Revenue Service from deducting the expense of commuting. All the while Mr. Panetta spends $870,000 in taxpayer money to commute to work. I am outraged.

Mr. Panetta, the article says that you are "looking at alternatives that could save money." I have a sugestion: Either move to where your work is in Washington, D.C., or pay for your own commute like every other citizen of this country. "Sorry" just doesn't cut it.

I didn't realize that deadheading/jumpseating was considered "at my own expense?"

deadheading != jumpseating

And yes, a pilot commuting to work does do at their own expense. There may or may not be any fees involved, but if there are, the company sure as hell doesn't cover them.

That's why I used both...

I guess I just think that the irony of someone who chooses to live somewhere away from work complaining about someone who chooses to live somewhere away from work and has a temporary appointment is a little funny.

Just like my hopefully very temporary appointment to JFK. I complain about it, but it's my choice.

He could just fly commercial.

The problem is Mr. Panetta commuting didn't cost him a dime, the bill for my commuting was a hair under 3K.

I guess it doesn't really bother me that some folks have travel expenses paid for.

Now the amount that it costs "the taxpayer," to me, is highly subjective, but I'll grant that it's probably far too much.

...

This is an interesting article:

http://www.armytimes.com/news/2012/...netta-paid-17000-commuting-california-040512/

No exactly true, congress doesn't make the airline pay taxes for deadheading/non-rev employees.

The taxes would be substantial for commuters without this exemption.

That he is expensing his commute to his employer isn't all that out of the ordinary, alot of places allow it, but in one year how do you rack up a cool 870 Large?

You are required to travel on a military jet with secure communications gear.

I bet a c12 could be rigged with the comms...

So he self-authorizes these flights that cost him $17k and cost us almost $900k? Where are the checks. Curious, did Nancy P ever get the 757 she needed to go home?

And unfortunately this story is not gathering any steam. I'd bet the folks in Astan and Iraq would like to be able to get away.

It's telling to me that there is a caveat that he occasionally visits installations on these trip. That is nothing but fitting business reasons into a personal trip to "write it off"

Except that he still pays for the portions of the trip that are "personal"




Sent from 1865 by telegraph....

Hey Mike what is it that the C17 or whatever equipment is already in transit that Panetta just tags along. I mean some of them have to be fairly regular from an east coast base to the west coast?

Yeah I mean Travis is pretty much right there and there is a host unit of C17s there if Im not mistaken.

Leon Panetta was my district rep before Clinton grabbed him for the feds. He was good for the district. Since then I have lost respect for him. It is like DC infects otherwise good people.

I love how people get all worked up about a measly $870k, but when the previous President spent $1 trillion to fight a useless war and get a bunch of innocent people killed, they cheered it right along.

Your phony outrage will be less phony when you start arguing in favor of gutting the defense budget. Until then, anyone claiming to be a "deficit hawk," or anything of the like is just laughable.