Obama's entourage
April 1st 2009 06:48
President Obama is now in Britain for the G20 summit. How many people do you think he took with him on the trip? I would think his entourage would include a few of his closest advisors. That would make sense. Of course, he'd need the secret service detail with him. If I had to guess, I'd say he took 25-30 people along on the trip. So how many did he take?
500 people.
No, that's not a typo. He took 500 people with him to London.
Wow. Why on earth would he need 500 people to travel with him on a short trip like that? Isn't that expensive? What will all those folks be doing? It's not exactly spelled out in the article, but here is my guess as to how it breaks down:
* The president, his staff, and his advisors: 20 people
* Secret Service agents: 10 people
* Employees who will throw rose petals at his feet as he walks: 100 people
* Teleprompter management team: 100 people
* Flunkies who will be on hand to say things like "Brilliant idea, Mr. President" and "You are right again, my liege": 100 people
* Audience plants who are needed to start the standing ovation in the event that a crowd doesn't recognize the president's magnificence quickly enough: 45 people
* Press liaisons who will trumpet the greatness that is Barack Obama to all the European papers: 75 people
* Psychologists and therapists who will stay behind after he leaves to help our European allies deal with their pangs of disappointment and feelings of loss after he vacates their continent: 50 people
Well, I guess I was wrong. It will take a bare minimum of 500 people to make Obama's first trip to Europe the roaring success that it's destined to be. And while they're there, champagne and caviar for everyone! Make sure to live it up on the taxpayers' dime. It's not like we have anything better to spend the money on, right?
500 people.
No, that's not a typo. He took 500 people with him to London.
More than 500 officials and staff will accompany the president on his tour this week - along with a mass of high-tech security equipment, including the $300,000 presidential limousine, known as The Beast. Fitted with night-vision camera, reinforced steel plating, tear- gas cannon and oxygen tanks, the vehicle is the ultimate in heavy armoured transport.
Wow. Why on earth would he need 500 people to travel with him on a short trip like that? Isn't that expensive? What will all those folks be doing? It's not exactly spelled out in the article, but here is my guess as to how it breaks down:
* The president, his staff, and his advisors: 20 people
* Secret Service agents: 10 people
* Employees who will throw rose petals at his feet as he walks: 100 people
* Teleprompter management team: 100 people
* Flunkies who will be on hand to say things like "Brilliant idea, Mr. President" and "You are right again, my liege": 100 people
* Audience plants who are needed to start the standing ovation in the event that a crowd doesn't recognize the president's magnificence quickly enough: 45 people
* Press liaisons who will trumpet the greatness that is Barack Obama to all the European papers: 75 people
* Psychologists and therapists who will stay behind after he leaves to help our European allies deal with their pangs of disappointment and feelings of loss after he vacates their continent: 50 people
Well, I guess I was wrong. It will take a bare minimum of 500 people to make Obama's first trip to Europe the roaring success that it's destined to be. And while they're there, champagne and caviar for everyone! Make sure to live it up on the taxpayers' dime. It's not like we have anything better to spend the money on, right?
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Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by Lester Caudill
Round Politics
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by PopulistConservative
Angry Electorate
Comment by PopulistConservative
Angry Electorate
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by Anonymous
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Oh, did I mention they're both honest and don't hang out with criminals?
Comment by Anonymous
don't know how many? maybe he took 501? maybe you need to find out how many he took before bashing someone else.....just saying.
ah, sarah,....yet another great one. now mccain doesn't even support her. boom! under the bus-the loon express.
golly, if ann and sarah got into office-fair and square mind you-not like gw, i mean obama(!)-maybe we could keep our guns, racism, and torture that we love so much!! GBA and the right wing loons!! it gives the comics material.
kerry(good enough?)
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by PopulistConservative
Angry Electorate
Comment by Anonymous
kerry.....oh, john kerry. i wasn't talking about him and that was proven to be right-wing lies. par for the course.....hmmmm, been listening to rush blowhard, i see.
oh, and kerry? that is my name, moron. since you didn't like anonymous. i won't give you a last name since loonies are on the loose now with their guns.....
ok, enough fun. i poked the ant hill and got a good laugh at watching them get all stirred up....time to move on. yawn.....hang in there only 15 more years until 2016!!
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by Anonymous
JOHN McCAIN: "Oh, I have said the campaigning against his war record, the “Swift Boat” ads on his record in combat was dishonorable and dishonest because I believe he served honorably,..."
so, found to be true by who, you??? rush? ditto heads? the blind faithful. you believe what you want to, facts be damned. just like when bush said mccain had an illegit black child,.......was that true too?
bye, sweetie. it's been fun. best of luck. you'll need it if sarah is the best you have to offer. keep up the goosestep. ciao.
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
There is more than sufficient evidence to prove that all Kerry's "after action reports" were frauds, and that he wrote them himself.
McCain is a RINO and not a conservative. He chose Sarah Palin because he thought she would make his loser of a ticket look better. It did to thinking people, but the non-thinkers went for B.O. (B.S.) instead.
And just FYI, don't call me "sweetie" dipso.
Comment by Anonymous
Gravitas?? Do you have proof? Or just more speculation, no doubt. Maybe O'Rielly or Hannity said it. It must be true then. zzzzzzzzzz........
Acorn?? HA!!! OMG, they were everywhere, weren't they??? I know they held a gun to my head and made me vote for BO. It's a FACT they swayed the election. Made it a blow out too!!
Sarah LOST the election for maccain, btw.....both sides will tell you that. She was a flash in the pan and then "thinking people" saw her for what she was, window dressing. I know many (yes, they're my friends) dyed in the wool conservatives who have never voted Dem.(some in 60 years) and did so this time because of her. DOH!!!
Ok, I'm really done now. Sorry to disrupt your right-wing circle jerk.
bye-bye
Comment by S.L.
The Political Brief
Comment by PopulistConservative
Angry Electorate
I wasn't looking for the answer to your question, but I just stumbled on a discussion about Bush's entourage vs. Obama's entourage:
“Rarely since the days of the Roman emperors has a foreign leader arrived on British soil surrounded by such a fearsome entourage” commented the “Daily Mail”. In total, the White House sent 35 airplanes to London and the three-ton armored Cadillac with a nickname says it all – “the Beast”.
Three airplanes (Bush) vs. 35 airplanes (Obama). Just as I figured. The size of the entourage wasn't mentioned for Bush because it wasn't out of the ordinary. Obama's extravagant and wasteful largesse was both unprecedented and shameful.