Get facts right on Obama trip

It has been widely, and mistakenly, reported that President Obama's trip to India will cost American taxpayers $200 million per day for the 10-day trip. Republican leaders Mike Huckabee and Michele Bachmann have stated that the trip will involve 34 warships, 40 aircraft, nearly 3,000 people, and will engage 570 rooms at the Taj Mahal Mumbai Hotel.

Don't these people check their facts? The story was originally reported by a news agency in India and picked up by Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity. From there, the story went viral and Fox News ran with it without checking any of the facts. The story has been denied by the Pentagon, the White House and political watchdog groups.

It is despicable that Republican leaders and Fox News would stoop to yellow journalism to achieve their stated goal of ensuring that President Obama does not serve a second term. This is further proof that Fox News is not a legitimate source for news and that Republican leaders are sorely lacking integrity.

John Ritchie

Geneva