$200 million a day is silly

What do we make of Michelle Bachmann? She is a Republican member of Congress, looking for a leadership position. When asked by CNN's Anderson Cooper what specific budget cuts she might support, she looked into the camera and said: “Well, I think we know that just within a day or so the President of the United States will be taking a trip over to India that is expected to cost the taxpayers $200 million a day. He's taking 2,000 people with him. He'll be renting out over 870 rooms in India. And these are 5-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.”

Of course, any adult with enough sense to come in out of the rain knows this isn't so, and couldn't be so. Bachmann is in a position that makes her uniquely likely to know this, and she is an adult. So either she lied, or she is a bit slow. I don't think she is slow. I marvel at the contempt she shows for her tea party audience by doing so.

Al Kirkland Jr.

Elgin