It's A Speaker! It's A Plane! It's A…Scandal?

By: Brian Montopoli
Topics: In The News

The "Evening News" was the only nightly newscast to cover the Pelosi plane dustup last night. You can watch the story by clicking in the video box at left.

Video:
Pelosi Pushes For Bigger Jet

It's hard to get a sense yet of how big the story will turn out to be. The gist is this: House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi is being criticized for requesting an airplane larger and fancier than that used by her predecessor, Dennis Hastert. Pelosi says that she only wants an airplane that can fly between her home state of California and the District of Columbia without refueling, and that the size of the plane doesn't matter. Here's ABC's Jake Tapper's fairly comprehensive rundown of the issues at hand.

The story has been pushed hard by the conservative Washington Times, which got it through leaks from officials within the Bush administration, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. It has slowly worked its way into the mainstream media: It got some play on the morning shows today, and it made the front page of the Los Angeles Times this morning.

National Review Online's David Frum writes that he has "an uneasy feeling that the conservative press may have overhyped this story about Nancy Pelosi's airplane request."

The problem, he writes, is that we don't yet know what Pelosi requested. "If she really and truly did ask for her own personal Boeing 757, as many stories and much radio commentary have implied, well yes obviously that would be a huge scandal. But I keep being struck by the exact phrase in these articles: that she asked for 'access' to a transcontinental plane. If she asked only that she get similar transport to that which was provided to Speaker Hastert, but with larger fuel capacity that could take her nonstop across the continent…then that's a very different matter."

Interestingly, White House spokesman Tony Snow had this to say: "This is a silly story and I think it's been unfair to the speaker." Pelosi told Fox News that the Department of Defense is distorting the story to get back at her for her opposition to the war and her criticism of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. She also said that she would fly commercial if necessary.

Regardless of how the story plays out, the damage to Pelosi's reputation may already be done. On "Good Morning America," Chris Cuomo said this to Tapper: "Jake, is this about security or ego? Sounds like a case of jet envy."

And here's Matt Lauer's comment to David Gregory on the "Today" show:

"Hey David, before I let you go, let's talk about the, the size of the plane that Nancy Pelosi has requested from the Pentagon. Depending on the spin you want to believe here. Either, either the Speaker says it's to travel efficiently back and forth to her home district. The Republicans are saying it's an abuse of power. Either way does it just look bad from a PR standpoint?"

Gregory responded that he did think it was "a problem."

Brian Montopoli
Brian Montopoli is the senior political reporter at CBSNews.com.
Follow on Twitter »

15 Comments Have Your Say
Email Story Send to a Friend
Share This Tell Your Friends
Tweet This Tweet This
More Share It

Add a Comment

See all 15 Comments


by mattcat25 February 11, 2007 7:38 PM EST: Mattcat25:

I think you just don't care because Pelosi is a liberal Democrat.

That make everything OK, right?

The end justifies ANY MEANS, right?
Posted by One_American at 06:27 PM : Feb 09, 2007
+

No, I really don't care if Denny Hastert was assinged his own aircraft and,if it they decide to force that same requirment on Nancy Pelosi it won't make any difference. The fact is appearent the Nancy Pelosi isn't a right wing tool seems to have heated this situation.

My personal opinion is that Bush and Cheney should be impeached from office for lying America into war with Iraq and Nancy Pelosi should be then assigned Air Force One.

Now, that's a real issue.; Reply to this comment


by one_american February 9, 2007 9:27 PM EST: Mattcat25:

I think you just don't care because Pelosi is a liberal Democrat.

That make everything OK, right?

The end justifies ANY MEANS, right?; Reply to this comment


by mattcat25 February 9, 2007 5:28 PM EST: I'm not a hypocrite, I really don't care (and, Pelosi has also stated) how "they" (anyone) gets around in our government, as long as they get to where they have to be and they conduct business on behalf of the American People.

It's YOU PEOPLE! on the right that are making the mountain out of this issue, how about the $2 billion going into the pockets of private contractors unaccounted for in Iraq?

do they have biodiesal planes?; Reply to this comment


by kaiyo4u February 9, 2007 5:10 PM EST: Hey, why doesn't she fly space "A" like our military? She would be on a government provided aircraft flown by the military (she wouldn't have to worry about security). All our congressmen should practice that. That way we taxpayers could save a few bucks and the government would contribute less to the pollution factor.; Reply to this comment


by one_american February 9, 2007 3:27 PM EST: Pelosi aked for a plane that would take her coast-to-coast non-stop. The only plane in the military fleed available to do that is the one that costs $22,000 PER HOUR, HAS A CREW OF 16 PEOPLE, AND CAN FLY 50 PERSONS.

This is FOUR TIMES THE COST OF THE SMALLER PLANE THAT DENNIS HASTERT USED PREVIOUSLY.

It's simple math, liberals.

Are you for getting rid of government waste, or did you suddenly change your minds, now that their is a Democrat holding the gavel?; Reply to this comment


by one_american February 9, 2007 3:23 PM EST: What remarkable hypocrites ALL YOU LIBERALS turned out to be.; Reply to this comment


by one_american February 9, 2007 3:21 PM EST: Mattcat25:

Just like a liberal to change their principals, when it's one of their own abusing the system.

What a remarkable hypocrite you turned out to be.; Reply to this comment


by mattcat25 February 9, 2007 3:04 PM EST: I don't understand why there has been so much hullabaloo made about this?

Pelosi didn't initiate this request, the sergeant at arms of the House of Representatives brought forward the new travel options set forth (by congress) after the 911 WTC attack. Nancy has always been a Plane down to earth person!; Reply to this comment


by MonsterSound February 9, 2007 4:39 AM EST: E.R.Murrow is now spinning in his hallowed grave. CBS and others in the MSM are repeating this tripe with all the authourity of it's history. You get the feeling that poeple think, "If the MSM reports it, then it must be true" and "if the MSM doesn't report it, it must not have happened".
Can we endure this abdication of responsibility?; Reply to this comment


by tym4cng February 9, 2007 1:08 AM EST: I sincerely hope that the funds, for such a non-essential hogwash will come out of her pocket and not funds that are truly needed for essential programs and the like .. these people are very good at waste especially when it comes to mis-using funds for thier own gain without regard to antone else...remember folks, these con-artists (which we call the government) sit around comparing the perks they unrightfully receive at your expense!!!!; Reply to this comment