Sugar Daddies Welcome
One of the most depressing things about the Abramoff scandal is that much of what outraged the public was - and is - perfectly legal.
Peter Nicholas of the LA Times reports on the junkets being enjoyed by some Schwarzenegger administration officials:
Anyone trying to find high-ranking state officials this week might check posh overseas tourist spots — where many are traveling for free.
About 16 Schwarzenegger administration officials, regulators and state lawmakers are spending spring break on fact-finding missions and conferences in Europe and Japan. The excursions were paid for by tax-exempt groups whose donors include corporations with business before the state, according to itineraries and guest rosters compiled by trip sponsors.
Among the participants are companies regulated by state government.
Winding up a six-day trip to Tokyo is a group of four legislators and two members of the state Public Utilities Commission, which regulates the energy and telecommunications industries. They were joined by executives from AT&T, Comcast and a firm that is proposing to build a liquefied natural gas terminal in the port of Long Beach, Sound Energy Solutions.
The entourage stayed at the Four Seasons Tokyo at Chinzan-so, described by Frommer’s travel guide as sporting a “gorgeous glass-enclosed indoor pool surrounded by greenery….”
