US taxpayers pay for stars' luxury travel

[LiviaOlivia]

US taxpayers wrongly paid thousands of dollars for stars to fly first-class to rally US troops, a report has revealed. The Department of Defense paid $48,000 (£27,000) too much for upgrades for seven celebrity trips from 2000-02, the General Accounting Office (GAO) said.

The stars who got travel upgrades for trips to entertain troops in the Middle East and the US were not named.

<snip>
They should have been paid by the United Service Organizations (USO), which organises the trips.

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On one trip, eight first class tickets were bought for $16,658 (£9,000) to fly around the US without authorisation. The tickets would have cost $1,680 (£911) in coach class.

<snip>
"Questionable" expenses worth $3,000 (£1,630) - for limousines and airport VIP lounges - were also identified. And $344,000 (£187,000) production costs paid to MTV for a concert featuring Jennifer Lopez were deemed "unsupported" because of a lack of documents to back the expenses up.

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Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/entertainment/3421295.stm

[burrowowl]

1. US taxpayers

pay for Bu$h going to Roswell, etc. And that's more moola than for stars* to entertain the troops!

[jonoboy]

2. and they should pay their own damn way as a thank you to the troops !

[Sapphocrat]

3. Did Bob Hope entertain at taxpayers' expense?

I sure hope not, because if he did, then there goes his one saving grace.

If y'all can't tell, I really couldn't stand Ol' Ski Nose -- primarily because he was a bloody damned Repuke, and secondarily because he was such good buds with the sadistic, child-abusing Daddy Dearest Crosby.

Entertaining the troops is the only thing for which I gave Hope credit. If it turns out Mr. Multi-Millionaire sucked the taxpayer teat for his USO tours, then he'll have lost any respect I have left for him.

No, I didn't read the article, so if Hope is mentioned in it, just tell me. I bet Pamela "Implants" Anderson Lee-Or-Whoever-She-Married-This-Week is mentioned, huh? Right? Am I right?

[Dogmudgeon]

4. Can't you see what's coming?

A number of the big USO supporters and entertainers are the Hollywood Libbruls the Right likes to attack.

Robin Williams, especially, is one popular USO regular that Team Bush would like to silence. He's a long-time progressive leftie and a certified Friend Of Noam.

Tom Hanks? Present and accounted for. Sheryl Crow? You bet. Then there's Al Franken. What rightist doesn't want a piece of that boy's Democratic ass?

It also helps keep the conservative entertainers in line. Like that Wayne Newton. He used to be such a good right-winger, but he's made some suspiciously pink remarks over the past few years.

Don't be surprised if the VRWC picks up on this and whines how the Libbruls are once again rotting the moral fiber of the Republic.

--bkl

[CRK7376]

6. Robin WIlliams,

Letterman and Leno all came to Afghanistan while I was there back in '02...unfortunately I was too far out in the boondocks at an isolated firebase to see any of them. Family told me they were there with the USO and I really appreciate their coming over there to see/entertain the troops. Recently Robin Williams has also toured Iraq for the troops. I really respect him for giving his time to make our lives a little better if just for an hour. Means alot to the guys and gals that suffer on a daily basis. Bob Hope was that way too. I'm a big fan of the USO, they are in most major airports and help our troops be a little comfortable and have access to computers/email/books and snacks. Friendly place for troops to relax awhile in many airports, I use them everytime I travel and I'm glad they are there. Thanks Robin WIlliams, Leno, Letterman and all the other entertainers that take time to go to some pretty nasty places for our troops!

[ElsewheresDaughter]

7. amen...USO and Williams, Leno, Crow, and all deserve our THANKS!

[ElsewheresDaughter]

5. taxpayers footed all of Bob Hopes entertainment of the troops TOO!...moot!

RW talking point!...go away!

[LiviaOlivia]

8. Did you read the article?

This is not a USO bash. The GAO is pointing to the DOD, specifically the AFE.

You go away.


USO response:

The General Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report in December entitled DOD Needs to Strengthen Internal Controls over Funds Used to Support USO Activities.

In auditing the Defense Department’s Armed Forces Entertainment (AFE) Office, GAO specifically identified the need for AFE to strengthen internal controls over funds used to support USO celebrity entertainment tours.

The period covered by the report addresses tours prior to Jan. 2002 and precedes the current USO management team. Changes had been made in accounting procedures related to celebrity entertainment tours prior to the GAO audit. But we welcomed the GAO audit and cooperated fully with GAO auditors. We also learned additional information about strengthening our accounting procedures related to these tours.

The USO also identified some problems with a contract employee in the entertainment division and moved the entertainment accounting function to full-time staff in our financial management office.

There was no improper behavior on the part of any of the entertainers involved with the tours cited in the GAO report and no evidence of malfeasance on the part of any employees.

Both AFE and the USO have taken steps to correct the weaknesses identified in the GAO report.

USO/AFE TOURS

The USO shares with AFE the financial responsibility for producing celebrity entertainment tours. This arrangement is beneficial to AFE as the USO can pay for expenses that the federal government is not authorized to cover. These expenses are related to transportation, production costs and lodging, and do not include talent fees. Each entertainer is paid a $50 per day honorarium.

Contrary to the recent article in the Los Angeles Times stating that the USO billed AFE for inappropriate travel expenditures, the USO does not bill AFE for travel-related charges. The travel agency handling bookings for the tours bills AFE. AFE is supposed to bill the USO for travel-related expenses that AFE is not authorized to cover (e.g., the difference between business-class and first-class travel). AFE failed to bill the USO for some of these expenses. Those excess charges have now been identified, validated and paid by the USO.

The non-travel related expenditures identified in this report were inappropriately submitted to AFE and had not been identified as such by the contract employee. These inappropriate charges also are in the process of being paid by the USO.

Only 20 percent of USO funds go toward entertainment tour expenses. The vast majority of USO funds are used for day-to-day expenses for USO centers around the world for services directly benefiting service members and their families.

MTV CONCERT

Regarding the MTV concert and TV special, all payments to MTV were accompanied by supporting documentation. Additional documentation was requested and submitted to AFE and GAO, and payment is no longer in dispute.

USO ENDOWMENT FUND

The only funds specifically appropriated to the USO are earmarked for the USO Endowment Fund. No congressional appropriations for the fund are used to support any USO operations, including celebrity entertainment tours. GAO confirmed this in the course of its audit.

1/22/04

link:
http://www.uso.org/pubs/8_29_7786.cfm