# Stupid Republican idea of the day **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 26, 2009, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897 "2009-03-26T18:48:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1165
**Author:** ![orangeapples](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7993a0/32.png) [@orangeapples](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orangeapples)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23282 "2015-07-26T06:51:41Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Some of you do. Not everyone, and the rest of us would like you to stop. A hearty and heartfelt amen to that. ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 8:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23283 "2015-07-26T08:49:59Z")
> [@orangeapples](#): > > A hearty and heartfelt amen to that. Is it engaging him if I call him a lying moron? ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23284 "2015-07-26T09:34:53Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > The administration did make changes in response to the media furor, this is true. Is that the same media that’s always sucking up to Obama and never challenges him on anything? ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 9:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23285 "2015-07-26T09:42:20Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > [http://www.rt.com/usa/irs-funds-inappropriate-spending-176/](http://www.rt.com/usa/irs-funds-inappropriate-spending-176/) > > If agencies are being underfunded, that’s a serious problem. But any agency that is actually underfunded will, you know, act like they are underfunded. > > Obviously an agency that is struggling financially. Russia Today? Seriously? Even though it’s pretty common knowledge that your link is to a crank site that makes Fox News look honest, let’s do the math, shall we? [QUOTE=Russia Today ([rt.com](http://rt.com))] An August 2010 conference in Anaheim, Calif., cost the IRS $4 million. About 2,600 managers attended the event and stayed in presidential hotel suites that usually cost $1,500 to $3,500 per night. About 15 outside speakers were paid $135,000 each, one of which was hired to discuss “leadership through art”, according to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which released the excerpts. [/QUOTE] So, they spent $4,000,000 for a conference. According to the glurge, $2,025,000 of that was spent on outside speakers, leaving $1,975,000 for all other expenses. 2600 people attended, so an average of $759.62 was spent for each of them. How exactly did they stay in $1,500 to $3,500? suites, especially when… [QUOTE=Russia Today] The IRS also failed to negotiate lower room rates, which is a standard practice for federal government agencies. [/QUOTE] Somebody sucks at math as much as you suck at being right. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23286 "2015-07-26T09:46:55Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > Somebody sucks at math as much as you suck at being right. Heh. I did it the other way around. 2600 attendees at $1500 a night is $3,900,000 just for one night’s stay. Leaving 100 grand for everything else. ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23287 "2015-07-26T11:50:27Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > [http://www.rt.com/usa/irs-funds-inappropriate-spending-176/](http://www.rt.com/usa/irs-funds-inappropriate-spending-176/) > > If agencies are being underfunded, that’s a serious problem. But any agency that is actually underfunded will, you know, act like they are underfunded. > > > [@](#): > > > > An August 2010 conference in Anaheim, Calif., cost the IRS $4 million. About 2,600 managers attended the event and stayed in presidential hotel suites that usually cost $1,500 to $3,500 per night. About 15 outside speakers were paid $135,000 each, one of which was hired to discuss “leadership through art”, according to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which released the excerpts. > > Obviously an agency that is struggling financially. You do understand that not every manager was in a presidential suite, right? I doubt there are 2600 luxury suites within the conference area. Also note the phrasing “that usually cost”. That usually denotes that they might not have cost that much. It would not surprise me to hear that the suites were charged at slightly higher than the conference rate if not comped all together. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 11:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23288 "2015-07-26T11:51:09Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > ACA was back in 2013. Apparently the government still sucks at information technology. Wonder when someone will make it a priority? I’m betting NOT the party whose last presidential candidate rolled out a critical app with no training, instruction, or effective testing. Do you remember ORCA? We may have been one adequate validation protocol away from a Romney administration. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23289 "2015-07-26T12:24:37Z")
> [@adaher](#): > > [http://www.rt.com/usa/irs-funds-inappropriate-spending-176/](http://www.rt.com/usa/irs-funds-inappropriate-spending-176/) > > If agencies are being underfunded, that’s a serious problem. But any agency that is actually underfunded will, you know, act like they are underfunded. > > Obviously an agency that is struggling financially. That was 2010, this is 2015. Just in case you didn’t know, they get a _new_ budget every year. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23290 "2015-07-26T14:10:36Z")
When did Obama become a Republican, anyway? Somehow I missed that. Damn liberal media… ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23291 "2015-07-26T18:29:37Z")
> **[Mike Huckabee: Obama Marching Israelis to ‘Door of Oven’](https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2015/07/25/huckabee-obama-marching-israelis-to-door-of-oven/)** > > Mike Huckabee on Iran Deal: Obama Marching Israelis to ‘Door of Oven’ (Sorry, the link is to Blightbart, which is currently fighting it out for the most repulsive and loathsome source of tighty-righty crapola, but it is the original source, so…) \*\* Huckabee: Obama Marching Israelis to ‘Door of Oven’\*\* Fuck you, Huckleberry! Sideways, lengthwise, and the horse upon in which you rode. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23292 "2015-07-26T19:30:08Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > [http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/07/25/huckabee-obama-marching-israelis-to-door-of-oven/](http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/07/25/huckabee-obama-marching-israelis-to-door-of-oven/) > > (Sorry, the link is to Blightbart, which is currently fighting it out for the most repulsive and loathsome source of tighty-righty crapola, but it is the original source, so…) > \*\* > Huckabee: Obama Marching Israelis to ‘Door of Oven’\*\* > > Fuck you, Huckleberry! Sideways, lengthwise, and the horse upon in which you rode. From the same article: > [@](#): > > The amenable statesman recounted that he has called for the defunding of Planned Parenthood for years. “The fact that they are getting between $500-540 million of taxpayer money is really a disgrace,” he asserted. “It is disgusting to fund an organization like Planned Parenthood that chops up babies and sells the parts like parts to a Buick.” ‘Amenable’. Yeah, that’s the word I’d use. Means ‘scary fuck’, right? Isn’t there something in Christian doctrine about ‘bearing false witness?’ It’s been a while, maybe I’m misremembering. ---
**Author:** ![Love\_Rhombus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/love_rhombus/32/10694_2.png) [@Love\_Rhombus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Love_Rhombus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23293 "2015-07-26T19:42:48Z")
You know what might have made the VA work better and ensured fewer issues for people who needed help? \*If there weren’t so many veterans. \* So fuck you, Bush. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23294 "2015-07-26T21:07:01Z")
> [@El\_Kabong](#): > > . . . Isn’t there something in Christian doctrine about ‘bearing false witness?’ It’s been a while, maybe I’m misremembering. That became a dead letter a long, long time ago. The Creationists helped bury it. Now, it’s regarded as antiquated, like laws against mixing fabrics, eating shellfish, or getting divorces. (Of course, they still want it engraved on the walls of every courthouse in the land. Weird, huh?) ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23295 "2015-07-26T21:39:28Z")
[Senator Ron Johnson calls inner city children “idiots”.](http://www.addictinginfo.org/2015/07/25/totally-not-racist-wisconsin-senator-calls-inner-city-kids-idiots-video/) ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23296 "2015-07-26T21:43:06Z")
[http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/26/us-usa-election-huckabee-idUSKCN0Q00TQ20150726](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/26/us-usa-election-huckabee-idUSKCN0Q00TQ20150726) Here’s the reuters link for those understandably unwilling to go to breitbart. But give Huckabee a litle slack here. He’s got that whole Aw Shucks Golly Me I Didn’t Actually Say A Bad Word thing going on. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23297 "2015-07-26T22:09:13Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > (Of course, they still want it engraved on the walls of every courthouse in the land. Weird, huh?) What, you dare question the orders of St. Charlton, patron saint of open-carry? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_stainless_steel_rat/32/5727_2.png) [@The\_Stainless\_Steel\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Stainless_Steel_Rat)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23298 "2015-07-26T22:23:38Z")
> [@DMC](#): > > … > > So, they spent $4,000,000 for a conference. According to the glurge, $2,025,000 of that was spent on outside speakers, leaving $1,975,000 for all other expenses. 2600 people attended, so an average of $759.62 was spent for each of them. How exactly did they stay in $1,500 to $3,500? suites, especially when… > > Somebody sucks at math as much as you suck at being right. Sorry to re-raise this, but the GSA site was down this morning. Per US Government travel regulations, a person TDY to Anaheim would get $138.00/day for hotel and $71.00 for meals and incidentals, totalling $209.00/day. Figure 3 days for the conference, that would be $627.00, plus partial for travel days (I am figuring the conference was for three days, so travel the day before and the day after) to total about $685.00. That doesn’t count airfare, figure (generously) 2,200 air travellers (the others would be in driving range, which also gets a mileage allowance) at $385.00 per round trip (given air fares these days, it was probably higher) and you have a total of $1,070 for each of those 2,200 travelers. Multiplied out it’s $2,350,000. The others might only get mileage and expenses, so figure 400 x $150, or an additional $60,000. So doing the most conservative estimate I can, there is $2,414,000 in legitimate travel and per diem costs before we get to the speakers (and the rental of the hall, and any food and snacks, etc.) Was there overpayment for the speakers? Possibly. Did some of the high muckety-mucks stay in better-than-per diem quarters? Likely (that’s why they are high muckety-mucks). A scandal and an outrage? Hmmmm, perhaps not so much. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23299 "2015-07-26T22:30:50Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > What, you dare question the orders of St. Charlton, patron saint of open-carry? As Fester Addams liked to say, “I’ll shoot him inna back!” ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23300 "2015-07-26T23:26:14Z")
> [@Lobohan](#): > > Is it engaging him if I call him a lying moron? Yeah. Think of it as feeding him, like a troll. Or beating him, if he were a masochist. Which he might be, since it would explain a lot. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2015, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897/23301 "2015-07-26T23:26:35Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > [http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/26/us-usa-election-huckabee-idUSKCN0Q00TQ20150726](http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/07/26/us-usa-election-huckabee-idUSKCN0Q00TQ20150726) > Here’s the reuters link for those understandably unwilling to go to breitbart. > > But give Huckabee a litle slack here. He’s got that whole Aw Shucks Golly Me I Didn’t Actually Say A Bad Word thing going on. Well, there’s that and, being currently in 7th place, I can understand he might want to adopt the tactics that are working so well for Trump. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1164) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-republican-idea-of-the-day/490897.md?page=1166)