Monthly Meeting of San Francisco Oil Awareness

The size of Pelosi's plane
The House speaker has had the use of a government jet since the Sept. 11 attacks


-- The way Speaker Nancy Pelosi will travel home to San Francisco and on official business is the latest tempest to hit the House of Representatives.

The speaker of the House has been provided a jet from the government fleet to use for official business since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks because of security concerns.

Former Republican Speaker Dennis Hastert used a military 12-seat jet to carry him mainly from Washington's Andrews Air Force Base to airports near his home district in Chicago's suburbs.

Top House Republicans such as Minority Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri and Rep. Adam Putnam of Florida, chairman of the House Republican Conference, agree the speaker merits the use of a military jet for security reasons, but say Pelosi has been pressing the Pentagon to provide her with a bigger jet than used by Hastert so she can ferry family, other lawmakers and lobbyists across the country.

Pelosi and her staff scoff at the criticism, saying she has just asked the Pentagon for guidance because of the travel distance to California and even President Bush believes security concerns warrant military aircraft for her.

But Putnam said Pelosi's bid for a bigger plane, which he dubbed "Air Force Three,'' shows "an arrogance of office that just defies common sense'' and constitutes a major deviation from the previous speaker's perks. He argued that Pelosi should settle for a smaller plane even if it means having to stop for refueling while traveling to and from California.

Putnam, leading the Republican attack, said Pelosi should make public her flight itineraries and passenger lists on taxpayer-owned jets. The speaker's staff said such requests are premature because they are still trying to clarify the rules for using government planes.

Blunt said Pelosi wants a flying Lincoln bedroom, referring to the furor of the Clinton years when it was disclosed that big donors to President Bill Clinton got to sleep in the historic White House room.

"Our members are not persuaded by the argument that stopping to refuel on the way home will be too big a challenge,'' said Blunt.

Asked about the controversy, which arose after leaks from the Bush administration to the conservative Washington Times, Pelosi said her opponents are trying to stir up trouble where there is none.

She said Bill Livingood, the House sergeant-at-arms whom Hastert appointed to the job in 1995, was negotiating with the Air Force about what plane from the government fleet of passenger jets should be made available when she needs it. The plane also would be used on other government missions.

"It has everything to do with security,'' Pelosi said. She added that Bush had personally told her that because the speaker is second in line of presidential succession, behind Vice President Dick Cheney, he was concerned about her security.

That concern apparently included the desire that Pelosi's plane not land for refueling.

Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., the Pelosi ally who chairs the House military appropriations subcommittee, said he has spoken to Pentagon officials about the need to provide Pelosi with a bigger plane that can fly passengers coast to coast in comfort.

But he denied pressuring the Pentagon. "I don't need to pressure them. I just tell them what they need to do,'' Murtha said.

A statement from Livingood said that although Hastert used a military jet with a 2,000-mile range, the House bureaucracy is unsure of the rules for air travel. For instance, it isn't clear if Pelosi can carry staff, family or other members of Congress at government expense or whether she could use government planes for political travel.

No information was immediately available about the number of trips Hastert took in military aircraft nor the rules for their usage while he was speaker.

Livingood, a 31-year veteran of the Secret Service, said he was talking with the Air Force to work out guidelines for the speaker's flights. Pelosi's office received a letter from the Pentagon late Wednesday offering her the continued use of the plane used by Hastert and negotiations will continue, source said.

Navy Cmdr. Jefrey Gordon, a Pentagon spokesman, told the Associated Press Wednesday that Pelosi will be offered "shuttle service for no more than 10 passengers between Washington and San Francisco only based on aircraft availability."

"This does not guarantee nonstop transport," Gordon said.

Pelosi also said that her celebrity as the first female speaker has upgraded security concerns from the U.S. Capitol Police who guard her and other top congressional leaders. "As the first woman speaker they think there is a need for increased security,'' she said.

Wherever she goes, even within the Capitol, the speaker is accompanied by several plainclothes security officers.

Murtha said House speakers' use of military planes preceded Sept. 11, 2001. He said he had interceded on behalf of former Democratic Speakers Thomas "Tip" O'Neill and Jim Wright on occasion to get them access to military aircraft.

Murtha said he is convinced the Pentagon has been leaking information about the possibility that Pelosi would use large military planes to make her look bad. But he said, "They're making a mistake when they leak it because she decides on allocations for them,'' referring to the Pentagon budget.

Pelosi, who has served in the House since 1987, has customarily flown commercial flights on trips to and from California.

Her spokesman, Brendan Daly, said Pelosi has used a military craft once to fly to California and back since she became speaker in early January. Daly said he was uncertain what kind of aircraft Pelosi had flown in, but said it was a plane that Hastert had used as speaker.

Daly had no information on the cost of the flight.

Among the models in the Air Force fleet that Pelosi could use to fly nonstop to San Francisco is the C-37, a 16-seat business jet made by Gulfstream with a range of 5,600 miles.

The C-40B, a military version of the Boeing 737, was built especially to carry members of the Cabinet and Congress, Boeing says. What the company calls the flying "office in the sky" can carry 42 to 111 passengers, depending on its configuration.

The Air Force said the plane features "a crew rest area, distinguished visitor compartment with sleep accommodations, two galleys and business class seating with worktables.''

But Republicans charged that Pelosi would use the biggest aircraft available -- a C-32, which is a configuration of the Boeing 757 with a four-section passenger area. Daly also slammed GOP critics for the plane story, which has circulated on conservative talk radio and Internet blogs.

"They're trying to make something out of something that's not there. They have nothing else to talk about so they're making an issue of this,'' he said.


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