Five lawmakers, five aides, three spouses and one adult daughter attended the trip to the Galapagos Islands. Congressman Baird defends the trip as an important fact-finding mission. Tom Schatz of Citizens Against Government Waste says most lawmakers travel abroad for good reason but too many blatantly abuse the privilege. Nestled along the equator 600 miles off the Pacific Coast of South America, are the ever intriguing and enchanting Galapagos Islands. The famed archipelago is home to hordes of exotic creatures and world renowned snorkeling and scuba diving.
Imagine traveling to this paradise on a $70 million VIP luxury jet, treated like royalty and best of all, somebody else pays for the whole trip. For some United States Congressmen, they need not imagine a trip like that at all; it's theirs for the asking.
Millions of taxpayer dollars are being spent every year to send congressmen to exotic locations around the world; the expeditions are called fact-finding trips.
In June 2008, when a bipartisan group of congressmen thought a trip to the Galapagos Islands with all its unique species would give them a better understanding of the earth's changing climate, INSIDE EDITION's Senior Investigative Correspondent Matt Meagher and a producer decided to tag along with hidden cameras.
There's no doubt that the Galapagos Islands are very important, and seeing them with your own eyes could be enlightening, INSIDE EDITION just wondered why so many people had to see them at the American taxpayer's expense.
Five congressmen, all from the House Committee on Science and Technology weren't enough. They brought along five aides, and as is often the case on these trips, three of the congressmen took their wives, including Rep. Brian Baird (D-WA), Rep. Frank Lucas (R-OK) and Rep. Bob Inglis (R-SC). Rep. Darlene Hooley (D-OR) brought her adult daughter. Rep. Ben Chandler (R-KY) was the only member who did not bring a guest.
The group stayed in plush seaside suites at the Red Mangrove Inn, one of the most expensive resorts on the island. From breakfast to dinner, the hotel staff catered to their every need. At night when the torches were lit, the group dined on fresh sushi and fine wine.
According to records obtained by INSIDE EDITION, the group ran up more than $21,000 of charges for their 3-night stay. However, the specifics of their trip are hard to find. The only public expense report lists no explanation for how they spent thousands of taxpayers' dollars.
The delegation was led by Congressman Brian Baird. When he and his wife were out shopping for jewelry one evening, an INSIDE EDITION Investigative Producer recorded this telling conversation on hidden camera.
The delegation looked like thousands of tourists who visit the Islands every week, riding bikes, constantly taking photos and doing a lot of shopping.
INSIDE EDITION wondered why Congresswoman Darlene Hooley, who did plenty of shopping with her daughter while in the Galapagos Islands, needed to go on any fact- finding trip at all. The congresswoman resigned from the Committee on Science and Technology just days before the trip and is not planning to run for reelection. Apparently, the trip was a going-away present from the American taxpayers.
The delegation did tour a national park for a close-up look at the famed giant tortoises. Plus, they listened to some lectures at the Charles Darwin Research Center.
The delegation justified the trip in press releases before and after, saying there was an important, U.S. funded, tsunami warning center there. INSIDE EDITION has learned that no such center exists. The only thing remotely connected to a tsunami warning center was a small tide sensor, which the group did not even see.
The delegation said another reason for the trip was a meet and greet with scientists who had to be flown in from Congressman Baird's home state to show the delegation important research they were doing on climate change. They also took the group snorkeling on two days.
Congressman Baird likes to scuba dive and snorkel, and says he'd like everyone in Congress to go on trips like these so they can learn first hand about coral reef deterioration and climate change.
As the group departed, on their way to a luxury air force jet that had been at their disposal for four days, INSIDE EDITION's Matt Meagher introduced himself and asked Congressman Baird if the trip was really necessary.
While Baird said he understood that his love for diving may make some suspicious, he defended the trip as a legitimate fact-finding mission. "If people go to Paris and walk around, if they go to Germany and walk around, how am I supposed to see a reef without diving?" explained Baird.
And this was not the congressman's first fact finding trip that involved snorkeling or scuba diving.
Just five months earlier, three of the same congressmen on the Galapagos Islands trip felt compelled to study the Great Barrier Reef off the coast of Australia.
When asked why so many people needed to take trips like these, Congressman Baird said, "I'll tell you what happens, you see things in different ways. You share ideas."
The congressman continued, "When you see them with your own eyes, it matters. Did we enjoy our visit here? Absolutely."
Tom Schatz of Citizens Against Government Waste says most lawmakers travel to foreign countries for important reasons, but he says too many congressmen blatantly abuse the privilege. "If they want to take a vacation they should do it on their own time, on their own money, not the taxpayers' money," Schatz says.
Congressional rules do allow spouses and adult children to fly for free onboard the air force jets, but they are required to pay for their own meals.
