Taxpayer-funded trips abroad by U.S. Congressmen have risen ten-fold since 1995. From the legitimate trips to war zones, to the questionable trips to exotic places like the Galapagos Islands, Congressional travel is literally soaring in recent years.

While the Obama administration brow beats American citizens about saving money in these tough economic times, they seem to believe that elected government officials do not play by the same rules. This is nothing new, as elected officials do not use Social Security for their retirement like every other American, but rather a private plan more suitable to elected royalty. There is a double standard when it comes to America’s elected officials. From Obama’s czars to congress, elected and appointed officials live high on the hog, while the source of their income (the American citizen) is bent over and made to pay for their lavish lifestyles.

Hundreds of lawmakers travelled abroad in 2008 on the taxpayer’s dime, totalling $13 million dollars. That figure is bad enough, but it is not the most shocking statistic. Unbelievably, that $13 million represents a 50% increase in congressional travel since the Democrats