WASHINGTON, June 5, 2006 — Whether measuring by the number of privately funded trips taken or the total amount sponsors spent on each congressional office, members of the House and their aides topped their Senate counterparts during the January 2000 through June 2005 study period. House members or staffers also took the 10 most expensive trips identified in the Center for Public Integrity's analysis.
Here's a breakdown of the top-traveling congressional offices (legislator and staff totals combined) alphabetized by member, followed by a list of the priciest individual trips and who took them:
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Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas)
Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) Rep. Michael Oxley (R-Ohio) Rep. W.J. Tauzin (R-La.)* Rep. William Thomas (R-Calif.) Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.) Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) |
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Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas)
Rep. John Boehner (R-Ohio) Rep. Larry Combest (R-Texas)* Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) Rep. Michael Oxley (R-Ohio) Rep. W.J. Tauzin (R-La.)* Rep. William Thomas (R-Calif.) Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) |
* No longer in Congress
Most Expensive Privately Sponsored Trips
| Traveler* | Destination | Sponsor | Reported cost | |
| 1. | Rep. Thomas Bliley Jr. (R-Va.) | London | Brown & Williamson Tobacco | $31,171 |
| 2. | Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.) | Kazakhstan | Jewish Congress of Kazakhstan | $29,951 |
| 3. | Rep. Ben Chandler (D-Ky.) | Australia | Australian government, American Australian Assn. | $29,177 |
| 4. | Robert Cochran** | Australia | $28,446 | |
| 5. | Rep. Mike Ross (D-Ark.) | Australia | Australian government; American Australian Assn. | $28,236 |
| 6. | Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) | Great Britain | National Center for Public Policy & Research | $28,106 |
| 7. | Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) | Germany | International Management and Development Inst. | $28,100 |
| 8. | Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) | South Korea | Korea-U.S. Exchange Council | $28,000 |
| 9. | Rep. William Thomas (R-Calif.) | Beaver Creek, Colo. | American Enterprise Institute; Vail Valley Foundation [correction] | $27,962 |
| 10. | Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) | Israel, South Korea | Korea-U.S. Exchange Council | $27,960 |
* Reported cost includes expenses of spouse or child
** Chief of staff for Rep. Howard "Buck" McKeon, R-Calif.
Correction: The trip of Rep. William Thomas (R-Calif.) listed the wrong sponsor as Korea-U.S. Exchange Council/U.S.-Malaysia Exchange Assn. The sponsor was, in fact, the American Enterprise Institute; Vail Valley Foundation.