During the last three months, Long who hasn't had the time to schedule a town hall meeting during his first three terms (except for an embarrassing telephone town hall), found time to make at least three trips to Vegas, including one that appears to have been for a week, as well as excursions to Seattle, San Francisco, Charleston, South Carolina, Louisville, Kentucky, and Dallas, Texas.
His quarterly financial report, filed Thursday with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) showed that the fiscal conservative raised $201,315.56, but spent $308,620.26, including $50,061.39 for meals and drinks.
Of that total, much of it came in what appears to be four fundraisers done through the Theodore Company, a political fundraising firm, labeled as "food, beverages, entertainment," - totaling $24,987.74.
Other meals included: $606.80 at Capitol Hill Club, Washington, D. C., $513.47 at the Palisade, Seattle; $2,093.91 at Aqua by El Gaucho, Seattle; $425.10 at Metropolitan Grill, Springfield; $583.86 at the Ozarka Japanese Steakhouse, Midland, Texas; $1,920.73 at the Capitol Grill, Washington; and $332.15 at Javier's, Dallas;
During the 91-day period, Long's contributors paid for 187 meals, according to the FEC report.
Long also spent several days in Louisville, taking in the Kentucky Derby May 7. Though none of the Louisville documents was dated May 7, Long gave an interview to the Huffington Post while he was the Derby, promoting the presidential candidacy of Donald Trump:
The mogul was not utterly without his forthright supporters on Millionaires Row. One of them was Rep. Billy Long (R-Mo.), a bull-necked, affable fellow who had a giant unlit cigar jutting up out of his shirt pocket as we talked.
Long, a conservative from the most conservative part of Missouri (the southwest), was a radio talk show host and is well known as a top Las Vegas level poker player.
Long told me that Republicans were fools if they did not back Trump to the hilt.
“He kicked everybody’s butt, won far more votes, and we can WIN with him,” he said. “Voters are fed up with Washington, with politics as usual. If we can get all the men up off the couch and get them to actually vote we can win.”
Apparently, Long's hotel stay, which appears to have been at the Marriott Louisville Downtown was not paid for by his campaign account, but a $53.69 charge for lodging to the Marriott is recorded on May 9, as well as $57.94 in taxi fare on the same day.
A $16.61 meal and $9.43 in "lodging" were recorded the next day.
Long used his campaign account to pay for two trips to Las Vegas in April and one in June. Listings for those trips included:
April 7
$110.45 for cab fare
April 21
$255.36, Wynn Las Vegas, lodging
April 25
$30.17, cab fare
$2.45 Grand Lux Cafe, meal
April 26
$3,238.43, Wynn Las Vegas, lodging
April 28
$18.88, Starbucks, meal
June 27
$16.09, Hudson News, meal
June 28
$18.08, Starbucks, meal
Long's disclosure report shows $13,495.04 was spent on airfare.
Didn't Austin Powers have a name for this guy?
ReplyDeleteCongress has done nothing but talk for the last fifty years, let alone pass any legislation that actually helped anyone who actually needed help. Now, Billy Long fits right into that culture because he has become the poster child for doing nothing for anyone but himself. Lucky for Billy, he comes from a district where the people are grossly ignorant of how government works that they actually think they are "Conservatives" which is code talk for poor religious fanatics. They actually think that the likes of Billy Long is on their side when nothing could be farther from the truth. I have no doubts that Billy will be returned to Congress simply because he is an incumbent Republican and the people of this district actually deserve the likes of Billy Long.
ReplyDeleteWhere do I apply for this job?
ReplyDeleteThe benefits sound pretty good.
It seems like the hours aren't so bad either.
One thing that doesn't recommend the job is those pesky bloggers to contend with. Seems like they are always creepin and gettin in ones bidness and whatnot. It's gettin harder to sic John Law on the bloggers than it useter be.
I'm not sure if I could throw my weight around like the incumbent either. Do airlines have excess weight charges iffn you don't fit in a standard seat? Or if you tip the scales more than two of those flight attendants do?
Genevieve Williams for Congress!!! Southwest Missouri deserves better!
ReplyDeletehttps://gen4congress.com/
Vote him out! Vote for Genevieve Williams for Congress!
ReplyDeleteOh great. Let's trade a dirty, corrupt Republican for a dirty, corrupt Democrat. That's it, let's do it!
ReplyDeleteI honestly can't imagine how his health has withstood six years of living high on the hog.
ReplyDeleteI live in so. West Mo in BL's district. The only thing I have heard him say is "I'll vote against Obama care ? Genevieve Williams, whom I know , will make a much better representative in Congress & she won't try to sell our forest land to the Chinese like the R's are trying to do !! If you really want to make America great again ?? Then vote for Genevieve Williams in November !!
ReplyDeleteBilly Long never voted against tornado drills though.
ReplyDeleteTime to vote Boss Hog out. He spews the same ignorant rhetoric that the party owners tell him to say. I'm tired of hearing about his so called "principles". The people of this state have to be smarter than to put this pig in office again.
ReplyDeleteHow does he...well if he's in the airport bathroom stall...on the way to Las Vegas for example...the toilet paper...mistakes can be a problem...just ask Larry Craig!
ReplyDeleteIt is incredible to me to see all of the awful name calling and making fun of someone's weight on this post. Shame on all of you. I don't care for mr longs policies and performance either but my god people.....THIS is how you respond???? I think this post has revealed more about your character than his.
ReplyDeleteI freely admit that I have a bias against grossly fat people like Blubba Long. You see, if he cannot control what he puts in his damned mouth, how can he control anything else, like a damned country?
ReplyDeleteI agree 7:39PM Less negativity and more positivity!
ReplyDeleteInstead of flying to Las Vegas and sitting down at the gambling tables Billy Long should take a walk. If he did this every day it could make a difference! (See- it's not necessary to make a snide reference to Billy Long eating high on the hog thanks to lobbyists and expensing his meals as expenses.)
Perhaps the next time Billy Long visits Joplin he can take a walking tour. He might even see a few of the tornado sirens that he used to make fun of. If he happens to spot any of those ham radio antennas that would be a bonus. Maybe some smart consultant or donor can figure out how to turn a walking tour into a fundraising opportunity for Billy?
Here's one more thought on Billy Long and fat jokes.
ReplyDeleteThe first time that Billy Long complains about people who are telling fat jokes the proper response will be either: "hoist on own petard" or "own goal". Let me draw your attention to the Washington Post coverage of Billy Long's Washington DC BIG coming out party in February of 2012.
Rep. Billy Long: Freshman wows with big jokes at Washington Press Club Foundation dinner By The Reliable Source February 9, 2012
(Big Jokes? Billy told some Texas and Alaska jokes? Hmmmm.)
“None of you know me,” the first-term congressman from Missouri declared in an after-dinner speech Wednesday. “My chief of staff decided when I first got to Congress I couldn’t go on TV, couldn’t go on any cable shows. . . I’m what they call the unknown congressman.”
(This was before his War of The Worlds Part Duex? making fun of tornado drills tweet made the previously unknown Billy Long infamous. The Washington Post writeup continues with some of the details of Billy's corpulent hilarity:)
Well, no longer! For Long made one heck of a first impression with his rollicking comic routine at the Washington Press Club Foundation dinner — the unofficial kickoff of the Beltway’s media-political schmooze season.
His secret weapon: Fat guy jokes — a surefire tactic for a crowd (journalists, lobbyists, lawmakers) too blurry on banquet wine to appreciate more cerebral humor. The roly-poly Republican flashed a slideshow of the colleagues he claims he’s always being confused for — Rep. Mike Kelly (R-Penn.), Rep. Blake Farenthold (R-Tex.), Rep. Tom Reed (R-N.Y.). . . let’s just call them the Jowl Caucus.
“My wife got me one of those talking scales for Christmas,” Long said. “I got on it and it said, ‘One at a time, please, one at a time’. . . If I lose 60 pounds it would be like throwing a deck chair off the Titanic.” Oh, and check out the photo of him with Chris Christie. Why’d the New Jersey governor want them to pose together? Because, Long claims the governor told him, “I have never had someone look at a picture and say, ‘Hey, who’s the big guy with Christie?’”
Billy Long served up a SUPERSIZED serving of fat jokes, and even served up a slide show of some of his fellow congressmembers? He called out members of the "Jowl Caucus" by name? Apparently it must be A-OK for Billy Long to tell fat jokes about himself AND OTHERS when it's done to raise his profile with the press and other DC donors and lobbyists who get the Washington Post clips like this one delivered to their inbox each morning.
Like Billy Long hisself might say about this "making fun of his appearance controversy" (as he's reviewing his incoming contributions and dinner invitations) "What's good for the goose is good for the gander!"
Funnel please, it's fixin to be time to eat!