Not a story, as much as I'd like to wish. He's the prez, he shouldn't ride a moped.
On Nov 12, 5:38 pm, Cold Water <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Barack Obama's car could fuel more problems > > By Dave Wedge | Wednesday, November 12, 2008 | > http://www.bostonherald.com > > President-elect Obama has stressed the need for energy independence - but > he'll be chauffeured around in a gas-guzzling Cadillac SUV limo that could > pose a symbolism problem similar to the car controversy that dogged his > friend and ally, Gov. Deval Patrick. > > Obama's presidential ride, dubbed "Cadillac One," will reportedly be a > mammoth, custom-made Cadillac limo built like a GMC truck that sits on 19 > -inch wheels. The vehicle will also have 5-inch-thick bulletproof windows, > cell phone-jamming gear and blast-proof armor. > > Presidents have been riding in Cadillacs - and some in Lincolns - for > decades, going all the way back to Woodrow Wilson in the early part of the > 20th century. But Obama's vehicle will reportedly be a much beefier version > than President Bush's Cadillac DeVille stretch. > > U.S. News and World Report reported that the vehicle shares "the same chassis > and tires" as a GMC 2500 series truck, "indicating that it is far heavier > than a civilian Cadillac." > > Obama frequently spoke during the campaign of the need to slash reliance on > foreign oil and pledged to put 1 million hybrid vehicles on America's roads > by 2015. He personally drives a Ford Escape Hybrid. > > But a standard Cadillac DTS limo, which is a low-level version of Cadillac > One, gets just 12 miles per gallon in the city and 18 on the highway and > costs $47,000. > > Several political and automotive blogs have pointed out the vehicle's fuel > inefficiency, including U.S. News and World Report, which called it "the most > monstrous Presidential limousine yet." > > "Fuel-efficiency clearly isn't on the mind of its designers," the publication > wrote on its "Rankings and Reviews" Web site. > > But Boston College political science professor Kay Schlozman said security > concerns are likely behind the vehicle's design. > > "I don't know if the president can get away with driving a hybrid vehicle > like a Prius," Schlozman said. > > Besides the gas-guzzling issue, Bay State Republicans said Obama should learn > a lesson from Patrick, who took heat for upgrading the state's > taxpayer-funded gubernatorial car from a Ford to a Cadillac during his first > weeks in office. Patrick later decided to personally pay part of the > vehicle's monthly lease. > > "I think he's following a lot of Deval. They're both using the same playbook > on a lot of things," state Sen. Robert Hedlund (R-Weymouth) said. > > Added Massachusetts GOP spokesman Barney Keller: "If President Obama is going > to copy Governor Patrick's words and his Cadillac, we assume next he'll copy > Governor Patrick's tax hikes and reckless spending proposals." > > A Patrick spokesman declined comment, while Obama's spokespeople did not > return messages. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
