Did You Know...

**Written by Doug Powers

While you were being encouraged to trade in your gas guzzler and buy an expensive electric golf cart, the size of the government’s limo fleet was almost doubling:

The number of limousines owned by the U.S. government increased by 73 percent during the first two years of the Obama administration, according to a new report by iWatch news.

An analysis of General Services Administration data reveals the federal fleet has increased from 238 limos in 2008—the last year of the Bush Administration— to 412 limos in 2010. Much of the increase was recorded in the State Department under Hillary Clinton.

For its part, the Obama administration said the increased number of limousines in the federal fleet reflects “an enhanced effort to protect diplomats and other government officials in a dangerous world.”

Is each re-set button getting its own limo now? And not to nitpick, but wasn’t the world supposed to be markedly less dangerous as of January 20, 2009?

The “limo” data is difficult to track with any degree of certainty, because, well, the government doesn’t quite know how to define what a limo is:

The GSA (General Services Administration) said its limousine numbers are not reliable, even though the federal fleet numbers are officially recorded every year. In a statement, GSA spokeswoman Sara Merriam said, “The categories in the Fleet Report are overly broad, and the term ‘limousine’ is not defined,” adding that “vehicles represented as limousines can range from protective duty vehicles to sedans.” Asked whether the GSA actually knows how many limos it has in its fleet, Merriam responded that GSA “cannot say that its report accurately reflects the number of limousines.”

Leslie Paige, a spokeswoman for the nonprofit watchdog group Citizens Against Government Waste, was outraged that the GSA’s numbers may not be accurate. “They can’t figure out a way to define a limo? How hard can it be? If the government can’t track limos, I’m not sure we should trust the numbers they put out there on anything,” she said.

If they can’t define “green job” it’s no surprise “limo” throws them for a classification loop.

In fairness to the current administration, the report offers a slight “blame Bush” window of opportunity. Additionally, at last word there were several dozen limos stuck on bumps in roads all around the world that have to be continually replaced:

**Written by Doug Powers

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