On Corporate Jet And Three Martini Lunches

In his press conference on Wednesday, President Obama insisted that revenues obtained from closing loopholes in the tax code must be part of a balanced deficit reduction package. Then the President discovered a new injustice-
corporate jet deductions. Not since Jimmy Carter's infamous three martini lunch tirade has the public conscience been wracked by such pain and closing this loophole would add about .03 percent to tax revenues. Hardly worth mentioning, nevertheless it seemed to be the high point of a mediocre performance. One might expect to see these remarks to appear in future campaign ads. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, here is the President in his own words denouncing the corporate jet deduction.

It would be fair then, since no one is talking real money, to look to see how much the nontaxable benefits of a private jet accrue to the President. The President must surely spend 12 hours per week on Air Force One, jetting from fund raiser to green job corporations, to AFLCIO luncheons etc. So 12 hours times 52 week equals 614 hours of flying annually. Fox News set the hourly operating cost of Air Force One at $181,757 so, times 614 hours we arrive at the princely total of $113,416,368. If Obama were in the private sector and there was no deduction for corporate jet use he would be on the hook for 35% of this perk or $39,695,729. Maybe this is the tax loophole we should close.