Congressmen seek to ban members of Congress from flying first class on taxpayer’s dime

Today, Rep. Paul Gosar (R-AZ), along with Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC) and Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Ca) sent a letter to the House Appropriations Committee requesting that they prohibit Congressmen from flying first class at taxpayer expense.

From Gosar’s website:

Members of Congress are servants of the people and should not be considered a privileged class. Luxury airfare accommodations utilizing taxpayer monies would seem inappropriate in any fiscal climate but at a time of soaring deficits and with a federal debt in excess of $17 trillion such expenditures are especially wasteful. If federal restrictions prohibit members of our military from traveling first-class, this same standard should also apply to Members of Congress

While changing this provision is more about optics rather than cutting spending as the savings would be minimal, it is still a step in the right direction. Taxpayers should not be footing the bill for individuals who make six figures to jet around the country first class.