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Brewer, aides spend $32,000 on Europe trade trip by Yvonne Wingett Sanchez - Sept. 18, 2012 01:57 PM The Republic | azcentral.com Gov. Jan Brewer and two members of her staff spent about $32,000 on a European trade trip earlier this year, flying first class, spending more than $3,500 on meals and Internet access and racking up $4,160 in cancellation fees. In May, the Republican governor, her chief-of-staff Eileen Klein and aide Kim Sabow were among a delegation to travel to London, Germany and France in hopes of expanding business investments, tourism and job growth in Arizona. The delegation included officials with the Arizona Commerce Authority and the Arizona Office of Tourism. The Governor's Office on Tuesday released trip expenses charged to its office. The Arizona Commerce Authority paid separately for costs associated with lodging in Germany, said Matthew Benson, the governor's spokesman. The tourism office also paid for other expenses associated with the trip; those figures have not been released. Taxpayers paid for about half of the $32,000 trip and the other half was covered by private funding. The records, released in response to a public-records request, show airfare cost about $14,000. Team ACA, a privately funding arm associated with the Arizona Commerce Authority, paid to upgrade Brewer and Klein to business class, Benson said. Sabow flew coach. Benson said the group was scheduled to stay at the Paris Best Western. When they arrived at the hotel, they realized, "It wasn't the most suitable location for a business trip like this." The group paid a one-night cancellation fee of $4,160 and moved to a Marriott hotel, he said. [Hey, when you are spending other people's money, i.e. the taxpayers money, it's no big deal to spend $4,000 on cancellation fees, after all you are not paying the bill!] Asked if the expenses were worth it, Benson responded, "It's critically important that the state and that the governor specifically participate in trade missions like this in order to make certain that Arizona is represented on the international stage when it comes to recruiting businesses and investment to our state." [Of course Arizona Governor Jan Brewer forgot to say that she thinks every penny the taxpayers spent to send her on a wonderful $32,000 vacation for her in Europe was worth it. Of course none of the reporters bothered asking the taxpayers if Jan Brewer spend $32,000 to send herself on a vacation to Europe was worth it to the taxpayers] Last year, Brewer led a delegation of more than two dozen government and private-sector business leaders on a trade mission to China to try to drum up new commerce and jobs for Arizona. Officials at the time said the trip would cost the state about $24,000 for six government officials to attend. The governor said the potential payoff for that trip justified the expense.
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