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Saturday, April 23, 2011

Harry Reid’s High-Stakes China Junket

Details are slowly trickling out about Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s secret, week-long trip to China with nine other senators. The lawmakers have given out minimal information about their itinerary because of supposed “security concerns.”

Last checked in, the intrepid congressional delegation (or codel) had paused in Hong Kong over the weekend, likely morphing into a shopping delegation (or shopdel).

The next afternoon, to meet their stated goal of doing “site visits of American investments” in China, they took a ferry to . . . wait for it, wait for it . . . Macau, a tiny former Portuguese enclave where major Reid backer and Las Vegas gambling impresario Steve Wynn and other American casino operators have invested big-time — and profited enormously.

Wynn Macau is one of six casinos — MGM Resorts International and Sheldon Adelson’s Sands China are also there — allowed in the gambling mecca, the only place in China with legal gambling.

Anyone who’s seen a James Bond movie knows casinos are home to an evil assortment of bad guys, assassins and terrorists — even the entire Spectre headquarters. That’s why the group would have tried to blend in with other tourists — not an easy thing for 10 senators, 10 spouses, five staff members and assorted foreign service officers.

But the delegation (or crapsdel) made the perilous hour-long boat trip Tuesday without incident and arrived on time at the MGM Macau for a lunch sponsored by the American Chamber of Commerce there.

Our invitation to the lunch, sent earlier this month to “AmCham Macau Members only,” says the U.S. consul general and other consulate staff members also will be at the two-hour lunch, making it “a great opportunity to sit down up close and personal for a private lunch with distinguished members of the U.S. Senate.”

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1 comment:

VotersOfNY said...

Why aren't the people screaming about this junket? They are spitting in our faces. With all the problems in this country, these bums have the gall to take a vacation with their families and security to go on a vacation to China? The can't even make up a good excuse for it, they say the meetings are a 'secret?'

Am I losing my mind? Are you all losing your minds? Start screaming to your representatives people. Email them, call them, fax them. This abuse of power has to stop.

Do they think we are total dopes that we don't realize it it is Easter, Passover, spring breaks? I hate when these arrogant pr!cks insult us like this.

Wake up people and put a stop to these bums p!ssing away our tax dollars, before it's too late. It may be alreaady.