Pelosi gets flak without even flying

Re “Pelosi gets nonstop abuse over air travel,” Feb. 8

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is just behind Vice President Dick Cheney in the presidential succession, is allowed to take military transport for security? I can’t believe that anyone would argue with this obvious precaution, or suggest that the speaker take only very small jets that cannot fly nonstop to California.

More shocking to me, after reading hundreds of words about the controversy, was the revelation near the end of the article that Pelosi has not yet taken a single flight on the controversial larger jet. All this criticism has been leveled before a single flight? Ridiculous!

KEVIN LAHEY

Claremont

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Pelosi can save us lots of money by using JetBlue to fly from Washington to the San Francisco Bay Area. Along the way, she’ll have plenty of time to mingle with the people she represents, and when she tires of that, she can plug in her headphones and watch herself on CNN while sitting in her seat. Besides, JetBlue has a frequent flier program that will allow her to fly free after just a few round trips.

It doesn’t get much better than that. Why use one of those military aircraft?

BURT HERMEY

Costa Mesa

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In my view, any credentials claimed by Pelosi as an environmentalist have been completely shredded.

GEORGE FOELSCHOW

Los Angeles

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Re “No ‘there’ up there,” editorial, Feb. 9

Boy, does The Times have it right on this one; what a non-story!

If the Republicans had been so concerned with graft and corruption, as they seem to be now, when Tom Delay was the House majority leader or whip -- or I should say when former Speaker J. Dennis Hastert was “majority whipped” in a frenzy of Republican malfeasance -- we wouldn’t be in the mess we are today.

Had Hastert been a California resident during his reign, would the situation be any different?

MORGAN MCBAIN

Venice