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Hybrid-driving members of Congress:

Discussion in 'Prius, Hybrid, EV and Alt-Fuel News' started by prius04, Jun 8, 2005.

  1. prius04

    prius04 New Member

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    15 out of about 620 is only 2%. Pretty good start. Thought it would be interesting.

    Hybrid-driving members of Congress:
    Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) – Prius
    Sen. Robert Bennett (R-UT) – Ford Hybrid Escape
    Sen. Richard Lugar (R-IN) – Prius
    Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R-RI) – Prius
    Sen. James Jeffords (I-VT) – Ford Hybrid Escape
    Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) – Ford Hybrid Escape
    Sen. Richard Durbin (D-IL) – Ford Hybrid Escape
    Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) – Ford Hybrid Escape on order

    Rep. Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD) – Prius
    Rep. Michael Honda (D-CA) – Prius
    Rep. Tom Allen (D-ME) – Prius
    Rep. Brian Baird (D-WA) – Prius
    Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) – Prius
    Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA) – Ford Hybrid Escape
    Rep. Jeb Bradley (R-NH) – Ford Hybrid Escape


    The article is from US News and Report.
    ]http://www.usnews.com/usnews/politics/whis...isplead.htm
     
    #1 prius04, Jun 8, 2005
  2. Bill Merchant

    Bill Merchant absit invidia

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    [font=Comic Sans MS:9e8df2c15e]Thanks for the heads-up on who drives the drive. Congratulations that one of your Senators drives a Prius![/font:9e8df2c15e]
     
    #2 Bill Merchant, Jun 8, 2005
  3. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

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    when did we increase our congressional ranks?
     
    #3 DaveinOlyWA, Jun 8, 2005
  4. prius04

    prius04 New Member

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    Oops. I found the number then added 100 to get the senators.

    So the senators were counted twice.

    So the number is closer to 520...

    That makes it almost 3%.

    Dave, I read elsewhere that you commute about 8 miles, yet your warm weather average is close to 55 mpg. How do you do that?
     
    #4 prius04, Jun 8, 2005
  5. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

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    535

    435 reps plus 3 for non votingmembers and 100 senators

    as far as my mileage i try to anciticipate a lot. that means doubling my following distance and lots of coasting.

    i also live in an area that has a lot of gridlock. in the town i live there is only one north south freeway and nothing going east from here. so any accident on the freeway (doesnt matter which direction since it slows both down) drops speed to nothing. that has an effect of boosting my mileage greatly. nothing like 20 miles averaging 20-30 mph to really boost the tank average.

    also, we are currently experiencing colder weather now than we did for most of last winter. so havent used the air but a few times so far.

    also i have gotten a GPS receiver that ive tied to a mapping program on my Mac powerbook and the added knowledge of roads in the area has me using surface streets a lot more this year than last. twice on my last tank i got off the freeway and took surface streets home. it was kinda cool to go through areas that i normally never see. also its more fun and challenging to increase mileage when there are lights to contend with every quarter mile or so. getting on a surface street that has at least 2 lanes in one direction gives one the opportunity to drive anyway they feel like... well on the slow and steady side that is
     
    #5 DaveinOlyWA, Jun 8, 2005
  6. philforman

    philforman New Member

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    I find it interesting that Rep Honda drives a Prius...
     
    #6 philforman, Jun 8, 2005
  7. prius04

    prius04 New Member

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    There is some new info on the 15 congresspeople who drive hybrids.

    It might be more due to the Virginia HOV law than being "green".

    This "twist" came from Salon on a paid link so you might not get it:
    http://www.salon.com/politics/war_room/index.html



    Dave, thanks for the info on your MPG. Since you added the info as an edit, I never got an email that this info was here.

    So it's the slowness of your commute that is the difference. I also try to anticipate stops as much as possible. Today, a Lincoln Nav tailgated me, then blew around me, and because of all the red lights, I caught up to him at every light. Then at the last light, there were two forward lanes. I ended up beside him, then when he was delayed, I got back in front. That was kind of cool. He Pretty much raced to every lite, and I ended up ahead.

    I've got the NAV and with the NAV, I found a back road way to work that saves me 6 miles and only adds about a minute. That's on the way home. On the way into work it adds 10 minutes, so I still take the highway in to work, and the back road home.

    The drive home is a lot more relaxing too. I probably get about 49 MPG into work, and about 54 home... And if you add the 6 miles I save, I'm saving even more.


    But I don't think I could ever get your kind of numbers. Congratulations, either for your special foot, or your special Prius. (I guess that second ones redundant)
     
    #7 prius04, Jun 9, 2005
  8. Orsino

    Orsino New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(prius04\";p=\"96806)</div>
    I have to wonder: how many of these politicians actually drive these hybrids? I can believe that a few of those listed might, and perhaps most or all of them are used as family vehicles--but senators travel by limo, don't they? Mostly?
     
    #8 Orsino, Jun 9, 2005
  9. Dan Gross

    Dan Gross New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(philforman\";p=\"96828)</div>
    Yeah, I noticed that too, and I thought about that old Subaru commercial:
    "Ford drives Subaru...."
     
    #9 Dan Gross, Jun 9, 2005
  10. prius04

    prius04 New Member

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    Sadly, the only way one can be a Congressperson nowadays is to be rich, or very rich.

    This is less true in the House.

    So although I think this list is a bit cool, and interesting, I think it's more a mark of wealth and posturing than being green.

    The only way regular folks will be well represented in Congress is for public funding of elections, and higher pay. I know I could never afford two houses and flying home to my home state regularly, on 120K per year. Never mind paying for all the campaigning. Thus, we get the rich, and the bought.

    And the rich prefer it this way. It keeps us out.

    But I don't think they get limoed all the time. That doesn't play well in the next campaign.
     
    #10 prius04, Jun 9, 2005
  11. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

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    actually its not the slowness of the commute, its how you anticipate the commute. a good example was the other day coming home from the Apple store, hit congestion and for about 10 miles it was very slow. i managed to hit my brakes about 5-6 times and coming to a complete or near stop 3 times. in contrast, other cars around me probably stopped at much as 20-30 times in the exact same time on the same road.

    that is the main reason why. besides congested driving only accounts for 10-15 % of my tank as a rough estimate. also realize that slow commuting like this can break your mileage as easily as it can help it.
     
    #11 DaveinOlyWA, Jun 9, 2005
  12. pepa

    pepa New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(prius04\";p=\"97080)</div>
    No doubt that applies only to these republican owners :)
     
    #12 pepa, Jun 11, 2005
  13. RMunroe

    RMunroe New Member

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    I notice that Ted Kennedy has ordered a Ford Escape Hybrid rather than a Prius. Guess the Ford will carry more cases of booze.
     
    #13 RMunroe, Jun 11, 2005
  14. Jonnycat26

    Jonnycat26 New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RMunroe\";p=\"97618)</div>
    In other news, George W himself has ordered a Prius. He was quoted as saying "Man, I can sure fit a lot of blow in that hidden compartment under the rug thing in the back. Shit, I am high as a kite".

    The conference was broken up after his handlers pulled him off the stage tho. Who knows what other Prius nuggets our fearful leader would have dished out!
     
    #14 Jonnycat26, Jun 11, 2005
  15. jayman

    jayman Senior Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RMunroe\";p=\"97618)</div>
    :lol:

    And his will also have the same option as helicopters that fly out over the ocean to oil rigs: deployable floats.

    That way, when he drives off a bridge, nobody drowns.
     
    #15 jayman, Jun 11, 2005
  16. KathyY

    KathyY Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(prius04\";p=\"97080)</div>
    They can only take advantage of the VA HOV law if the car has VA clean fuel plates. I live in MD and have MD plates so the VA law doesn't help me when I am in VA.
     
    #16 KathyY, Jun 11, 2005
  17. prius04

    prius04 New Member

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    Good point.

    Can they get a VA plate and still maintain legal residence in the state that they are elected from? Assuming of course that they have a house or apartment in VA.
     
    #17 prius04, Jun 11, 2005
  18. KathyY

    KathyY Member

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    When we were military and stationed in VA we had VA plates but I don't know if they maintained residence in another state. I have frequently seen members of Congress with special plates from their home such as SEN 1 or some such thing. Of course, they probably woudn't get a ticket anyway.
     
    #18 KathyY, Jun 12, 2005
  19. BobA

    BobA New Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RMunroe\";p=\"97618)</div>
    I'm old and remember the National Lampoon having a cover picture of a VW floating in water and the caption being something like, 'If Ted Kennedy, drove one of these, he'd be president' maybe the Escape will float or he bought it because it's an ESCAPE (play on words).

    Bob Andersen
     
    #19 BobA, Jun 12, 2005
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