The United States President Barack Obama has shelved a whopping amount of $ 1.55 million for dinners with various international leaders since 2009. US channel CBS News has obtained expenses of this dinners from the State Department Office of Protocol in a response to the Freedom of Information. Since 2009 overall President Obama hoisted five dinners and among them, dinner with Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh is most expensive one reports said.
In the first State Dinner of the Obama administration, it has spent $ 572,187.36 for Manmohan Singh at the White House on November 24, 2009. The second most expensive dinner was with the Mexican President Felipe Calderon on May 19, 2010 and $ 563,479.92 was spent. Then dinner with Chinese President Hu Jintai at $ 412,329.73 followed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel dinner at $ 215,883.36 and with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak $ 203,053.34 was spent which made a grand total of $ 1.55 million for five dinners.
The State Department is yet to respond for the another Freedom of Information request that was filed seven months ago asking for the expenses of the sixth State Dinner with British Prime Minister David Cameron on March 14, 2012. Meanwhile a Republican lawmaker from California, Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Darrell Issa expressed concern about the costs of state dinners and asked for an accounting on 1 November 2012 but there was no reply from the then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
(AW:Vamshi)
