Hilton Hotels Clarifies the $16 Muffins

It's okay America, DOJ Spent $121 MILLION During

1,832 Conferences in 2008 and 2009...it was a Buffet

at an average of $66,000 per conference...it's okay.

Washington Post
By Ed O'Keefe
Updated 9/23/11

Washington Post's original report on this subject quoted from the publicly released inspector general report that said conference organizers served 250 muffins costing a total of $4,200, or $16.80 per muffin at a Hilton-owned hotel. The report also repeatedly referred to “$16 muffins.”

In a statement issued Thursday night, Hilton Hotels — one of the hotel chains singled out in the inspector general report, defended and explained its pricing policies:

“Hilton has a long standing practice of working with government agencies to plan meetings and events that fall within their budgets. Usually provided by the agencies themselves, these budgets are reflective of the pricing structure of the destination, local taxes, gratuities and other fees. Hotel teams tailor these events to provide maximum value and ensure the best experience possible. Dining receipts are often abbreviated and do not reflect the full pre-contracted menu and service provided, as is the case with recent media reports of breakfast items approved for some government meetings. In Washington, the contracted breakfast included fresh fruit, coffee, juice, muffins, tax and gratuity, for an inclusive price of $16 per person. At each hotel, menu pricing structures are derived by a comprehensive review of the competitive local market. Additionally, hotels typically offer guest rooms at per diem rates established by the government.”

Dept. of Justice Munches on $16 Muffins While 22% of our Children Live the Life of Poverty

Oh the Disgusting and Pathetic Irony, Department of JUSTICE Spends $16 on Muffins While 22% of U.S. Children Live in Poverty. Do you think anyone in the DOJ thought about our children and grandchildren as they chowed down their muffin and sipped $8 coffee...did I mention pathetic?

Reuters
By JoAnne Allen
September 21, 2011

"We found the Department (of Justice) spent $16 on each of the 250 muffins served at an August 2009 legal conference in Washington," said a DOJ Office of Inspector General report released on Tuesday.

The DOJ spent $121 million on conferences in fiscal 2008 and 2009, which exceeded its own spending limits and appeared to be extravagant and wasteful, according to the report that examined 10 conferences held during that period.

The review turned up the expensive muffins, which came from the Capital Hilton Hotel just blocks from the White House, as well as cookies and brownies that cost almost $10 each.

The department spent $32 per person on snacks of Cracker Jack, popcorn, and candy bars and coffee that cost $8.24 per cup at another conference, the report said.



The DOJ also spent nearly $600,000 for event planning services for five conferences, the document said.

A Justice Department spokeswoman said most of the gathering were held when there were no strict limits on food and beverage costs, adding the DOJ had taken steps since 2009 "to ensure that these problems do not occur again."

Word of the agency's extravagant spending drew a swift response from Capitol Hill.

Senator Chuck Grassley, the senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee which has oversight of the Justice Department, said the report was a blueprint for the first cuts that should be made by the "super committee" searching for at least $1.2 trillion in savings.

"Sixteen dollar muffins and $600,000 for event planning services are what make Americans cynical about government and why they are demanding change," Grassley said in a statement. "People are outraged, and rightly so."

As the U.S. government grapples

to find ways to trim the bloated

federal deficit, a new report suggests

officials might start with cutting out

$16 muffins and $10 cookies.