Welcome to POLITICO’s West Wing Playbook, your guide to the people and power centers in the Biden administration. With help from Allie Bice. Send tips | Subscribe here| Email Eli | Email Lauren It’s every entry-level staffer’s dream when they land a White House gig to accompany the president on a trip aboard Air Force One. There are lots of perks. You don’t have to take your shoes off before boarding. The seats are much more spacious than anything you’ll find in economy class. There are custom boxes of presidential M&Ms. And there’s even in-flight meal service. But, it turns out, those meals come at a price. Everyone on board — including White House staff traveling on official business — must personally cover the cost of them. The price of food on Air Force One varies depending on the length of the flight and what’s served. One former Biden press staffer estimated that a day trip could run anywhere from $17 to $50 in food and drink, and that’s not including additional snacks or special dietary requests like vegetarian options. (OMAROSA MANIGAULT, a former Trump White House aide, recalled on an episode of “Celebrity Big Brother” that she was once billed $23 just for snacking.) For higher-paid White House staffers, covering the occasional cost of an Air Force One meal isn’t too burdensome. But the meal charges are a widespread source of annoyance for many of the younger staffers, especially lower-paid press assistants (also known as “wranglers”) whose jobs require them to frequently travel with the president. There’s no real way to avoid the charge. Staffers don’t know ahead of time what will be served or how much it will cost. And there isn’t a system in place to let aides opt-out of in-flight meal fees and bring their own food. “Sometimes it’s a Philly cheesesteak, which is fine. Other times it’s, like, a filet mignon, which is going to be a little bit more,” said one former press staffer, who learned that meal fees could quickly run into the hundreds of dollars. Days after a flight, the military, which operates Air Force One, sends staffers an invoice totaling up the charges and directing them to a payment portal. Some staffers set up autopay to make things easier. But those who don’t pay immediately will get follow-up emails reminding them, in increasingly stern tones, that traveling on Air Force One is a privilege, not a right — and they had better settle up. The travel-heavy lead-up to the midterms can be particularly pricey for some aides who fly from state to state with little sense of how much each meal will ultimately cost. A second former staffer who frequently traveled on Air Force One said that aides described the midterms as “YOLO mode” for their finances, since there was no avoiding racking up hefty bills while on the road for days at a time. “It didn’t really matter what the cost was going to be, because it was our assignment,” said the former staffer, who estimated that heavy travelers could end up on the hook for roughly $1,000 a year in meals. “It’s really hard to pay off on any junior staffer’s salary.” ARUN CHAUDHARY, who traveled frequently on Air Force One from 2009 to 2011 as President BARACK OBAMA’s videographer, said requiring staff to pay for their meals during work travel was “deeply unfair” and “a bit cruel.” “It’s this huge honor to work at the White House and people know it and they treat you like you should know it. But it’s sad because it takes advantage of young, idealistic people who aren’t going to complain or organize their workplace,” he said. “It also emphasizes this idea that a White House job is like a campaign job. It’s this churn and burn.” Many entry-level staffers said that as part of the onboarding process, White House officials did not fully explain to them that they’d have to account for Air Force One meals in their personal budgets. Meal procedures are outlined in one of the various documents aides received. But many discovered the Air Force One meal tabs only after they were hit with it. “The first couple times it was confusing, because I didn’t ask to go to Ohio,” the first former staffer quipped. “And they’re charging me for the sandwich that I ate.” The second former staffer said that despite the financial pain, the meals were “truly incredible.” “They’re so great. Just wish there was a little more clarity with all of it,” they said. We at West Wing Playbook hope that everyone on today’s Air Force One trip to North Carolina felt like today’s meals (chicken soup, cornbread, southwest caesar salad and strawberry cake for lunch; spinach artichoke dip with chips and veggies for an afternoon snack) were worth the money. MESSAGE US — Are you an AIR FORCE ONE FLIGHT ATTENDANT? We want to hear from you. And we’ll keep you anonymous! Email us at westwingtips@politico.com. Did someone forward this email to you? Subscribe here!
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