10 pens to sign 1 document
In the “everyone should cut back except the federal government” file, President B. Hussein Obama routinely uses an entire box of engraved pens to sign legislation. To be fair, this is a pretty routine thing to do.
It’s a tradition where the pens are distributed to members of congress or other special interests where the President feels a little kissing ass is due. There’s even an underground black market for the pens where costs are based on who used them and for what legislation. High Value presidents who used them for Groundbreaking legislation fetch the highest price.
In my investigation I was unable to get a clear answer as to whether the pens are donated to the federal government or whether the pens are purchased. Either way, at a time when every American is feeling the pinch of the dollar, it doesn’t look good for the President to appear wasteful.
For the President to use 10 pens to sign 1 document- reveals a lot about the man. Is the President out of touch with the people?
Michael E. – Author; Conservative blogger - Comments on Politics, the Economy, Congress & the President. Fighting the Liberal Freaks, Michael E. is saving America one blog at a time. 
So? what’s wrong with that?? how many pens do you have at home? using 10 pens at a time, does not mean wasting them. he will keep using them till they are consumed. I guess you just want to have a story to talk about. before you criticize the president go criticize yourself first
Sam, thanks for commenting.
I think your a bit misguided though. The President doesn’t keep using these pens until they are gone. The document requires he sign it in 10 places. Each time he signs one page, he uses a different pen. After each pen is used once, it is given away to someone as a gift. That person gets braging rights that they own a pen used by the President to sign legislation. Sometimes, the pens are later sold for profit on a black market. Regardless, the pens are another way to suck up to those who put him in power.
Each box of pens are especially made for the President. They contain the great seal of the united states and are engraved with the presidents initials. I can not confirm that the pens are gold or not, although I can’t imagine going to all that effort, putting them in a custom – felt ligned box and then not using gold. Even if they were just a regular old ‘cross’ pens like you would get at a decent jewelry store they would cost at least $40.00 each or $400 for the box (an unbelievably conservative figure). The point of this entire article is to illustrate that our government can not help themselves when it comes to wasting our money. They consider themselves immune from having to cut back, like the rest of us.
As for my own pens, since you asked, I currently have 6 pens on my desk at this time. I have Two “Papermate”s; Two are “Pentel – Sign” pens; One magnetic levitation pen (a gift from my son); and in my organizer I have one ‘Gold’ engraved pen, given to me by my wife. All of which I will actually use until empty (unlike the President). For the ones that I purchased, I buy them by the box so I paid approximately $0.30 / each (and I didn’t ask you to pay for any of them, did I?)
I do have a suggestion. How about if you write a check to the President for $400.00 every time he signs legislation. Then I won’t have to worry about my taxes paying for them.
As a side note – In case you were wondering, President Bush used a $0.30 sharpie to sign his documents.
Again, Thanks for your comments.
The norm? Yes. Wasteful? Yes but nothing considering the rest of the money they waste. Every administration. If I ran my budget the way they do I would be living in a cardboard box. Just getting rid of the waste that is common sense would make a big difference but I doubt it will ever happen.
Can you see? These pens are not gold and as a government employee i can assure you that they are not gold, they are plastic and for you to suggest that they are is just another conservative stretch of the truth. And to be clear, George Bush did not use shapie’s and used, depending on the bill, just as many pens!
For the new Health Enslavement Bill – Mr. Obama DOUBLED the use of the pens. This time he used 20 pens.
Given his philosophy of DOUBLING every other spending program – should we even be surprised?
BTW – We have now confirmed that the cost of the pens comes in at $120 / box. Not a great sum of money, but cost is really not the point. It’s waste.