Yesterday, Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman suggested that the VA sell a hotel it apparently has in Paris in order to pay for a new VA hospital in Aurora. To that we say, since when does the VA have a hospital in Paris? Then, we heard it was a five-star hotel.
Why does the VA own a five-star hotel in Paris? It’s called Pershing Hall. Here is a description of the hotel from the website:
Pershing Hall is situated at the heart of the golden triangle between the Champs Elysées, Avenue Montaigne and Avenue George V, a centre of business and international finance just a few steps from the luxury boutiques and the trendy clubs which have forged the reputation of one of the most beautiful avenues in Paris.
The rooms start at $440 per night according to Booking.com. According to the VA, the hotel could net the embattled agency upwards of $30 million, certainly not chump change. In addition to the $30 million netted from the sale of the hotel, Coffman proposed the VA reallocate to the hospital the $360 million it spends on clearly not deserved bonuses.
Coffman was right when he said, “The VA needs to make hard decisions to fund their mismanagement, and selling a five-star foreign hotel is a great place to start.”
Fortunately, it looks like today Coffman has secured $150 million in funding through the House, so the five star boutique hotel may be spared. But, we say the VA should probably get out of the landlord business anyway since it clearly cannot manage the property dedicated to fulfilling its mission.
When I used to fly to Paris, we would have breakfast at the American Legion and that is now the hotel discussed in this post. The American Legion building was torn down and replaced by this hotel.