UPDATE AT END OF POST: Hannity and Bolling issue comment.
The Obama administration announced Tuesday that it's canceling public tours of the White House beginning this weekend due to budget sequestration.
On Thursday, Fox News hosts Eric Bolling and Sean Hannity each offered to pay for one week's worth of tours to keep the White House open to the public.
It all began Thursday when Bolling told his Facebook followers that he had a big announcement that he was going to make on the program he co-hosts called The Five adding, "Mr President I will pick up the tab if you reopen White House for tours. Shouldn't the people's house be open?"
The Five later aired footage of Iowa school children whose White House tour had been cancelled saying, "The White House is our house. Please let us visit."
As Talking Points Memo reported Thursday, Bolling then said:
"Make you a deal. Jay Carney, grab a pencil. Let the families take the White House tours next week and I'll cover the added expenses. The word is it'll cost around $74,000. If I can get the White House doors open, I will pick up the tab. Mr. Carney, you know this is an offer you can't refuse. Give me a call."
Earlier in the day, Hannity responded to Bolling's Facebook announcement with a tweet:
. @ericbolling great idea! Count me in, I will pay for a week also!dailycaller.com/2013/03/07/fox…
— Sean Hannity (@seanhannity) March 7, 2013
Let's see whether or not the White House accepts.
Stay tuned.
*****Update: Hannity issued a comment via email:
President Panic said last week that the sequester would result in him having to cut money from either "poor children" or "disabled children." Then on the weekend of the sequester he decided to give 9-11 truther, a man who refers to the Israelis as " descendants of apes and pigs," and the former head of the Muslim Brotherhood, Muhammad Morsi 250 million dollars, part of the 1.5 billion he has committed to this radical lunatic.
So as a result the President closed down the "people's house."
When I heard my friend and colleague Eric Bolling offer to pay to keep the WH open for a week, I wanted to support his effort so children would not be victimized by the President's reckless and irresponsible spending choices. I applaud Eric for his generosity towards the children who are innocent victims of the President's decision to inflict the maximum pain on the American people to make a cheap political point.
*****Update II: Bolling issued a comment via email:
I was inspired by the 16 6th graders from Iowa who asked the President to “Please don’t cancel the WH tours”.. because they were on their way to DC for the tour! I realized how many thousands of kids were going to be hurt by the petty political maneuver from the Administration. I hope they reconsider or at the very least let me get the money to open the WH.
(HT Mediaite)
