"""White House cancels Obama's African safari after plans are revealed to include a military SNIPER team 'to take out lions and cheetahs if they threaten first couple"""
By David Martosko In Washington
"""President and Mrs. Obama are planning a trip to sub-Saharan Africa later in the month, but the White House has scotched a plan to include a Tanzanian safari on the agenda after a reporter revealed that a team of snipers with high-powered military assault rifles would accompany him in the wild.
The Washington Post reported Thursday afternoon that the itinerary's dangers 'would have required the president’s special counterassault team to carry sniper rifles with high-caliber rounds that could neutralize cheetahs, lions or other animals if they became a threat.'
The newspaper based its report on a confidential planning document leaked from someone in the administration.
'But the White House canceled the safari Wednesday,' the report continued, 'after inquiries from The Post about the trip’s purpose and expense, according to a person familiar with the decision.'
'Mr. Obama shouldn’t need special counter-assault teams to neutralize threats,' Second Amendment Foundation founder Alan Gottlieb told MailOnline. 'He’s got the IRS for that, doesn’t he?'
'Oh, that’s right,' he noted with tongue in cheek: 'Lions, cheetahs and other animals aren’t conservative taxpayers.'
The Obama White House has attracted criticism from both sides of the political aisle for an IRS program that targeted right-wing advocacy groups for special scrutiny based on the presence of words like 'patriot' or 'tea party' in their names.
Michelle, Sasha and Malia Obama went on Safari during a June 2011 goodwill trip to Africa. They rode through the savannahs in an open-air vehicle with standard Secret Service protection.
That trip, according to news reports, cost about $800,000.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment."""
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