Hotel CEOs bite back at anti-travel talk

By Bill Rigby

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Political outrage over the use of public money on corporate perks is scaring many companies away from legitimate travel spending and could -- if unchecked -- cost thousands of jobs in the U.S. hospitality industry, according to hotel, casino and airline leaders.

Attempts to paint all travel to convention centers like Las Vegas as boondoggles will hurt, not help, the economy and delay recovery, travel chiefs told the Reuters Travel and Leisure Summit in New York this week.

"It's a real disservice to the U.S. travel industry and the global travel industry," Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Expedia Inc (EXPE.O), the U.S. No. 1 online travel agent, told the summit on Tuesday.

"There has been this demonization of corporate travel and group travel which really threatens to fundamentally hurt the infrastructure of travel. We hope that the rhetoric lessens because it is absolutely hurting the business."

Dozens of struggling U.S. companies, from financial titans American International Group Inc (AIG.N) and Citigroup Inc (C.N) to automaker General Motors Corp GM.N, have received government loans or other support in the past few months.

Politicians, sensing a backlash against corporate greed and folly, have jumped at the chance to police the spending of these companies, after public funds ensured their survival.

"You can't take a trip to Las Vegas or down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayers' dime," President Barack Obama famously said in February.

High-profile companies are now wary of attracting attention with flashy trips. Wells Fargo & Co (WFC.N), which received $25 billion from the government bailout program, had a plan to send 40 insurance employees to a Las Vegas conference for several days but decided against it to avoid a public outcry.