Senate Overwhelmingly Defeats Effort to Cut Pork Projects

Rudey · #1 10-26-2005, 10:47 AM

U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn last Thursday offered what seemed to us to be very modest, common-sense amendments to restrain federal spending. The first would have killed three of the more than 6,000 pork projects in the recent $295 billion transportation bill – an animal facility in Rhode Island ($200,000), a sculpture park in Seattle ($500,000), and a parking facility in Nebraska ($950,000.) Sen. Coburn’s second amendment would have transferred funding for two bridges in Alaska, including Sen. Ted Stevens’ infamous $223 million “Bridge to Nowhere,” and instead used the money to repair a bridge in Louisiana that was damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

Seems reasonable, right? With all the talk in Washington about how spending needs to finally be restrained, you might think these two amendments would have a lot of support. But you’d be wrong. Sen. Coburn’s first amendment was defeated 86-13 and his second was defeated 82-15 – after Sen. Stevens threatened on the Senate floor to resign from the body if the amendment were to be approved.

While this is obviously not a good sign for fiscal conservatives who want to see pork-barrel spending curtailed, we at Americans for Prosperity salute the 13 brave souls – 12 Republicans and one Democrat -- who truly took a stand for the taxpayers on Thursday evening by supporting the first Coburn amendment: George Allen (Va.), Richard Burr (NC), Tom Coburn (Okla.), Jim DeMint (SC), John Ensign (Nev.), Russ Feingold (Wis.), Lindsey Graham (SC), Chuck Hagel (Neb.), Jon Kyl (Ariz.), John McCain (Ariz.), Jeff Sessions (Ala.), John Sununu (NH) and Jim Talent (Mo.)

-Rudey

honeychile · #2 10-26-2005, 10:59 AM

Oh, heavens! We really need a "sculpture park"!

I know that the movie "Dave" was serious fiction, but I would so love to see something like his budgeting skills used. WE all have to cut back - but for a "sculpture park"?!?!? That's just insulting our intelligence.

Kevin · #3 10-26-2005, 11:02 AM

I was a little worried about Coburn because of his social issues -- he's a bit to the right of Atilla the Hun. So far as this debate goes, however, he's making me proud.

Kind of a Mr. Smith Goes to Washington motif thus far. I like it.

GeekyPenguin · #4 10-26-2005, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by honeychile
Oh, heavens! We really need a "sculpture park"!

I know that the movie "Dave" was serious fiction, but I would so love to see something like his budgeting skills used. WE all have to cut back - but for a "sculpture park"?!?!? That's just insulting our intelligence.

The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is actually a wonderful place to go that's very popular in the Twin Cities.

http://garden.walkerart.org/index.wac

honeychile · #5 10-26-2005, 12:25 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by GeekyPenguin
The Minneapolis Sculpture Garden is actually a wonderful place to go that's very popular in the Twin Cities.

http://garden.walkerart.org/index.wac

I'm sure it's beautiful; I'm just in a Scrooge mood when it comes to federal spending. I know that a lot of people absolutely love the FDR monument, but he had implicitly said that he wanted no monument to him that was bigger than the top of his desk.

We have so many things to take care of before we fund sculpture gardens and such - IMHO, at least.

GeekyPenguin · #6 10-26-2005, 12:30 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by honeychile
I'm sure it's beautiful; I'm just in a Scrooge mood when it comes to federal spending. I know that a lot of people absolutely love the FDR monument, but he had implicitly said that he wanted no monument to him that was bigger than the top of his desk.

We have so many things to take care of before we fund sculpture gardens and such - IMHO, at least.

I don't disagree with that - but the Sculpture Garden here is awesome. However, I also don't think it was federally funded. I think a Sculpture Garden is a lot more practical than that stupidass bridge in Alaska.

Tom Earp · #7 10-26-2005, 04:51 PM

"PORK BARREL" is everyway for some Dilitante Congress Man to show His "FOLKS" back Home, See, This is what I did for You!

Does it matter that it is good for the Country, F**K NO!

There is No Mr. Smith anymore

It is all Mr/Mrs Money Bags!

Hell, If I had the Money I would run as My Small Business is going down the Toilet from Situations totally out of My Control!

The Incumbent gets the big Lobby Dollars and The everyday Rubes gets it in The Rear!

Vote against every incumbent and get a new one in. It does take a while for Him to become a Crook!

Eddie Murphy Movie depicted it great!

hoosier · #8 10-26-2005, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Tom Earp

The Incumbent gets the big Lobby Dollars and The everyday Rubes gets it in The Rear!

Vote against every incumbent and get a new one in. It does take a while for Him to become a Crook!

Of the 435 or so members of the House of Rep., about 30 are expected to have serious and well-funded challengers in 2006.

Same thing goes in the Senate.

There is little hope for change.

AGDee · #9 10-26-2005, 11:01 PM

That transportation bill includes a bridge to go over (or under) a railroad track that is a half mile from my house and if that gets axed, I'm going to be an angry tax payer! Those tracks cut off the fire station and hospital from the rest of the city and I have waited as long as 35 minutes for trains at that spot. It has become a huge safety issue. I saw an ambulance pull around all of us who were waiting for the train and wait in the left lanes for 20 minutes the other day. When the train finally finished, it couldn't get through the cars that were on the other side waiting to cross. I said a prayer for the person in that ambulance and thanked the Lord that it wasn't me.

We need our bridge, please.

Dee

ETA: Both the city and owners of the railroad tracks are paying 1/3 of the cost too, so we're only asking for 1/3 from the fed budget.

DeltAlum · #10 10-26-2005, 11:36 PM

Dee,

I agree that those things are maddening, frustrating and dangerous.

I don't think that would be considered "pork."

I hope the project is funded and completed in a timely manner.

hoosier · #11 10-27-2005, 01:18 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by AGDee
That transportation bill includes a bridge to go over (or under) a railroad track that is a half mile from my house and if that gets axed, I'm going to be an angry tax payer! Those tracks cut off the fire station and hospital from the rest of the city and I have waited as long as 35 minutes for trains at that spot. It has become a huge safety issue. I saw an ambulance pull around all of us who were waiting for the train and wait in the left lanes for 20 minutes the other day. When the train finally finished, it couldn't get through the cars that were on the other side waiting to cross. I said a prayer for the person in that ambulance and thanked the Lord that it wasn't me.

We need our bridge, please.

Dee

ETA: Both the city and owners of the railroad tracks are paying 1/3 of the cost too, so we're only asking for 1/3 from the fed budget.

Worthy projects in every state should be funded, since the money comes from gas taxes paid by drivers in every state. Projects supported by local contributions (1/3 local, 1/3 railroad) should get extra consideration. Contrarily, the famous Alaskan bridge to nowhere has no local financial support, and Alaska is not a big contributor to the pool of gas tax money.

Every state's projects shold be ranked, and the worthiest funded when $$$ are available.

"Pork" gets involved when Senators and Reps specificly insert projects in their districts into the federal budget, without any ranking by worthiness or need. It's an elected official picking a project to help his re-election campaign.

My highway/bridge contractor brother-in-law always teased me about all the highway and bridge money Georgia got when Carter was president, and there was a lot spent around here before the Olympics.

Unfortunately, Bush and the Republicans seem to be outspending the records set by Clinton and the Dems - including in GA.

AGDee · #12 10-27-2005, 06:30 AM

Our community certainly doesn't see it as pork and this bill was followed carefully in our local newspaper. But, once people start making deals and slashing things, you just never know what might happen. I'm definitely tired of the pork spending, the bridge to nowhere, etc. Our previous governor took funds that were supposed to fix metro Detroit highways and instead built roads in our Upper Peninsula, where his voting base was, but not where the majority of the population of Michigan is. Now they are desperately trying to fix up the highways before the Super Bowl so ALL the interstates are undergoing construction and some are still going to be a mess.. oy!