Waking up on a beautiful spring day, I was looking for equally bright news in the media. Instead, I found today’s op-ed in the Washington Post by Colbert King which shows that earmarks know no boundaries. He cites millions of dollars in projects that were included in the District of Columbia’s budget that King says [...]
Filed under: Pork | No Comments »
THe Hill newspaper reports on items stuck into what is supposed to be a WAR bill.
Senate panel approves Iraq war funding bill
A number of Republicans have joined Democrats in pushing to beef up the domestic spending in the supplemental measure, recognizing that the must-pass bill remains one of the few pieces of legislation likely [...]
Filed under: In The News, Pork, Supplemental, Waste | No Comments »
As if complaining about the $5.2 billion in direct subsidy payments to millionaire farmers and $3.8 billion in disaster aid that will ultimately hurt taxpayers and the environment wasn’t enough, at the very last minute Congress added more than $2 billion in earmarks to the Farm Bill.
The complete list is here (Farm Bill Earmarks), but let [...]
Filed under: Farm Bill | No Comments »
Here is a link to the most recent GAO review of weak governance and mismanagement issues that have been dogging one of America’s great cultural institutions, the Smithsonian. Hey, unless you are Hercules, it ain’t easy to muck out the Augean stables in a single day.
Filed under: Pork | No Comments »
Sen. Charles “Chuck” Schumer (D-N.Y.)
Washington Office:
Phone: 202-224-6542
Fax: 202-228-3027
http://schumer.senate.gov/
Email Form
CAGW Names Sen. Charles Schumer Porker of the Month
Filed under: Pork, Porker, Waste | No Comments »
CCAGW Statement Submitted for the Record before the House Armed Services Committee
Committee Mark-Up of H.R. 5658, The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009
May 14, 2008
According to the May 2 Congressional Quarterly, some members of the House Armed Services Committee are considering challenging the Air Force’s $35 billion contract award to Northrop Grumman for its [...]
Filed under: Defense, Earmarks, In The News, Pork | No Comments »
The Hill newspaper reports that the infamous $23 million NDIC earmark, over which 2007 Porker of the Year winner John Murtha threw a temper tantrum and threatened a colleague last year, was removed from this year’s intelligence bill:
Dems, GOP together nix Murtha earmark
Democrats and Republicans joined together to strip a pet project of Rep. John [...]
Filed under: Earmarks, In The News, Pork, Porker, Reform, Victories, Waste | No Comments »
What a sorry excuse for leadership! On Thursday, May 8, 2008, Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minn.), Chairmen of the Senate and House Agriculture Committees respectively, had spent more than an hour revealing their conference agreement on H.R. 2419, the 2008 Farm Bill. Understandably, since they had shepherded this monstrosity to conclusion, [...]
Filed under: Farm Bill, Pork | No Comments »
It’s that time of the year again - time to load up the “Emergency” War Supplemental. The hijinx are in full swing with billions of dollars being diverted from a bill that is supposed to go to the troops in the battlefield:
Roll Call: Supplemental Roils Congress
Despite pressure from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Speaker [...]
Filed under: Appropriations, Defense, Earmarks, In The News, Pork, Supplemental, Waste | No Comments »
Hang onto your wallets, AGAIN. The House passed legislation today, an amendment to H.R. 3221, the Foreclosure Prevention Act, by a vote of 266 to 154, that will bail out irresponsible lenders, speculators, and people that committed fraud for home purchases and are now in financial trouble. Here is a video by Rep. Tom Feeney (R-Florida) who speaks about people — [...]
Filed under: Pork | No Comments »
The Washington Post published an article today about the exposion of earmarks in DC:
D.C. Earmarks
WHEN IT COMES to earmarks, the District of Columbia is making up for lost time. Just five years ago, these questionable appropriations of public funds didn’t occur in the city. Now they are routine. In the past four years, an estimated [...]
Filed under: Earmarks, Pork, Reform | No Comments »
Read this terrrific op ed in today’s WSJ on our nation’s ridiculous, costly, and increasingly incomprehensible attachment to federally-subsidized food-to-fuel schemes and the havoc they are wreaking across the globe:
…All it took was a mere global “food crisis.” Last week chief economist Joseph Glauber of the USDA, which has been among Big Ethanol’s best friends in Washington, blamed biofuels [...]
Filed under: Energy, In The News, Pork, Waste | No Comments »
Wouldn’t you like to take unlimited days off from work while still receiving your full salary? Maybe you should run for Congress! You’d also get a free car and a pay raise every year.
“Um, Yes, Senator Reid, Cough Cough, I’m Sick Again”
Here’s one way to tell who is the least elitist, out-of-touch presidential candidate: Which [...]
Filed under: In The News, Pork, Waste | No Comments »
Isn’t the Internet cool? You get to surf the net to buy things, check sports scores and even read a blog or two. Things seem to be working pretty well, huh? Well, that hasn’t stopped the government from trying to regulate the Internet under the guise of net neutrality. What is net neutrality? According to [...]
Filed under: Regulation, Technology, Telecommunications | 3 Comments »
How much should it cost to restore salmon to a river? Try $22 million per salmon under legislation that is moving through Congress.
The salmon saga began seventy-five years ago, when the state of California decided to divert water from the San Joaquin River and use it for agricultural purposes. Twenty year ago, a lawsuit was [...]
Filed under: In The News, Pork, State Issues, Waste | 1 Comment »
Jeff Birnbaum of the Washington Post has gotten to the bottom of the mysterious 6-page pro-earmark memorandum that was the subject of his column on April 29, 2008.
The author was none other than a lobbyist for a big earmark-seeking firm here in town, W. Roger Gwinn from The Ferguson Group. Jeff writes:
The six-page document, which has [...]
Filed under: Appropriations, Earmarks, In The News, Pork | No Comments »
on this morning’s CNBC Squawk Box, Tom Schatz discussed the $22 million salmon and taxpayer-financed cars for House members.
Filed under: Pork | No Comments »
Will air at 6:35am eastern time on Tuesday, May 6 instead of the regular 6:50am time.
Filed under: Pork | No Comments »
Two press releases for today:
CAGW Commends Decision on Cap of High-Cost Fund for USF
Washington, D.C. - Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today commended the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) for its decision on reform of the Universal Service Fund (USF) and applauded the agency’s efforts to cap the out-of-control subsidies that consumers are financing. …
CCAGW Statement [...]
Filed under: Farm Bill, Pork, Telecommunications, Waste | No Comments »
Outrageous story from WCBSTV-NY
Watch video
On YOUR Dime: Congressmen Lease Luxury Cars
NEW YORK (CBS) ― You may not realize it, but members of the House of Representatives can lease a car and have it paid for by you — the taxpayer. And it’s not just the car, but gas, registration, insurance … the works.
And [...]
Filed under: In The News, Pork, Wastewatcher | 1 Comment »
