Re: McCain pontificates, but what has he actually done about earmarks?
- From: "Jerry Okamura" <okamuraj005@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 29 Feb 2008 07:53:30 -1000
Bush will soon be out of office. So, he has complained about earmarks and has not done a whole lot to stop the practice, though I do not know how anyone can stop these representatives from doing what they want to do. We are now in the midst of determing who should be our next President. If we are concerned about the issue, as you seem to imply you are, then you should know what the candidates for the Presidency are going to do about stopping this practice. What has McCain, Clinton or Obama proposed that gives you any hope that when one of them becomes the President, that they have a plan to stop this practice?
Do you have some idea of how we can stop this practice, that is if you are truly concerned about what Congress does?
"Islander" <nospam@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:h_qdnc5X14sGoVranZ2dnUVZ_oOnnZ2d@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/01/28/sotu-federal-earmarks-have-exploded-under-bush-and-gop-led-congress/
SOTU: Federal Earmarks Have Exploded Under Bush And GOP-Led Congress
Bush said: “The people’s trust in their Government is undermined by congressional earmarks — special interest projects that are often snuck in at the last minute, without discussion or debate.”
FACT — BUSH HAS ENGAGED IN HIS OWN EARMARKING: In 2007, Bush stuffed approximately 580 earmarks worth $15.6 billion into his appropriation request for military construction and veterans affairs. Bush’s earmarks included $24 million for the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program and “$8.9 million for the Points of Light foundation, a pet project started by his father, former President George H.W. Bush.” [Washington Examiner, 11/15/07]
FACT — BUSH HAS REPEATEDLY SIGNED PORK-LADEN BILLS INTO LAW: According to the Congressional Research Service, there were 997 earmarks in the Fiscal 2000 defense appropriation bill. By the Fiscal 2005 law that Bush signed into law, there were 2506 earmarks, “more than two and half times the number contained the Fiscal 2000 bill.” In the bill funding the departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education, the number of earmarks grew from 291 in 2000 to 3,014 in 2005. [Lilly, 1/28/08]
FACT — EARMARKS EXPLODED UNDER THE GOP-CONTROLLED CONGRESS: When Republicans took over Congress in 1994, there were 4,000 earmarks on appropriations bills. At the end of the 109th Congress in 2005, there were 15,000. [Washington Post, 1/25/06; The Gavel, 1/28/08]
FACT — CURRENT 110TH CONGRESS HAS CUT EARMARKS IN HALF: “As promised when they took control of Congress,” in 2007, “House Democratic leaders cut in half from last year the value of earmarks in the bill, as they did in the other 11 agency spending measures.” [New York Times, 11/4/07]
Meanwhile, the few times that McCain showed up to do his job in Congress this year, he advanced the following bills:
S.85 : A bill to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to clarify that territories and Indian tribes are eligible to receive grants for confronting the use of methamphetamine.
S.86 : A bill to designate segments of Fossil Creek, a tributary to the Verde River in the State of Arizona, as wild and scenic rivers.
S.327 : A bill to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special resource study of sites associated with the life of Cesar Estrada Chavez and the farm labor movement.
S.531 : A bill to repeal section 10(f) of Public Law 93-531, commonly known as the "Bennett Freeze". (Note that this is about the eviction of Navajo Indians from Hopi lands.)
S.722 : A bill to direct the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture to jointly conduct a study of certain land adjacent to the Walnut Canyon National Monument in the State of Arizona.
S.952 : A bill to amend the Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental and Native American Public Policy Act of 1992 to provide funds for training in tribal leadership, management, and policy, and for other purposes.
S.1255 : A bill to protect Indian arts and crafts through the improvement of applicable criminal proceedings, and for other purposes.
S.1304 : A bill to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Arizona National Scenic Trail.
Out of 37 bills introduced by McCain last year, 8 were to use federal money to support Indian issues in Arizona. It appears that Abramhoff has cohorts who are working with the Arizona Senator!
Now, I'm not opposed to helping minorities and, goodness knows that the Indians have gotten the short end of the stick for a long time. But, it doesn't stop there:
http://thinkprogress.org/2008/01/06/mccain-earmark/
In a Fox News GOP forum, McCain said to Chris Wallace:
"And I’m proud to tell you, Chris, in 24 years as a member of Congress, I have never asked for nor received a single earmark or pork barrel project for my state and I guarantee you I’ll veto those bills. I’ll ask for the line item veto and I’ll veto them and I’ll make the authors of them famous."
But...
McCain’s claim is false. In 2006, the senator teamed up with fellow Arizona senator Jon Kyl (R) to funnel $10 million toward the University of Arizona for an academic center named after the late Supreme Court Justice William Rehnquist. Even Arizona lawmaker, Rep. Jeff Flake (R), said he was planning to “lean against the measure.” The National Taxpayers Union, another traditional McCain ally, questioned why the senator was making federal taxpayers foot the bill for the center.
In 2003, McCain also slipped $14.3 million into a defense appropriations bill to create a buffer zone around Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. As Roll Call reported in 2003, this project violated McCain’s own anti-pork rhetoric:
The only problem is the project to acquire more land near the base was not requested by President Bush or fully authorized by the Senate Armed Services Committee - two of McCain’s criteria for identifying so-called ‘pork.
-------------------------------
McCain is not only full of talk and little action, but he appears to be speaking out of both sides of his mouth.
Actions speak louder than words...
.
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