Earmarks investigation aside, Obama still king of the hill
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:48PM 
The Washington Post investigated earmarks requested by current members of Congress, and a number of those earmarks raise serious questions about ethics—not in the sense of official ‘ethics,’ but real ones, the kind that resonate with Main Street. What many people may have forgotten: President Barack Obama’s astronomical earmarks during his brief time as a junior senator from Illinois.
Current members of Congress have admittedly directed US taxpayer dollars to questionable projects. Among them:
─A parking garage with a bus and taxi facility in a West Virginia town.
─Millions to companies that their children or relatives work for.
─A bike path in Michigan—a local project clearly not appropriate for federal dollars.
Democrats appear to have a particular fondness for earmarking tax dollars for projects or companies their kids, spouses or other relatives work for. Most Republicans on the list had a penchant for infrastructure projects—those aren’t quite as troubling if the money went for major roadways, but not all of them did.
The most questionable earmark on the Washington Post's list was requested by Florida Rep. Corrine Brown (D). WaPo said:
“Between 2005 and 2010, Brown helped secure $21.9 million for six clients of a lobbying firm where her daughter works. The clients paid the firm more than $1 million to represent them before Congress. Brown was the sole sponsor of $1.79 million in earmarks sent to a seventh client, the Community Rehabilitation Center, while her daughter worked as a lobbyist on behalf of the center, the Florida Times-Union reported in 2010.”
If this isn’t illegal, it certainly should be.
Obama’s earmarks were frankly far worse than most on the list. For instance in 2008, he directed almost $1 million to the La Raza Hope Fund, almost half a million dollars to one Illinois County for radio equipment and approximately $1 million to his wife’s employer. These are benign samples—full lists are posted on Obama’s own website and on Legistorm.
Obama and other legislators—mostly Dems but also some Republicans—poured $23 million dollars into a sinkhole called the National Writing Project. Here’s a description of the purpose:
“National Writing Project, a nonprofit organization that supports and promotes K-16 teacher training programs in the effective teaching of writing.”
Most rational people consider the teaching of writing a standard part of curriculum. This earmark benefited educational entrepreneurs and cronies in my opinion.
One problem with earmarks is lack of disclosure to the public. A congressman can query the Ethics Committee and if he gets the go-ahead, which is normally the case, that’s all he needs to do before sending the pork back home to benefit lobbyists, relatives, donors and anyone else he wants to schmooze.
A reporter for The Washington Post told Fox News on Wednesday that the ethics rules are “permissive.” There’s an understatement if a human ever uttered one.
The list produced by the newspaper is very troubling, but even a brief glance at the president’s track record shows when it comes to earmarks, he’s still king of the hill. Or at least one of the kings.
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) was named Porker of the Year, 2010, by Citizens Against Government Waste. The watchdog group is in the process of selecting a champion porker for 2011; there’s an overview of the top pork contenders at the CAGW website. Among them is cabinet member Steven Chu, Obama's Energy secretary.
CAGW is urging Congress to make the earmark moratorium permanent; that effort has been led by Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.)
The only answer to the problem is a permanent ban on earmarks unless they are directed towards a bona fide national emergency.
When lawmakers talk about cutting spending, they usually target Main Street programs self-funded by taxpayers—like Medicare for instance. It’s time they looked at pet projects and started cutting those. How many earmarks are perpetual? Does anyone even know?
Republican Rep. Jeff Flake (Ariz.) said in 2009 that earmarks are nothing but “circular fundraising.” That’s the most ethical definition I’ve come across to date.
(Commentary by Kay B. Day/Feb. 8, 2012)
Help The US Report do a little non-circular fundraising by making a donation via PayPal (see sidebar) or by purchasing a recommended book from our 'Books and Sundries' page.