http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/earmarks/ en-us Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:48:02 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2418037/posts In the end what gave Harry Reid his 60 Obamacare votes were the secret bribes democratic leadership made to "convince" people from his own party to vote for cloture. The most significant of the "bennies" was the one which convinced Ben Nelson to switch from being pro-life to pro-choice. Nelson managed to win a share of the section of the manager's amendment on Equitable Support for Certain States, which will provide Nebraska, along with Massachusetts and Vermont, support in paying its share of additional costs to Medicaid in the health legislation. Not all of that pork went to members of... The Lid/Human Events http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2418037/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:48:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417825/posts Ford City, Pa. -- Rep. John P. Murtha's record of bringing home money from Washington -- at a current rate of $100 million a year -- has become the envy of Capitol Hill colleagues and a subject of grateful awe in a stretch of Pennsylvania desperate for new jobs. In Congress, Murtha beats everybody in loading legislation with earmarks, federal funds steered to chosen contractors without the usual reviews. But after two decades of Murtha-directed federal investment here, a look at the results shows the congressman's promises of jobs often fall short. In some cases, the federal government has spent... Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417825/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:30:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417117/posts Journalists talk about congressional earmarks in terms of lobbyists' shenanigans, or legislators helping themselves and their pals. But pause for a moment and consider that there are 97 pages listing nearly 1,000 congressional earmarks in the 543-page report by the House-Senate conferees on the $626 billion defense appropriations bill signed by President Obama this month. They cover every category from procurement to operations and maintenance to research and development, with the last group alone spanning more than 77 of those pages. Who is to say what kind of impact these separate transfers of what may be $5 billion will have... The Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417117/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 19:38:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415581/posts Fiscal hawks in Congress say President Barack Obama hasn't followed through on a pledge to lower federal spending on local projects. Earmarks are expected to total nearly $12 billion in fiscal 2010, according to fiscal watchdog groups. While that number is less than the $15 billion total in 2009, lawmakers from both parties said Obama hasn’t kept up the kind of pressure he showed during his first weeks in office or that he promised as a candidate. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) said Obama made earmark reform "a very big part of [his] campaign" but still signed this month two massive... The Hill http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415581/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 02:57:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2415572/posts During the presidential campaign, earmark reform was a major theme for John McCain, who would point out the earmark's requested by other candidates. During the first presidential debate on Sept. 26, 2008, Barack Obama made a brilliant political move when he co-opted John McCain's Earmark Issue. He said he stopped requesting earmarks as a senator and that he shared McCain's desire for earmark reform and the elimination of wasteful projects. Obama replied, "John, nobody is denying that $18 billion is important. And, absolutely, we need earmark reform . And when I'm president, I will go line by line to make... Various/The Lid http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2415572/posts#comment Sun, 27 Dec 2009 02:30:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2414338/posts On January 18, 2007, the Senate Ethics Reform bill was brought to a vote by Sen. Harry Reid. The aforementioned legislation, among other things, requires that Senators who submit earmark requests on a bill be identified as the sponsor of their requests on a publicly accessible congressional website at least 48 hours before the item comes to a vote [Tile V (Sec. 521)]. The bill passed 96 to 2 and was signed into law by President George W. Bush in September of 2007 Sen. John Cornyn cited the aforementioned legislation while discussing the pending health care reform bill in a... The Obama Report http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2414338/posts#comment Thu, 24 Dec 2009 08:16:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414139/posts A tasty drizzle of shinola atop the heaping open-faced crap sandwich that is ObamaCare. Interestingly, while most of the GOP’s amendments today — like the vote on whether the bill is constitutional — were knocked down along party lines, this one earned seven Democratic votes. The seven? Bayh, Feingold, McCaskill, Merkley, Warner, Webb … and Ben Nelson. Note also: The amendment would have applied only to future bills, not to this one, so no one was giving up anything by voting against it except the promise of pork to come. “The American people are disgusted by the earmarks, kickbacks, and... Hotair http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414139/posts#comment Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:22:25 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413843/posts A retired Florida couple would appear an unlikely source to have given $83,000 in campaign donations over a five-year period to members of Congress from all over the country. Both in their 80s, they lived in a $118,000 Daytona Beach house they didn't own; they each voted only twice since 1992; and they seemed to lack the financial means to make the contributions. Yet, both were listed as having given dozens of donations to lawmakers, nearly half of which went to members of the House Appropriations Committee - legislators who were especially important to their then-son-in-law, superlobbyist Paul Magliocchetti, who... Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413843/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 17:17:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412685/posts Politics: Sen. Mary Landrieu was the new "Louisiana Purchase." Sen. Ben Nelson got the federal government to pick up his state's future Medicaid tab. Maybe we should just put Senate votes up on eBay. Nelson, the 60th vote in the middle-of-the-night Senate party line vote on health care reform, will go down in American political history as the inventor of the permanent earmark. His seemingly principled stand against including federal funding for abortion evaporated like the morning dew as he decided to take what was behind door No. 1. The deal for Nelson includes special Medicaid funding for Nebraska, along... Investor's Business Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412685/posts#comment Tue, 22 Dec 2009 02:24:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411972/posts Republicans poring over the bill Democrats released Saturday found this on page 328: “(a) APPROPRIATION.—There are authorized to be appropriated, and there are appropriated to the Department of Health and Human Services, $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, to remain available for obligation until September 30, 2011, to be used for debt service on, or direct construction or renovation of, a health care facility that provides research, inpatient tertiary care, or outpatient clinical services. Such facility shall be affiliated with an academic health center at a public research university in the United States that contains a State’s sole public academic medical... Multiple http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411972/posts#comment Mon, 21 Dec 2009 02:16:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411898/posts Back on November 21st, Senator Mary Landrieu provided the 60th vote for the Senate Democrats to cut off a GOP filibuster and start the debate on a healthcare reform bill. In exchange for that vote, the Democratic leadership offered her a $300 million ‘bribe’ in the form of additional Medicaid benefits for her home state of Louisiana and for other states ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. Now a month later Senator Ben Nelson has announced that he will provide the 60th vote to cut off debate on the healthcare reform bill. In exchange for his vote, the Democratic leadership offered him... Examiner.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411898/posts#comment Sun, 20 Dec 2009 23:26:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409536/posts Business as usual in Washington: So much for "Hope and Change", just control and more debt. During the first presidential debate Senator John McCain and then Senator Barack Obama argued over the earmark issue, and Obama pledged, "Absolutely, we need earmark reform. And when I'm president, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely." Hold your applause please; I'm just getting started! BlogCritics in Politics http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2409536/posts#comment Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:51:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406441/posts One of the favorite talking points that often comes from Fox News detractors is the claim that the News Corp (NASDAQ:NWSA) cable news is somehow an organ of the Republican Party. It's a claim that former White House Communications Director Anita Dunn made, along with countless other accusations from prominent Democrats. However, these Democrats would be doing themselves and their audiences a favor to take notice of two Fox News anchors, "Your World" host Neil Cavuto and the weekend edition of "America's News HQ" co-host, Gregg Jarrett. The two recently challenged two Republican members of Congress, Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa,... NewsBusters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406441/posts#comment Sun, 13 Dec 2009 04:26:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405923/posts WASHINGTON — The federal government must continue to provide grant money to the national community organizing group Acorn, a federal court ruled Friday, saying that the House violated the Constitution when it passed a resolution barring the group from receiving federal dollars. A judge at the United States District Court in Brooklyn issued a preliminary injunction that nullifies the resolution and requires the government to honor existing contracts with the group and review its applications for new grants unless the Obama administration appeals the decision. The court ruled that the resolution amounted to a “bill of attainder,” a legislative determination... The New York Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405923/posts#comment Sat, 12 Dec 2009 03:22:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2404767/posts Jamie Dupree The Omnibus Arrives It's a classic time in Congress, as lawmakers will try in the next few days to jam six budget bills through the House and Senate, so they can quickly issue press releases to take credit for some of the local projects stuffed in there. We already had one Omnibus earlier this year, which wrapped up the leftover budget work from 2008. Now we have a second one, as Democrats have rolled six budget bills into one, totaling $448 billion in government budgets. And yes, there will be a lot of Republican votes for this, because... wsbradio.com/blogs/jamie_dupree http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2404767/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:55:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2390342/posts November 19, 2009 Politics as Usual? A Glenn Beck case study Today's Show Segment Video-6:15 Fox News-Glenn Beck Show http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2390342/posts#comment Fri, 20 Nov 2009 00:58:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2389907/posts Rep. Jeff Flake has drafted a resolution that would condemn defense appropriators for failing to protect the dignity of the House in the wake of a lobbying scandal involving the panel's earmarks. The Arizona Republican says his aim is to alter the behavior of lawmakers responsible for defense appropriations, whose earmarks are often doled out to Pentagon contractors and their lobbyists, who, in turn, contribute money to the lawmakers’ campaigns. He accuses members of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense — Democrats and Republicans alike — of “contracting out” their job to lobbyists. Defense appropriators say that Flake, who does not... Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2389907/posts#comment Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:58:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2379387/posts The Senate approved Tara O’Toole’s nomination as Under Secretary for the Science and Technology Directorate at the Department of Homeland Security via voice vote last night. As we pointed out the day before, this should be of concern to anyone interested in making sure that billions in taxpayer dollars do not get funneled to a bio-security boondoggle brought to you by O’Toole and her close and corrupt ally John Murtha, who is currently under investigation for ethics violations. Under O’Toole’s jurisdiction now falls the decision concerning the Murtha-supported effort to make the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) “the... The Weekly Standard Blog http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2379387/posts#comment Thu, 5 Nov 2009 19:55:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2378832/posts Conservatives who are excited about Republican victories in last night's elections should read this article in the Politico and remember that the GOP has a long way to go before it has any credibility as a small government party. The piece takes a close look at the House select committee on earmark reform, which Republican leaders created among much fanfare after the Nov. 2008 election to combat pork barrel spending projects. Yet the committee still hasn't delivered a report on earmark spending that was supposed to be completed in February, and more tellingly, eight out of the 10 members of... American Spectator http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2378832/posts#comment Thu, 5 Nov 2009 02:10:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2377573/posts Interactive map and links to earmark spending by state. WashingtonWatch.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2377573/posts#comment Tue, 3 Nov 2009 18:35:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2373085/posts "Recall that Alan Mollohan (D-WV) is a former chair of the House Ethics Committee. That's the same Mollohan under federal investigation after the National Legal and Policy Center filed a complaint with the department regarding a bizarre increase in Mollohan's net worth. For 2005, Mollohan and his wife reported assets worth $6.8 million to $25.7 million, up from $116,000 to $315,000 in 1999. His financial disclosure restatements came only after the group's complaint." --Doug Ross, Draining the Swamp NOTE: If the reader is a resident of WV-1 and feels moved to contact Alan Mollohan's office, contact information is provided throughout... DBKP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2373085/posts#comment Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:23:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2371000/posts When software firm MobilVox wanted to break into the lucrative world of defense contracting, it pursued an unmistakable strategy: It expanded operations from its Northern Virginia base in Rep. James P. Moran's congressional district to the southwestern Pennsylvania district of Rep. John P. Murtha. Working with two of the most powerful members of a House subcommittee that controls Pentagon spending, the company also hired lobbying firms that employed former top aides of both the Democratic lawmakers and Mr. Murtha's brother. Company executives and their lobbyists donated thousands of dollars to the two congressmen. Soon, money flowed the other way. Between... The Bulletin http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2371000/posts#comment Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:10:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2371135/posts For years, Tom Coburn’s lectures on spending have been met with aggressive resistance by fellow Republicans who defend their right to send money back to their home states. But at a closed-door meeting of GOP senators this month, a tirade by the Oklahoman about the hypocrisy of using deficits to decry Democratic health care plans while voting for pumped-up appropriations bills was seconded by several senators. If there was dissent in the room, no one voiced it. “I don’t know that there’s another side,” said Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), who argues that Republican rhetoric on deficits is right but the... Politico http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2371135/posts#comment Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:06:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2370985/posts It takes a while for most start-up companies to gain the confidence of a U.S. congressman and the promise of federal funds. But last year, a small Illinois company accomplished its goal in 16 days with the help of Rep. Peter J. Visclosky, a little-known Indiana Democrat who sits on the House committee that funds the Pentagon. In rapid succession, the three-employee technology firm, NanoSonix, filed its incorporation papers in Skokie, Ill., and hired a Washington lobbying firm, K&L Gates, which boasted to clients of its close relationship with Visclosky. A week later, Visclosky wrote a letter of support for... Washington Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2370985/posts#comment Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:45:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2370965/posts The House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee dispensed $636 billion this year to the Pentagon. Its members must look on the $103 million they earmarked for favored projects as mere crumbs from the table. Outside the defense budget, however, $100 million a year is a tidy sum, and getting a piece of the action is a regular part of Washington's political culture. At the center is a mutually beneficial connection between members of Congress, their former staff members turned lobbyists, and corporations or non-profits seeking federal money -- what some social scientists call "relationship circles." In this instance, it's better described as... Charleston Post and Courier http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2370965/posts#comment Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:15:33 GMT