Porky

Earmarks. We have all heard that word. We all know what it means. Earmarks are a form of government spending that has come under scrutiny in recent time. They used to be called pork barrel spending, but that name conjured visions of $500 hammers and $2,000 toilet seats. So Congressional leaders felt that they had to change the name, so along comes the term earmarks. Then that term acquires an ill reputation, rightly so I might add. Then Congress in its almighty wisdom changes the term that they use once more, this time to the innocuous name discretionary spending. By any name it is still pork barrel spending and it is bad business for a government to use this system. Some consider it a form of bribery, I know that I do. I see it as a way for Congressman to bribe their constituents to vote for them. They will be on the campaign trail tooting their own horn by saying that they got such and such money to do such and such project and that if they vote for him again he will get them more. This happens over and over again until it becomes a vicious never ending cycle. Bruce Braley of Iowa’s 1^st Congressional District is just one of those Congressman that takes part in this bribery system. In his 2007 congressional freshman class Mr. Braley ranks 7^th with $10.5 millions dollars in earmarks. Mr. Braley has even been quoted as saying that he is proud of his earmark appropriations. This man should be ashamed of himself, that money came from hardworking Americans who expect their government to spend that money wisely. Apparently that little nugget of information is lost to Bruce “Bacon” Braley. Mr. Braley just because Iowans like their pork, that doesn’t mean that they like it in their government.

http://www.qctimes.com/articles/2008/01/12/news/local/doc4788479f779c3986819950.txt

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-12-11-earmarks-inside_N.htm