Give back the Pork

There is a movement among some Republicans and some Democrats to give back some of the money used for pork-barrel politics in their home districts and divert the funds to hurricane relief. There is the $24M 'bridge to nowhere' in Alaska, the 'rainforest project' in Iowa (both championed by Republicans) as well as a host of other taxpayer waste all over the country. The move would save $24 billion dollars, not exactly chump change. But who opposes this? The Republican leadership, like the ethically-challenged Tom DeLay. He says it isn't a good idea because the money that goes to his district goes to create jobs. (And don't forget $3M to promote 'core values' through golf). If he cares about jobs, why doesn't he fund job-retraining programs that would help to 'teach a man to fish'. Instead, the Republican leadership shows the true nature of our political process, that pork barrel projects are used to buy votes.