Thu, 12 Jan 2006 00:00:44
Abuse of Power
Dave Galanter at Snarkbait blew my mind with this comparison between a 1987 transportation bill and one passed in 2005.
Back in 1987, Ronald Reagan made a big show of using his veto power to strike down a transportation spending bill that had over 150 pork barrel projects attached. Called “earmarks,” these additions to the transportation spending bill were basically projects that couldn’t get funding on their own merits, so they were gobbed onto an important bill that Congress believed Reagan would sign no matter what. He refused. Congress eventually overrode his veto, but he forced them to do that and stood on principle against pork.
Bush, on the other hand, didn’t veto the 2005 transportation spending bill. Anyone remember how many “earmarks” that slab of ham had? Over 6,000. The final bill came at almost $300 billion dollars. The bill Reagan vetoed in 1987--the one he believed spent too much--was “only” $1.4 billion. If we adjust for inflation, that $1.4 billion is $2.3 billion in 2005 dollars. That would mean that the 2005 transportation bill is a real dollar increase over 1987’s bill to the tune of about $293 billion.
That’s the kind of thing they fight revolutions over. If it doesn’t make you angry...you just might be dead.
Posted by JimK at 12:00 AM on January 12, 2006
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