Congressional Combine Fleeced America Using $16B In Earmarks To Pass $1.7T Omnibus Bill

 Earmarks allow federal legislators to set aside specific sums of money for local projects in their states or districts. The practice was banned for a decade due to abuse. However, last year and again this year, House Republicans held secret caucus meetings and voted to join Democrats in reinstituting the practice.

The Details

• The top earmarking members were mostly Senate Republicans - seven of the top ten
• In the U.S. Senate, Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Richard Shelby (R-AL) were the Chairman and Ranking Member on the Appropriations Committee, respectively
• Both of them retired at the end of the session-- but not before Shelby earmarked $50 million for the University of Alabama, his alma mater and the site of his announced Senate archive.
• Leahy, too, earmarked a $30 million appropriation for Vermont
• Coburn called earmarks the gateway drug to runaway spending bills

In the Senate, Susan Collins (R-ME) helped bring home $300 million in earmarks to Maine - including $3.5 million for the Irish Heritage Center, $3 million for a community center in Auburn, $2.5m for a police station in Caribou, and nearly $1m for the YMCA in Auburn-Lewiston.

• In the House, things were much the same
• Republicans out earmarked Democrats $450m to $250m, and Democrats $30mil for their districts.

What Kinds of Projects Are Being Funded?

• Earmarks are typically intended to go towards infrastructure projects like building bridges and paving roads, and while some do, there are countless examples of taxpayers' dollars being exploited for pet projects.
• Ten random examples of taxpayer abuse using earmarks in the omnibus bill include:
• $8 million spent on two $4 million earmarks by Rep. Mfume and Sens. Cardin and Van Hoffer.

The American people are the poorer for it.

• OpenTheBooks.com holds government accountable through forensic auditing and open records
• In 2022, they filed 50,000+ FOIA requests and successfully captured $12 trillion government expenditures: nearly all federal spending, 50 state checkbooks, and 25 million public employee salary and pension records

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