Palin’s Pork Problem
“I’ve championed reform to end the abuses of earmark spending by Congress.” – Gov. Sarah Palin on August 29, 2008, in her first speech as McCain’s vice presidential pick
Sarah Palin might not be the kind of reformer that the McCain campaign has claimed. We’ve already learned that her claims of opposing the infamous “Bridge to Nowhere” weren’t entirely true. And as today’s Los Angeles Times reports, Palin’s pursuit of pork-barrel spending has been criticized in the past by McCain himself:
Three times in recent years, McCain’s catalogs of “objectionable” spending have included earmarks for this small Alaska town [of Wasilla], requested by its mayor at the time – Sarah Palin.
The Times reveals that from 2000 to 2003, Palin’s town of Wasilla received $11.9 million in earmarks, including:
• A $500,000 earmark for a public transportation project
• $1 million in a 2002 spending bill for an emergency communications center in town – one that local law enforcement has said is redundant and creates confusion
• $450,000 set aside for an agricultural processing facility in Wasilla that was requested during Palin’s tenure as mayor and cleared Congress soon after she left office in 2002
Nevertheless, the McCain camp claims that Palin’s pursuit of earmarks actually makes her the perfect person to stop them:
Taylor Griffin, a McCain campaign spokesman, said that when Palin became mayor in 1996, “she faced a system that was broken. Small towns like Wasilla in Alaska depended on earmarks to take care of basic needs. . . . That was something that Gov. Palin was alarmed about and was one of the formative experiences that led her toward the reform-oriented stance that she has taken as her career has progressed.”
Palin, he said, was “disgusted” that small towns like hers were dependent on earmarks.
Yet Palin’s “disgust” at earmarks isn’t reflected in her actions as governor:
This year she submitted to Congress a list of Alaska projects worth $197.8 million, including $2 million to research crab productivity in the Bering Sea and $7.4 million to improve runway lighting at eight Alaska airports.
As the AP reports, the $197.8 million breaks down to about $295 in pork per person in Alaska – over eight times more than the national average of $34 per person.
Ja, das is korrekt….das frau ist ein schwein (oink,oink)! Pork ist ein oter vite meet,ja?
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:18 pm
Not to worry, I’m sure they will find some way to blame this all on the media, too.
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:26 pm
Wow, she redistributed 197.8 million dollars worth of other people’s wealth! This is going to be bad news to so many on the right who will surely see this as socialism.
Now that the anti-socialists know this, they won’t be able to support her anymore. I guess they will all vote for Ron Paul.
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:47 pm
WOw Obsessed with Sarah aren’t you alan! At least the last couplte or articleas actually have to do with politics and not her birthing decisions…. Phew… good to see your making a little progress.
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Hey Furry,
Actually Joel posted that, not Alan. And Alan made 1 post on her kooky decision to fly around in airplanes when she was practically ready to deliver. Then a few posts on the insane, over the top, unfair criticism of things he never said.
But yea, there are many, many, many reasons to not want this radical right person a heartbeat away from being president.
September 3rd, 2008 at 8:59 pm
Just think she will have a lot of time to go to Mommie and Me playdates with Bristol and Levi, after she helps McCain lose this election.
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:07 pm
Alan – You are SO weak!!!! How does it feel to owe your career to a Conservative like Sean?!!!!
I love it! You libby Demwits are so silly!
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:38 pm
C. Moore,
Your ad hominem attack on Alan is apropos of nothing. At least attack Alan in one of his own threads, pick on Joel in this one.
Or, maybe you could actually state why you think these earmarks, redistributing our money into some questionable activities, are not important to discuss?
September 3rd, 2008 at 9:44 pm
I’m just not interested today, especially since her speech means nothing to me.
September 3rd, 2008 at 10:36 pm
WOW THE U.S.S. PALIN HAS LANDED AND HER FIRST ASSAULT WAS A DIRECT HIT!
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:26 pm
“Alan – You are SO weak!!!! How does it feel to owe your career to a Conservative like Sean?!!!!”
Well actually Sean wouldn’t be much of anywhere without someone to feed off and attack, because he’s really not much of an original thinker. He dropped out of New York U and got an honorary degree from Jerry Falwell. Not bad for a Roman Catholic, I guess.
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:35 pm
Wow! Sarah Palin! I can’t believe that there is a posiblility to get a woman of such great character to be our Vice President! She is absolutely great! I have changed over to the McCain ticket all because of this fantastic woman, Sarah Palin! I never thought i would ever vote the McCain ticket, but this woman has my vote and my wifes’s. Go Palin!
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:36 pm
Wow! I can see why many are so nervous about Sarah Palin. She truly was a rockstar wasn’t she everybody.
Go McCain / Palin
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:38 pm
Freedom of speech is everywhere my friend. That’s what makes USA USA
September 3rd, 2008 at 11:40 pm
Wow.. its nearly impossible to call into the radio show! You say something the handler doesn’t like and poof “you have a really bad phone connection”. Its astounding since I could hear the handler quite clearly.
But… onto other topics. There is mention of Sarah Palin specifically asking for earmarks for Wasilla. Perhaps the writer of the article could provide specific reference to documentation where this occurred so that we as independent thinkers can read such documentation and make our own decision as to the extent in which Sarah Palin was involved.
I suppose since the radio talk show host handlers won’t let me talk to Alan, I should express my debate here.
He made one outrageous assertion that “we” (as in conservatives) say there are no conservatives in Hollywood. Alan points to Jon Voight as a though he is the only member of Hollywood. In fact, conservatives would say that we are an EXTREME minority in Hollywood. I don’t know where Alan heard that conservatives said we don’t exist there.
Secondly, he asserted that Sarah Palin said that drilling for oil would solve all of our problems. I guess he was listening to a different speach. I heard her specifically point out that drilling would solve some of our problems but doing nothing would solve none of our problems.
Finally, I would like to make my own personal assertion on this blog of comments. I assert that Obama is peddling what I consider to be socialist agendas. How so? Well, for instance, back in the primaries, he was asked why he wanted to raise capital gains taxes even though historically raising them has only reduced government income from that source. His response was that he wanted a system that was “fair”. So, given that there are 2 losers in that equation: the investors (both middle and upper class) and the government… who is the winner? Noone! So, for the sake of fairness we punish people even though there is no clear advantage for anyone? Am I the only one that thinks this is quite “retarded”?
So, back to socialism… If you were to make good decisions and work hard and thereby become wealthy, should you be punished for it? No? Of course not… but in the sake of fairness, Obama wants to raise taxes on those that worked hard and/or made good decisions.
I have a realty to state to you. The poor are poor for a reason. They did one of two things (or both) … were lazy or made bad decisions. Fortuity knocks at all of our doors, but if you are too busy getting drunk or high or whining, you are likely to have opportunities pass you by. How about each individual take some responsibility for their actions? The person that made you poor is you.
September 4th, 2008 at 12:14 am
Wow Nathan,
Great response you posted. Thank you!
September 4th, 2008 at 12:22 am
Alan,
I’m trying to listen to you… but how stupid are you?
You keep saying I just that we are falling in love….
And what have you done with Obama?
Besides the speeches?? Wha did you fall in love with???
Allan .. you pretend you are married… heh
LOVE AND KISSES
ELVIS
September 4th, 2008 at 12:31 am
Thanks Michael McGhie! I appreciate the support!
I just wish other conservatives and libertarians would pay more attention to their posts so they wouldn’t sound so … well… retarded. (granted after reading my own post I noticed that I had a couple grammatical and spelling errors… but, at least the content flowed in a comprehensible format)
September 4th, 2008 at 12:47 am
I find it interesting how emotional people get with these different topics. Sarah Palin is an exceptional person. For once, someone in Washington with common sense. Ask yourself why you like Obama. Leave the emotion out and see if you can make an intelligent response. Can any of you make comments without name calling or sarcasm? I don’t think obama has the experience or the intelligence to lead. He may be educated but he is not a smart man. I trust President to be McCain and V.P. Palin more than I would trust Obama or Biden. Anyone else feel that way?
September 4th, 2008 at 1:43 am
Sarah Palin is a fraud. She is as phony as a 3 dollar bill.
September 4th, 2008 at 2:17 am
I feel that given our choices for President and Vice President, McCain/Palin present the most obvious choice for who will lead the US in a manner of integrity, courage, wisdom, and humility.
I am weary of the Obamatons portraying him as some agent of positive change. His policies clearly indicate that he is an agent of socialist change. So, if you want a country where the hard-working entrepreneur is punished for his/her own personal hard work and ingenuity, business knowledge, and overall good decision making, .. then, yes, vote for Obama and punish those “evil” rich people. Because you unfortunate poor people are powerless under the guns of the evil republicans to make anything better of yourselves. Liberals need victims, … and you choose to be victims. How about you choose to empower yourselves and beat the “establishment” at its own game? Or, is that too time consuming whilst you are too busy drinking your six pack of beer on a Friday evening instead of trying to better yourself and your family’s financial position.
I tell you what,.. while you were busy whining, drinking (or god forbid-.. snorting), I was busy reading and doing work aside from my full-time job. God forbid I be rewarded for that. I should be punished with additional taxes should I become successful in my pursuits. Is that about right? Because that is “fair”?
September 4th, 2008 at 2:30 am
>>>I’m just not interested today, especially since her speech means nothing to me.<<<
Will it mean anything to you if she wins? Just idle curiosity. You see, I am trying to be objective here and say IF she wins, not “when,” but I have to wonder…if she controls the next 4 years of your life the way Obama wants to control the next 4 years of mine, will her policies mean anything to you?
September 4th, 2008 at 5:43 am
>>Go McCain / Palin<<<
I was going to vote for McCain as the far lesser of two evils. Now I will enthusiastically vote for Palin for VP. As I understand it, this means that by default my vote for president will go to McCain. Well, so be it.
September 4th, 2008 at 5:47 am
Palin- the perfect choice for airhead conservatives like most of the posters.
By the way, wasn’t it McCain who opposed most of the Gov.’s pork earmark requests? Oh the irony…
September 4th, 2008 at 6:42 am
What irony?
September 4th, 2008 at 7:12 am
The irony is that even though McCain has historically been against pork, he has now picked Palin – who is clearly a socialist with the huge earmarks she has supported, redistributing wealth into her pet projects
September 4th, 2008 at 7:31 am
Oh I see. yes, it’s typical way of thinking in these sorts of comments.
September 4th, 2008 at 7:51 am
Yes, several people on this blog educated me yesterday on what socialism is, so it is now much easier for me to identify it in all it’s forms. Following the logic of those explanations, it seems to be everywhere!
By those explanations, I’m pretty sure Libertarians are the biggest non socialist party in the US, so am assuming everyone will be throwing their support to them. I’m awaiting the many condemnations of Palin and McCain’s socialist agenda by those same people calling Obama socialist at every turn.
September 4th, 2008 at 8:01 am
So lets compare Pork.
McCain – Refuses Earmarks and has indicated that he will veto any bill which contains earmarks if elected President.
Obama – Requested nearly 3/4 of a billion dollars ($740 Million) in earmarks for fiscal years 2006, 2007 and 2008 – the requests included $1 million for a hospital where his wife works, money for several projects linked to campaign donors and support for more than 200 towns, civic institutions and universities in Illinois.
Source: New York Times http://tinyurl.com/5lqpa7
September 4th, 2008 at 11:33 am
“McCain – has indicated that he will veto any bill which contains earmarks if elected President.”
LoL. And you believe this bull?
September 4th, 2008 at 2:58 pm
Look at the pork that came out of the Clinton administration…need I go any further?
September 5th, 2008 at 6:27 am