Monday, March 16, 2009

Who says money doesn't grow on trees?

After giving us the largest spending bill in American history, Obama and congressional Democrats are not done yet. While the Democrats were quick to remove funding for the D.C voucher program, depriving thousands of D.C. students a quality education and putting their futures at risk, they found time to insert over $5 billion for pet projects in the $410 billion omnibus bill that includes, among other priorities, money to build Polyponesian sailboats. I seem to recall candidate Obama pledging to go through the budget "line-by-line" (even though the president doesn't legally have line-item veto, but Obama is not one to let the facts obfuscate his soaring campaign rhetoric).

Some of the tantalizing pork:
  • $200,000 for "Tattoo Removal Violence Prevention Outreach Program"
  • $5.8 million for the creation of a "Ted Kennedy Institute for the Senate"
  • $473,000 for the National Council of La Raza
  • $2 million for the promotion of astronomy in Hawaii
  • $143,000 for the Las Vegas Museum of Natural History (where Sen. Majority Leader Harry Reid's son serves as a board member--mere coincidence, right?)

Money may not grow on trees, but at the rate the treasury continues to print money to fund corporate bailouts, spikes in social spending, and pork projects, we will need to start planting trees.

No comments: