U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, Critic of McHenry County Board’s Lakewood SportsPlex Stimulus Loan, Retiring

U.S. Senator Tom Coburn

U.S. Senator Tom Coburn

The United States Senator who put the McHenry County Board’s Stimulus loan for the McHenry County SportPlex on the national map in his 2010 Wastebook has announced he is retiring at the end of the year.

That’s what the National Journal is reporting today.

Although the Oklahoma Senator is battling cancer, he attributed his retirement to his pledge to only serve two terms.

When he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1994, Coburn pledge only to serve three terms in that body.

He, unlike many other Republicans who helped Newt Gingrich crack the five-decade Democratic Party stranglehold on the U.S. House, Coburn kept his promise.

A special election will be held next year to fill out his Senate term.

Coburn, who is an obstetrician, compiled examples of congressional add-ons which he considered to be egregious examples of “pork barrel” spending each year.

One such line item in this year’s budget was picked by the National Journal as an example of what taxpayers fund:

“$1 million to ‘explore the fascinating, often contradictory origins and influences of popular romance as told in novels, films, comics, advice books, songs, and Internet fan fiction'”

Colburn has another Illinois connection.

He was the speaker on the 2009 Family PAC Cruise on Lake Michigan and the Chicago River.

His topic was the deficiencies of the health care plan being proposed by President Barak Obamacare.

Tom Coburn speaking to 2009 Family PAC Cruise.

Tom Coburn speaking to 2009 Family PAC Cruise.

His 2009 views seem prescient.

Here are a couple of snippets (more can be found here):

“next year’s elections will be impacted, but not nearly as much as 3-4 years from now.”

The doctor described the bill as giving “you access to a waiting line” and predicted that 15% of doctors will retire to work in other countries or do mission work, if it does pass.

He was incorrect in predicting Obamacare would not pass.


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