Taxpayers for Common Sense have totaled up the congressional earmarks in the budget bill being voted on this week.
I was reminded of that when I read an editorial cartoon sent to me by my Joplin, Missouri, brother-in-law. It was in the Saganaw News.
Scene: Husband and wife sitting at the breakfast table.
Husband: “Sez here they arrested a D.C. Madam for running a house of ill repute…”
Wife: “They arrested Polisi?”
Below is the list of who got what in this year’s budget, which is due to be passed only about six months after the beginning of the fiscal year. They are listed in descending order from highest to lowest dollar amount of pork projects
Ray LaHood, 23 earmarks totaling $8,774,250- Rahm Emanuel, 10 earmarks totaling $6,523,000
- Jerry Costello, 12 earmarks totaling $5,425,175
- Dan Lipinski, 12 projects totaling $4,451,172
- Melissa Bean, 10 earmarks totaling $3,687,314 (one in McHenry County)
- Bill Foster, 12 earmarks totaling $3,095,000
- Danny Davis, 10 earmarks totaling $3,066,014
Tim Johnson, 8 earmarks totaling $2,806,100- Jesse Jackson, Jr., 15 earmarks totaling $2,783,500
- Peter Roskam, 12 earmarks totaling $2,655,330
- John Shimkus, 13 earmarks totaling $2,421,750
- Bobby Rush, 8 earmarks totaling $2,073,375
- Don Manzullo, 6 earmarks totaling $2,070,500 (one in McHenry County)
- Phil Hare, 7 earmarks totaling $2,031,000
- Jan Schakowsky, 8 earmarks totaling $1,644,000
Luis Gutierrez, 2 earmarks totaling $760,000- Jerry Weller, 7 earmarks totaling $1,243,250
$47.8 million in total.
Eschewing pork were Republicans Judy Biggert and Mark Kirk.
Three retired members, Rahm Emanuel, Ray LaHood and Jerry Weller get credit for projects anyway.
Newly elected Congress folks Debbie Halvorson and Aaron Shock were not listed.
Tomorrow, the bacon our United States Senators brought home.