Divvying Up the Pork

Republican Leaders Who Target Pork Are Some of the Worst Culprits. So... let's work together.

Washington Post, Thursday, March 12, 2009; A04

Earmarking is a bipartisan practice on Capitol Hill. But the $410 billion spending measure passed with overwhelming Democratic support while most Republicans opposed it. Several Republicans who were wholeheartedly against the bill, however, still got some big-ticket items for their states. Here are some highlights of leading Republicans who received earmarks, despite opposing final passage:

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.)

-- Total earmarks co-sponsored: $75.6 million

-- Example: $2.6 million to rehabilitate the Cox building in Maysville, Ky.

Senate Minority Whip Jon Kyl (Ariz.)

-- $25.8 million

-- $500,000 for water-treatment improvements in Surprise, Ariz.

Senate Republican Conference Chairman Lamar Alexander (Tenn.)

-- $32 million

-- $700,000 for sensors to help crop security in Tennessee

Rep. Jerry Lewis (Calif.), ranking GOP member of House Appropriations Committee

-- $18.8 million

-- $77,000 for after-school program in San Jacinto, Calif.

Rep. John M. McHugh (N.Y.), ranking GOP member of House Armed Services Committee

-- $5.4 million

-- $95,000 for new exhibits at the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake, N.Y.

Sen. Thad Cochran (Miss.), ranking GOP member of Senate Appropriations Committee

-- $470.9 million*

-- $3.5 million for phase of construction of National Center for Natural Products Research in Oxford, Miss.

Sen. Charles E. Grassley (Iowa), ranking GOP member of Senate Finance Committee

-- $199.1 million

-- $298,000 for seed testing at the Tallgrass Prairie Center in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Sen. John Cornyn (Tex.), chairman of National Republican Senatorial Committee

-- $86 million

-- $475,000 for ferryboat expansion in Port Aransas, Tex.

Rep. David Dreier (Calif.), ranking GOP member of House Rules Committee

-- $17.2 million

-- $712,500 for new highway interchange in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.

Rep. Lamar Smith (Tex.), ranking GOP member of House Judiciary Committee

-- $24.6 million

-- $285,000 for curriculum development at Trinity University in San Antonio

* Cochran's total is the largest dollar amount of earmarks for any member of Congress. Of the lawmakers listed above, Cochran, Alexander and McHugh are the only ones who voted in favor of the legislation.

SOURCES: Taxpayers for Common Sense, congressional voting databases