Tom "Pork Barrel" Davis spoke at the Princess Barracuda/McShame rally today..

[Virginia Dare]

I'm sure that as he goes on to his lucrative job as a K Street Lobbyist, he'll be real happy to have an anti-pork barrelers in the White House?

You know, pork barrel spending isn't always a bad thing, lots of times it's for badly needed infrastructure projects and provides good jobs. Leave it to the repukes to make public spending sound evil.

July 17, 2006
H.R. 3496: The Biggest Pork Barrel Earmark in History?
by Ronald D. Utt, Ph.D.
WebMemo #1163
Representative Tom Davis (R-VA) is requesting the House of Representatives to consider an amendment (H.R. 3496, as revised) to the Deep Water Energy Resources Act (H.R. 4761) that would divert $1.5 billion of federal revenues earned through offshore drilling to subsidize the deeply troubled Metro transit system serving the nation’s capital and his congressional district. If enacted, this earmark would be one of the largest ever passed—seven times larger than Alaska’s “Bridge to Nowhere” and twice as large as Mississippi’s “Train to Nowhere.” This earmark would reward Metro’s poor performance with an astounding sum of money while enabling the system to put off essential reforms.

Mr. Davis justifies taxpayer funding for this local project on the grounds that “Metro, the public transit system of the Washington metropolitan area, is essential for the continued and effective performance of the functions of the Federal Government, and for the orderly movement of people during major events and times of regional and national emergency.”

But Metro provides no such service. Unreliable and poorly run, the system is subject to frequent shutdowns and service interruptions due to equipment failure, bad weather, suicides, driver error, and passenger medical emergencies. In mid-June, heavy rain and winds caused a shutdown of two of its five routes, significant delays on the other three, and the complete shutdown of the two commuter rail lines serving suburban Virginia. While some roads in the area were damaged as well, none suffered the kind debilitating closures and interruptions that Metro did. And as for the need to get the federal workforce to the office, a Metro spokeswoman noted that “Because nearly half of Metro’s daily commuters are federal government employees…delays could be less severe if large numbers of them take advantage of the unscheduled leave option and stay home.” In other words, Metro’s service can be improved if federal workers don’t go to work—so much for being an essential service.

http://www.heritage.org/Research/Budget/wm1163.cfm

[Virginia Dare]

1. Giving it a kick for those who care about repuke hypocrisy today...n/t