The 2008 Congressional Pig Book from Citizens Against Government Waste is published

The 2008 Congressional Pig Book Summary is here!

This morning Citizens Against Government (CAGW) shared with the American people the names of those in Congress who are responsible for the 11,610 pork-barrel projects costing you $17.2 billion in the fiscal 2008 budget. They were joined by leading opponents of this congressionally earmarked spending, including Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and Reps. John Campbell (R-Calif.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Tom Price (R-Ga.), and Paul Ryan (R-Wis.).

Topping this year’s list of outrageous special-interest projects are:

* $4,840,870 for wood utilization research;
* $1,529,220 for the Appalachian Fruit Lab;
* $984,400 for Idaho's strategic plan for managing noxious weeds; and
* $98,000 for a walking tour of Boydton, Va. (population 474).

Earmark reform is a hot topic in Washington these days, yet Congress' taste for spending on personal projects stays. There has been a decrease in earmark spending in the last few years, but over $17B is still a lot of waste in a secretive budgeting process.

For a donation of $25 or more, Citizens Against Government waste can mail you a copy of their annual book. Your contributions also help the work of this non-profit in its fight for fiscal discipline in DC.

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US senator honors fiscal discipline, transparency and accountability

US Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) replied to a letter I wrote to him as a constituent on the issue of spending earmarks. He agreed with me that we need more transparency and accountability in Congress, especially when it comes to spending the taxpayer's money. He co-sponsored the recent one-year earmark moratorium amendment that eventually failed to pass. He says the right words to me as a government reformer, and am honored to have him as one of my senators.

Here is a snippet of that letter of his:

" Members of Congress should have a say in how their constituents’ tax dollars are allocated, but every earmark should be openly debated and voted on. Taxpayers in Texas, and across the country, demand and deserve greater fiscal discipline and accountability in Washington, D.C. I have worked hard during my time in the Senate to reduce the size of government and eliminate wasteful spending—saving taxpayers’ money. Although the Senate did not pass this one-year moratorium amendment, it is my hope that by continuing to work together to fix the broken process by which we allocate federal dollars, Congress will send a clear message to the American people that we are listening.

America’s founding fathers understood a free society could not exist without informed citizens and an open, accessible government. That’s why strengthening government transparency and accountability has been among my highest priorities since coming to the Senate. The more information that we can put in the hands of the American people about what Congress does on a daily basis, the stronger our democracy will be. I can think of no area where accountability is more important than in the process of how Congress spends the money that Texans send to Washington. "

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Tell your two US Senators to vote YES on Fair Elections

It's now time again to contact your two US Senators and ask them to vote YES for public financing of congressional campaigns. A bill addresses this, called The Fair Elections Now Act (S.1285). Fair Elections is a major campaign finance reform issue, and passing it would undercut alot of questions relating to legislators' possible favoring of their private campaign contributors.

You can reach your senators through Yahoo! CapWiz, or, you can call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121. Thank you!

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Change Congress aims to bring reform candidates to congressional office

Change Congress is now open for business! Founded by Lawrence Lessig and Joe Trippi, Change Congress aims to find, debate with and win over congressional candidates on several reform issues. Citizens can get involved right away, by pledging their support for this cause, finding candidates in their districts, and asking them to pledge their support for these reforms. Join now!

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Pork requests flooding Appropriations Committee right now

It looks like business as usual for Washington, DC, as a flood of earmark requests is deluging upon the Appropriations Committee as we speak. Diligence is the word for fiscal discipline activists from several public interest groups.

From Americans for Prosperity's blog:

" We just received this forwarded e-mail from a source on Capitol Hill - it looks like a "massive influx" of pork requests has essentially crashed the Appropriations Committee's site. As a result, they're extending the deadline for pork requests from today until Monday - good news for the porkers, but bad news for the taxpayers:

----- Original Message -----
From: Nabors, Rob
Sent: Wed Mar 19 15:06:17 2008
Subject: URGENT -- EXTENSION OF DEADLINE FOR APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE REQUESTS. PLEASE DISTRIBUTE TO APPROPRIATE STAFF.

Dear Member Offices:

As a result of the massive influx of requests being submitted today, the Appropriations Committee website is experiencing unavoidable access and processing delays.

In order to accommodate Member offices attempting to input data, any request submitted by 11:59 p.m. on Monday, March 24th will be considered as having been submitted “on time” for purposes of consideration by the Committee.

Sincerely,

Rob Nabors

Staff Director and Clerk

House Appropriations Committee "

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Check if your Congressmembers' websites include local appropriations (earmarks) forms

According to a recent Americans for Prosperity blog post, at least three Congressmembers have online earmark request forms! That's right, if you are a constituent of these public servants, you can request federal money for non-legislative, locally-based projects online:

Florida Senator Bill Nelson: http://www.billnelson.senate.gov/contact/appropriationsfy09.cfm

Montana Representative Denny Rehberg: http://www.house.gov/rehberg/approps.form.shtml [Page not found]

Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown: http://brown.senate.gov/ohio/constituent_services/spending_request/

Check your own two US Senators' and US Representative's websites to see if they presently offer this same online constituent appropriations "service".

AFP in its post suggests we taxpayers hijack these online forms "to make a statement about just how big a problem earmarks have become (wink wink, nudge, nudge) and to demand transparency for earmark requests before earmarks make it into appropriations reports." I don't know how this may (legally) be done, but we are the owners of this country, and our representatives work for us... it is up to us, ultimately...

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Can PigFoot present US Rep. Murtha the 2007 Porker of the Year award? Video

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has the latest video on the legendary "PigFoot", their mascot. Here, he tries to give their 2007 Porker of the Year award to US Rep. John Murtha (Dem-PA) during his annual dinner with defense contractors, many of which he gives earmarks to in exchange for campaign contributions!

Here is that video...

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Tell your US Senators to vote YES for year-long earmark moratorium

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) is running an internet grassroots campaign to remove earmarks from the federal budgeting process.

Right now, Sens. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) are offering an amendment to the 2009 budget resolution that will impose a year-long moratorium on congressional earmarks.

Earmarking invites fraudulent behavior, hollows out or national defenses, and diverts lawmakers' attention from important national business like saving Medicare and Social Security for our children and grandchildren. Many congressional offices even have one or more staffers dedicated solely to procuring earmarks.

A year-long moratorium is a critical step forward to stopping Congress’s addiction to earmarking. It will give members time to reform the process, devote more effort to critical issues, and help keep money in taxpayers’ wallets instead of being diverted to Washington where it can be converted into pork.

Please tell your Senators to support the DeMint-McCain Amendment to keep wasteful, pork-barrel spending out of the 2009 budget!

You can also call them through the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.

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Video from US Rep. Murtha's pork crash!

Government Bytes blog has a wonderful video clip of the recent lobbyist dinner honoring US Rep. Murtha (D-PA) for his earmarks ways. You may remember that Murtha was annointed 2007 Porker of the Year by Citizens Against Government Waste's readers.

Taxpayers pay tribute to him with protests! Enjoy! Only one minute long..

Video from the PORK Crash!

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U.S. Rep. John Murtha is 2007 Porker of the Year

Well, it's been voted on by you, the citizens at Citizens Against Government Waste-- U.S. Representative John Murtha (Dem.-PA) is the "coveted" (by Murtha) 2007 Porker of the Year!

You saw him throw a temper tantrum and threaten fellow appropriations committee members where his earmarks are often made last May, and voted him Porker of the Month.

But he didn't stop there. Rep. Jack Murtha has long been known inside the Beltway for using threats, power plays, and backroom deals to control spending decisions. There is an area of the House floor known as “Murtha’s Corner,” where the legendary appropriator dispenses earmarks.

Get more of the sordid details of this legendary porkmeister at a webpage devoted just for this "coveted" prize at Swine Line blog.

UPDATE: Judicial Watch's Corruption Chronicles blog shares with us the annual appreciation dinner for Rep. Murtha by the same contractors that enjoy the free federal money known as earmarks:

" To show their appreciation, the contractors hold an annual payback dinner for Murtha at a fancy Washington-area venue. This year’s event (“an evening with Jack and Joyce Murtha”) is scheduled for February 27 at the Ritz-Carlton Pentagon City in Virginia, across the Potomac from Washington. Diners (earmark recipients) will pay $1,500 a person to eat with Murtha and his wife.

Of interesting note is that the invitations to the costly dinner were sent out right before the annual deadline for earmark applications. Murtha ended up getting more earmark dollars than any other legislator in the massive 2008 military spending bill. He secured 48 earmarks for a total $150.5 million. "

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Congressional earmark database complete for FY 2008

Taxpayers for Common Sense has completed its database of fiscal year 2008 appropriations bills earmarks.

Congress inserted 12,881 earmarks worth $18.3 billion into this year’s spending bills, $14.8 billion of which were disclosed by lawmakers. This represents a 23 percent cut in total earmarks from the high water mark of 2005, but a smaller cut than the 50 percent reduction House leadership initially set as its goal.

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Vote for 2007 Porker of the Year

Swineline blog from Citizens Against Government Waste has opened an online poll for 2007 "Porker of the Year". Yes, now you can have your say on who was the most egregious earmark spender among the U.S. Representatives and U.S. Senators in our hallowed halls of Congress! Vote now!

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Tell the U.S. House Republican Steering Committee to place Rep. Flake on the Appropriations Cmte.

Citizens Against Government Waste is asking us to help put U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake onto the important House Appropriations Committee. Rep. Flake has been a tireless leader against corruption in Congress, including the unethical earmarks being spent by the billions of dollars each year. If you agree, please write the Republican Steering Committee and urge them to place Rep. Jeff Flake on the House Appropriations Committee.

CAGW has this to say about the dire need to equip this spending committee with fiscally responsible representatives:

Dear __,
Right now, Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) is seeking to be placed on the House Appropriations Committee. Rep. Flake has been the House’s leading champion for smaller, less wasteful government and has helped spearhead the drive to restore fiscal discipline in Washington.
I urge you, before you do anything else today, to write the Republican Steering Committee and urge them to place Rep. Jeff Flake on the House Appropriations Committee! Rep. Flake has an unblemished record on congressional earmarks, having never requested a single pork-barrel project, and has been a tireless advocate on behalf of all taxpayers. The explosion of earmarks over the 12 years of Republican leadership corresponded with a collapse of fiscal restraint and personal ethics in Congress. While some have argued that the cost of earmarks represents an
insignificant portion of total federal spending, they ignore the outsized role earmarks play as the “currency of corruption” in Washington. They also ignore - at their own peril - how "Bridges to Nowhere" and other poster children for pork undermine the public’s image of Congress.
If Republicans wish to restore fiscal discipline and end the culture of corruption that has consumed Washington, Rep. Flake boasts the credentials to help lead the way. If appointed to the Appropriations Committee, he will help restore integrity to the
appropriations process and refocus Congress’s role on issues of national importance, not on parochial concerns better left to state and local governments, such as bike paths, teapot museums, and peanut festivals.
Time is of the essence. Please tell the Republican Steering Committee to place Rep. Flake on the House Appropriations Committee today!
Sincerely,
Thomas A. Schatz, President

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Tell your Congressmen to sign Earmark Reform Pledge

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) is asking we, the people, to petition earmark reform to our own congressmen. In these days of increasing government transparency, earmarks are still difficult to remain open. Many congressmen would prefer not keep their unethical spending behavior available to the general public. CAGW asks us taxpayers to be diligent, however; here is their message. If you agree, simply take action here; or contact your two US Senators and one US Representative on your own, at each of their respective websites. You can find all of your representatives at the white widget on the left column of this blog.

Dear _,
I urge you to call on your U.S. Representative and Senators today to sign CCAGW’s
Earmark Reform Pledge!
The ink was barely dry on the “New Honest
Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007” when House and Senate leaders began looking for ways to circumvent or obstruct its earmark disclosure rules. CCAGW’s Earmark Reform Pledge aims to commit lawmakers to providing taxpayers with greater transparency and accountability for earmarks.
By signing the pledge, members of Congress agree to 10 provisions, including that they will:
* fully disclose all earmarked funding or targeted tax benefit requests on their
congressional websites;
* not request any earmarked funding or targeted tax
benefit provision that does not serve a federal interest and/or have a federal
nexus;
* not request any earmarked funding or targeted tax benefit provision
that would be directed toward a specific private entity that was not requested
by an agency; and,
* support legislation that would end the linkage between
campaign contributions and earmarks.
From 1995 to 2005, the number of appropriations earmarks grew nearly tenfold, from 1,439 to 13,997. It’s no coincidence that the proliferation of earmarks has corresponded with the debasement of the budgetary process in Washington. As the examples of former Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.) and Jack Abramoff illustrate, lawmakers and lobbyists trade in earmarks as their “currency of corruption.” If House and Senate leaders are truly committed to overseeing “the most ethical Congress in history,” they should be making it easier, not more difficult, to follow the money trail. Please tell your Representative and Senators today to sign CCAGW’s Earmark Reform Pledge!
Sincerely,
Thomas A. Schatz, President

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Sign the 100,000 Strong petition for federal earmark reform

U.S. Senator Jim DeMint is running an internet blogging campaign for earmark reform. Earmarks over several year's time, as they are dropped into appropriations bills, cost in the billions of dollars. These are mostly local-interest projects out of the jurisdiction of the federal government. Even with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the already bloated national debt, individual Congressmen are wasting millions of dollars per year. Take action below and tell Washington, DC enough is enough.

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CAGW Names U.S. Senator Shelby Porker of the Month

Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has named Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) Porker of the Month for October 2007 for an $11 million Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) earmark for his alma mater.

Laurels of garland should adorn the esteemed Senators navel for this distinguishable recognition; salute!

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Government Reform-Related Databases

We've added a new list on the left panel of this page, called "Government Reform-Related Databases". It is a links list of user-friendly search engines for money in politics data.

Developing internet technology has enabled public interest groups such as the Sunshine Foundation to make government data more accessible to the general public. As more come online, I will add them here.

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Now, citizen oversight of congressional spending

The Sunlight Foundation and Taxpayers for Common Sense have teamed up to offer EarmarkWatch.org: Bringing Citizen Oversight to Congressional Spending.

Although you need to register, it is a free service. Bills that are currently being legislated are broken down; you can analyze your own U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators usage of earmarks.

Earmarks, or porkbarrel spending, are individual appropriations inserted into a bill after it has been legislated; they often are for local or regional pet projects. Earmarks are a reflection of fiscal discipline; you may now check on your own elected officials promises on how he is controlling spending.

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Send a message to your Representative and support earmark reform

According to The Hill, House Republican leaders will launch a new offensive in the fight over earmark reform today, seeking to expand earmark disclosure requirements to tax and authorization bills. Currently, only earmarks in appropriations bills are subject to new transparency requirements.

Also know as pork, earmarks are unethically added after a spending bill is already legislated formally. They are often of local interest only, out of the purposes of their underlying bills.

I just sent a small email letter to my U.S. Representative's website asking him to support fiscal discipline and this fight for earmark reform. You can do so also, by finding your own representative with the white widget to the left; just enter your full zip code and look for your U.S. Representative.

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President Bush signs government ethics bill!

Campaign Legal Center - Common Cause - Democracy 21 - League of Women Voters - Public Citizen - U.S. PIRG
_________________________________________________________________
Press Release, September 14, 2007, http://www.democracy21.org/ _________________________________________________________________
The following statement on the lobbying and ethics reform legislation passed by Congress was issued today by the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG:
The landmark lobbying and ethics reform legislation passed by Congress constitutes a major accomplishment by this Congress.
The far reaching reforms passed by Congress are the most important lobbying and ethics reforms since the Watergate era. They will help to change the way business is done in Washington and help to protect the interests of the American people.
Our organizations strongly commend the House and Senate for responding to deep citizen concerns about corruption and lobbying scandals revealed in the last Congress by passing landmark government integrity reforms.
Our organizations also strongly commend House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Senator Russell Feingold and Senator Barack Obama and Representative Chris Van Hollen and Representative Rahm Emanuel for the outstanding national leadership they provided for this successful reform effort.
The overwhelming bipartisan vote in Congress for the reform legislation shows once again the powerful voice of citizens and the power of recorded votes when it comes to government integrity issues, with House members voting 411 to 8 and Senators voting 83 to 14 for the reform legislation.
We thank all of the Democrats and Republicans who voted for the legislation.
The immediate challenge that lies ahead now is to ensure that the new lobbying disclosure law and congressional ethics rules are effectively implemented and enforced.
Our organizations will work to achieve this goal and also are working to strengthen the systems for enforcing the congressional ethics rules, lobbying laws and campaign finance laws.
In the longer term, our organizations are working for essential campaign finance reforms that include repairing the presidential public financing system and establishing a public financing system for congressional races.
For now, however, our organizations believe it is important to recognize that this Congress has provided major lobbying and ethics reforms in response to the major corruption, lobbying and ethics scandals that were revealed in the last Congress.
# # #

The above public interest groups are constantly on the leading edge of campaign finance reform and other government ethics concerns in Washington, D.C. With the help of citizen activists such as yourself and thousands of others across this nation, these reform groups work closely with Congress and the President to see that we, the people, are heard and that they are accountable to us only.

Check out these and other government reform groups in the list on the left panel of this blog. Constant vigilance and an optimistic outlook is all it takes to help maintain a responsible and accountable federal government.

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