A Pig is a Pig, With or Without Lipstick

Michael Ramirez, my favorite editorial cartoonist from Investor's Business Daily, has it right in his latest creation. What's the saying?... A picture paints a thousand words. Unfortunately for Americans, it's a TRILLION + words! That is, if words = dollars. This is the definition of insanity, because it didn't work the first time last year. Why should it work this time? Why does this crap make me so tired?



Lord help us all.

Will the Senate Veto This Travesty?

Yesterday the House of Representatives voted down a pork laden defense appropriations bill that also included mandates on troop withdrawals and today it is the Senate's turn.

Let's see what they do?

The package, approved on a voice vote, includes $169 billion for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through part of next year and more than $25 billion in new domestic spending, The Hill, a Washington publication, reported. It also sets a goal for troops to be moved out of a military role in Iraq by June 2009.

There is so much going on in Washington this week and Michelle Malkin is busy tracking the latest attempt to get some sort of amnesty legislation pushed through via the backdoor.

"But you must remember, my fellow-citizens, that eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty, and that you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing. It behooves you, therefore, to be watchful in your States as well as in the Federal Government." -- Andrew Jackson, Farewell Address, March 4, 1837

House Rejects Defense Appropriations Bill

Good. It was the most pork laden, non-defense appropriations bill to come down the pike in awhile. While it has been common practice for legislators to put all kinds of pork in defense bills because they knew it was political suicide to vote against defense spending, this bill had things such as requiring an immediate withdrawal of troops and spending on projects here at home that it was ridiculous.

It is just breaking on Fox so no links yet.

In the initial report something like a 130 representatives only voted present which gives you a good idea of how many lily-livered, weak-kneed, spineless, congress critters we have on both sides of the aisle. Nobody wanted to go on record for or against it.

Throw the bums out!

UPDATE: Here's a link

And check out this little bit of Democrat fit pitching.

House Democrats on Thursday approved a non-binding plan seeking an exit from Iraq by December of next year.

The 224 to 196 vote mostly broke along party lines and runs into a veto threat from President Bush. It would also require that soldiers spend no more than one year in Iraq and then get at least one year at home.

The vote gives only a symbolic victory to anti-war Democrats. The restrictions on Bush's Iraq policy are certain to stall in the Senate.

The Dems are just having a real bad day between Bush's speech at the Knesset and now defeat of their faux defense spending bill; it looks like they are going to have a bad weekend.

Proving pigs can swim

I received an email newsletter from the office of Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) this week and one of the items in it was this.

Water Resources Development Act
This week the Senate overturned a presidential veto of the Water Resources Development Act (HR 1495), which authorizes more than $127 million for critical water infrastructure projects in Georgia. I joined many of my Senate colleagues in voting to override the veto. We’re currently experiencing a historic drought in Georgia and the funding authorized in this bill will go a long way toward helping numerous communities across our state plan for the future and will help our communities invest in many much-needed infrastructure upgrades.

To read about the Georgia projects included in the Water Resources Development Act, click here.

Do you mean this bill?

President Bush just added another resident to Vetoland, this resident being the water projects bill that got saturated with pork-barrel projects in conference. Despite having enough votes to override his veto, Bush sent the bill back as a protest against its escalating earmarks . . . .

The reason for the veto seems rather obvious. The House approved a $14 billion waterworks bill, and the Senate approved a $15 billion companion bill. Rather than split the difference and approve a $14.5 billion bill, or even go with the Senate's $15 billion, the conference committee reported out a $23 billion bill that proves that when pork multiplies, it's because taxpayers are getting screwed.

Seriously -- how did an extra $8 billion get added to the bill in conference? That's an increase of over 50% from the Senate bill, in conference. The larger embarrassment is that our elected representatives didn't see this greedy manipulation of the conference process as any big deal and overwhelmingly supported the results.

That's what pork does to corrupt the legislative process -- it buys votes. It's a bribery system that helps cover up another bribery system. One porcine paw washes the other, and the resulting appropriations grow on grotesque scales almost overnight.

Now in fairness to our 2 Senators from GA I don't really see a litany of pork in the portion of the bill with earmarks for GA. Just about everything in it for GA is for municipal water, stormwater and wastewater infrastructure. I do question this item though. $10 million for Savannah Riverfront development. That sounds like money for the city to rebuild the business district and not so much for work on the actual river way itself.
President Bush did veto this bill and just like Ed Morrissey over at Captain's Quarters says it is vote buying. There is such a lack of moral courage among our congress critters when it comes to such things as to have now reached the point of being embarrassing. They are so blatant about it now. Some more then others such as Clinton and Murtha. When these very same congress critters get into campaign mode are there any doubts they will scream about the federal deficit as a talking point. Our federal deficit is the lack of personal courage of those elected to represent us.

Next up is the Food and Energy Security Act of 2007 also known as the Farm Bill.

And just so you know my representative David Scott (D-GA) hasn't been sitting on his hands either. Why he brags about getting funding for Clayton State University. Well here it is in his own words.

Washington, Nov 6 - Today Congressman David Scott (D-GA) announced the inclusion of $325,000 for Clayton State University’s development of an archival graduate program in a bill that provides Fiscal Year 2008 funding for the Federal Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. The House of Representatives is expected to pass the spending bill today which also includes funding for Veterans and Military projects.

Here is a news flash to Mr Scott. Why are we providing federal dollars to a local university to "...to create a Master of Arts in Archive degree program at Clayton State University."? What the heck is the tuition money going for?
But it doesn't end there. Look what else he included.

Today Congressman David Scott announced that federal funds totaling $459,700 have been awarded to important projects in Fulton County. These awards include $334,700 for Grady Health system to upgrade electronic medical records and $125,000 to assist the county’s Department of Mental Health with creating a jail diversion program. These projects were included in the bill funding the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education for Fiscal Year 2008, which was passed by the House of Representatives today.

Grady Hospital is a financially strapped hospital in Atlanta. Most of the mess is because of mismanagement and internal corruption. In the contacts I have had with the folks who work at Grady, not the doctors or nurses but rather the administrative staff, upgrading to electronic records ain't gonna help. I haven't met any of them who were smarter then a 5th grader, which is also a big part of Grady's problems, but that is a topic for a different time.
Folks fiscal responsibility starts at home. It means everyone of us need to hold congress accountable for the deficit not the President. The President vetoes, congress overrides so the blame lies squarely on their shoulders.
Folks you need to get on your Representatives and Senators mailing lists. You must contact them. Lobbyists have the money but you have the vote. Let them know you are informed. Let them know when you agree or disagree. I wouldn't have gotten this information without being on their email lists or visiting their web sites. Get involved or at least make them think you are.

Bush Hammers Party of Defeat

The disgusting Democrats are kvelling over giving aid and comfort to the enemy, but President Bush came out firing, and rightly so.

Bush Slams Democrats Over Iraq Timetable

A sharply divided House voted Friday to order President Bush to bring combat troops home from Iraq next year, a victory for Democrats in an epic war-powers struggle and Congress' boldest challenge yet to the administration's policy.

Just over an hour later, Bush appeared at the White House alongside veterans and family members of troops to accuse Democrats of staging nothing more than political theater that delays the delivery of resources to soliders fighting in Iraq. If the spending bill is not approved and signed into law by April 15, Bush said troops and their families "will face significant disruptions."

"A narrow majority in the House of Representatives abdicated its responsibility by passing a war spending bill that has no chance of becoming law and brings us no closer to getting the troops the resoures they need to do their job," the president said. "These Democrats believe that the longer they can delay funding for our troops, the more likely they are to force me to accept restrictions on our commanders, an artificial timetable for withdrawal and their pet spending projects. This is not going to happen."

Naturally, the medi portrays this vote-buying scam as a victory for the Democrats, but this will never pass in the Senate and would be vetoed anyway. Some victory.

Others blogging on this shameful porkfest and slap at our military: Michelle Malkin, Atlas, Captain's Quarters, Texas Rainmaker, Gateway Pundit, Hot Air, A Blog For All, LGF, Power Line, 7.62mm Justice, Strata-Sphere, Jawa Report, Wizbang!, Victory Caucus, Riehl World View, Right Voices.