Yes, Palin Did Stop That Bridge

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-29-2008
Yes, Palin Did Stop That Bridge
115
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 4:32pm

Yes, Palin Did Stop That Bridge

From http://online.wsj.com/public/article_print/SB122100927525717663.html
Yes, Palin Did Stop That Bridge
By JIM DEMINT
September 10, 2008; Page A15

“But, you know, when you’ve been taking all these earmarks when it’s convenient, and then suddenly you’re the champion anti-earmark person, that’s not change. Come on! I mean, words mean something, you can’t just make stuff up.” — Barack Obama, Sept. 6, 2008

In politics, words are cheap. What really counts are actions. Democrats and Republicans have talked about fiscal responsibility for years. In reality, both parties have a shameful record of wasting hundreds of billions of tax dollars on pork-barrel projects.

My Senate colleague Barack Obama is now attacking Gov. Sarah Palin over earmarks. Having worked with both John McCain and Mr. Obama on earmarks, and as a recovering earmarker myself, I can tell you that Mrs. Palin’s leadership and record of reform stands well above that of Mr. Obama.

Let’s compare.

Mrs. Palin used her veto pen to slash more local projects than any other governor in the state’s history. She cut nearly 10% of Alaska’s budget this year, saving state residents $268 million. This included vetoing a $30,000 van for Campfire USA and $200,000 for a tennis court irrigation system. She succinctly justified these cuts by saying they were “not a state responsibility.”

Meanwhile in Washington, Mr. Obama voted for numerous wasteful earmarks last year, including: $12 million for bicycle paths, $450,000 for the International Peace Museum, $500,000 for a baseball stadium and $392,000 for a visitor’s center in Louisiana.

Mrs. Palin cut Alaska’s federal earmark requests in half last year, one of the strongest moves against earmarks by any governor. It took real leadership to buck Alaska’s decades-long earmark addiction.

Mr. Obama delivered over $100 million in earmarks to Illinois last year and has requested nearly a billion dollars in pet projects since 2005. His running mate, Joe Biden, is still indulging in earmarks, securing over $90 million worth this year.

Mrs. Palin also killed the infamous Bridge to Nowhere in her own state. Yes, she once supported the project: But after witnessing the problems created by earmarks for her state and for the nation’s budget, she did what others like me have done: She changed her position and saved taxpayers millions. Even the Alaska Democratic Party credits her with killing the bridge.

When the Senate had its chance to stop the Bridge to Nowhere and transfer the money to Katrina rebuilding, Messrs. Obama and Biden voted for the $223 million earmark, siding with the old boys’ club in the Senate. And to date, they still have not publicly renounced their support for the infamous earmark.

Mrs. Palin has proven courageous by taking on big spenders in her own party. In March of this year, the Anchorage Daily News reported that, “Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens is aggravated about what he sees as Gov. Sarah Palin’s antagonism toward the earmarks he uses to steer federal money to the state.”

Mr. Obama had a chance to take on his party when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid offered a sham ethics bill, which was widely criticized by watchdog groups such as Citizens Against Government Waste for shielding earmarks from public scrutiny. But instead of standing with taxpayers, Mr. Obama voted for the bill. Today, he claims he helped write the bill that failed to clean up Washington.

Mr. Obama has shown little restraint on earmarks until this year, when he decided to co-sponsor an earmark moratorium authored by Mr. McCain and myself. Mr. Obama is vulnerable on this issue, and he knows it. That is why he is lashing out at Mrs. Palin and trying to hide his own record.

Mrs. Palin is one of the strongest antiearmark governors in America. If more governors around the country would do what she has done, we would be much closer to fixing our nation’s fiscal problems than we are.

Mrs. Palin’s record here is solid and inspiring. She will help Mr. McCain shut down the congressional favor factory, and she has a record to prove it. Actions mean something. You can’t just make stuff up.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 8:47pm

I prefer relying on the evidence of the specific timelines involved, the documented actions of specific individuals, and the public statements of those individuals in regards to their actions.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 8:49pm

More for your money, like a road that accomplishes very little or nothing?

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 8:50pm

>How is it contradictory? She cut wasteful spending in her state. She did not overpay for the bridge, but allotted the money elsewhere where it would be more wisely spent. Her job was to serve the people of Alaska. Would she be serving the people of Alaska if she sent the money back? <


She's bragging about reducing requested earmarked funds. Ergo, she's asking for LESS money for her people. Doesn't sound all that good for them to me.


One cannot brag about cutting earmarks when one keeps the earmarked money from a project that was cut.

The 3 Day

Sandy
iVillage Member
Registered: 08-29-2008
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 8:52pm
Why is this so difficult to understand? I want her to serve the citizens of this country in the same responsible way she has served the people of Alaska. She has slashed spending. She has a fantastic record. As the governor of a state it was her job to do whatever she could to help the people of her state. She did a great job. She was not working for me when she accepted money for her state because I do not live in Alaska any more. I want her to start working for me. I want my taxes to be low. I want her to fight to keep them that way.
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 8:55pm

By

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-29-2008
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 8:57pm
We disagree. It wasn't someone elses money, it was MY money, and yours, and everyone else who pays taxes' money. Her state received the money just like my state receives money. I want her to cut as much of MY MONEY going to the different states as she can. She has been responsible in her state. I want her to be responsible with the federal budget too.
iVillage Member
Registered: 08-29-2008
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 9:00pm
She did not brag about reducing earmark funds. The said she wants to reduce them if elected. There is no way she could have reduced them as a governor, and that wouldn't even be her job to do anything like that.
Avatar for undefeated
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 9:01pm

All this "link" business is not going to turn the discussion from Palin flipping on "for the bridge/against the bridge"

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-29-2008
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 9:02pm
I guess it depends upon which blogs you read, huh?
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Thu, 09-11-2008 - 9:03pm

So principles don't matter so long as she's working in what you perceive as being your interest.

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