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Free Enterprise, Free Money
Delightful tidbit from a Boston Globe report on the enormous rise in last-minute insertions of pure pork in the form of "earmarks," done with no official sponsors (there were 1,439 such earmarks in 1995, costing us all $10 billion, last year; a decade after the Gingrich/GOP revolution to slash government, we saw 13,997 earmarks, costing $27.3 billion): one of the recipients, from acting majority leader Roy Blunt's district, was "Students in Free Enterprise," which won a million in federal grants.
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|1.30.06 @ 3:05PM|#
At least the earmarks are getting smaller: 1995 average - $6,949,270 ($10 billion / 1,439); 2005 average - $1,950,417 ($27.3 billion / 13,997)
|1.30.06 @ 3:38PM|#
SR, always the optimist?
Captain Holly|1.30.06 @ 3:44PM|#
Don't forget to adjust for inflation, either.
|1.30.06 @ 4:51PM|#
So earmarks accounted for ~.226% of GDP.
Maybe we should be looking for different targets if the goal is trying to slash government.
|1.30.06 @ 6:02PM|#
No big secret--"entitlements" are 800lb. gorilla sitting in the rotunda.
Earmarks are just more embarrassing to all involved.