While entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security are perhaps the biggest causes of rising deficits and debt, there are additional contributing factors, including what is often described as wasteful spending. "Excluding homeland security, domestic discretionary outlays have soared 7 percent annually over [President Bush's] first three years, in part due to pork-laden appropriations. [...] By all accounts, there is vastly more earmarking today perhaps five or ten times as much than there was a decade ago." (20).
Last Summer, President Bush signed into law a $286 billion highway bill, which included, "cash to bankroll some 6,000 per projects for lawmakers in their home districts." (21). "But Senator John McCain, R-Ariz, one of four senators who opposed the bill, said the estimated $24 billion lawmakers directed to special projects was 'egregious.' He has cited dozens of what he calls 'interesting' projects. His favorite: $2.3 million for landscaping along the Ronald Reagan Freeway in California. 'I wonder what Ronald Reagan would say?' McCain asked about the fiscally conservative president." (21).
In December of 2005 the Senate passed what George Will described as "an entitlement to digital television" costing $3 billion dollars. By 2009 all broadcast television will be converted from analog to digital. "[T]o help all Americans acquire converter boxes to put on top of old analog sets, making the sets able to receive digital programming" the measure would provide a voucher to covert the cost of the converter box. (22) No kidding this bill was passed by the Congress and signed into law by the President in February 2006.
http://www.thomas.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:SN01932:@@@R.
Despite many critics, there are those who cite the importance of earmarks. "[N]ot all pork is equal and not all earmarks are bad, say analysts close to the process." (23). Earmarks can support small local projects which bring jobs and resources to areas that would otherwise go without, proponents argue.
Next:
Defense / Homeland Security
