Texas near the top for raking in federal dollars (Ron Paul - shrimp or pork? Serves up both)

Houston Chronicle ^ | 10/9/2007 | BENNETT ROTH

[dirtboy]

WASHINGTON — Texas has long viewed itself as a conservative bastion, but the Lone Star State ranked third in the nation between 2000 and last year in receipt of federal dollars, raking in aid and contracts worth more than $1.2 trillion.

An analysis by a private watchdog group found that state agencies and a number of congressional districts were major beneficiaries of the federal largesse. For example:

• Rep. Ron Paul has long crusaded against a big central government. But the maverick GOP lawmaker and presidential contender also has represented a congressional district that is consistently among the top in Texas in its reliance on dollars from Washington. In the first nine months of the federal government's 2006 fiscal year alone, it received more than $4 billion in federal aid.

[gondramB]

>>Texas has long viewed itself as a conservative bastion, but the Lone Star State ranked third in the nation between 2000 and last year in receipt of federal dollars, raking in aid and contracts worth more than $1.2 trillion.<<

For whatever reason, almost all the states that rank highest in (Federal dollars received - federal taxes paid) are red states. Texas being the home of Ron Paul is not isolated.

[CatholicEagle]

I, too, have wondered about the smear Paul crowd, noting that Paul supporters are often accused of smear-speak but the ugliest comments I find here come from Paul’s opposition. Then again, I’m not a FR detailer (too busy) so maybe I’m missing something.

I don’t believe for a moment that Thompson is particularly conservative and Duncan Hunter likes to spend money as much as any politico so pardon my lack of enthusiasm in those quarters.

I also don’t think Paul can win the GOP nomination; however, he is head of a bloc of voters who can and should initiate badly reform of the GOP.

Come November, the naysayers will need that bloc of votes to inoculate the country against Hillary so poking fun here makes no sense at all to me. Then again, maybe the naysayers themselves are Democrats who are simply trying to poison the water by getting Paul supporters to stay home from the general election.

One wonders.

[mnehring]

So why all the effort to smear Ron Paul?

It is pretty much the same treatment that Rudy, McLovin and other RINOs get or similar to how we treat liberal surrender monkeys. The only difference I suppose is that there are a few Freepers who have drank the Koolaid and think Paul is the second coming of Hamilton and have a little cult worship going on with him.