Senate keeps pet projects in spending bill

Yahoo / AP ^ | 03/03/2009 | EagleUSA

[EagleUSA]

WASHINGTON – The Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to preserve thousands of earmarks in a $410 billion spending bill, brushing aside Sen. John McCain's claim that President Barack Obama and Congress are merely conducting business as usual in a time of economic hardship.

McCain's attempt to strip out an estimated 8,500 earmarks failed on a vote of 63-32. The Arizona senator's proposal also would have cut roughly $32 billion from the measure and would have kept spending at last year's levels in several federal agencies.

Last year's Republican presidential candidate said both he and Obama said during the campaign to "stop business as usual in Washington," and he quoted the president as having pledged to go line by line to make sure money was spent wisely.

The White House has said that Obama intends to sign the legislation, casting it as leftover business from 2008. Spokesman Robert Gibbs pledged on Monday the White House will issue new guidelines covering earmarks for future bills.

[EagleUSA]

If we still had a Republican party that cared about saving our capitalist system, there might be some hope but with this crap continuing, especially in a major recession, you can see what these political maggots are really interested in. This is the stench of the professional politician.

[acoulterfan]

Obama is going to have the one project that has started in Maryland for one mile of road recon that will create 60 jobs (note they say that not all of the jobs will be permanent or full-time) be played on all of the MSM channels tonight over and over.

Pure Propaganda!