Bad Deeds for 2-25-2008

Earmarks Forced on the Military – So far this year, members of Congress have appropriated 12,881 earmarks for “pet projects,” some to be conducted by campaign contributors, which would cost taxpayers over $18 billion. If you look at a Department of Defense appropriations bill, you’ll not find very much pork in it. What you need to do is look at the committee report; 99% of the pork is in the committee report, not in the statute. The committee report for the 2007 appropriations bill contains 2,700 earmarks, worth around $12 billion.

Money was going towards manufacturing products that would never be used, or that nobody asked for to begin with. One such product was Microvision Corporation’s “Nomad,” a helmet with a mounted computer display, meant to flash maps and relevant data to a soldier in combat. In 2001, Senator Slade Gorton (R-WA), who would later join Microvision’s board, earmarked $8 million for the development of the “Nomad.” Democratic Senator Patty Murray, his successor, would appropriate a total of $11.5 million more to buy the helmets.

“Junk,” one Army commander called the helmets, which have never seen combat. Rockwell Collins was awarded the contract instead, but Senator Murray awarded Microvision $6 million for the purchase of their product anyway.

The Navy paid $4.5 million to build a boat they didn’t want because of Congressional earmarks. – But months before the hull ever touched water, the Navy gave the boat to the University of Washington. The school never found a use for it, either. Blame it on Sen. Patty Murray and Congressmen Norm Dicks and Brian Baird. All three exercised their political muscle to slip language into a 2002 spending bill to force the Navy to buy the boat from Edmonds shipbuilder Guardian Marine International. The congressional trio say they were helping Guardian Marine because it had a great product. But each has also received generous campaign donations from the company’s three executives, its sole employees: $14,277 to Baird, $15,000 to Murray, and $16,750 to Dicks.

The Right Wing’s War on Science – The article calls it the Bush Administration’s War on the Laboratory, but the right wing will try to keep it going after Bush is gone. For 2006, President Bush proposed an increase in spending on scientific research, but ninety-seven per cent of the increase will apply to just two areas: weapons development and space-exploration vehicles (not space science).

Republican Congressman Not Wearing a Flag Lapel Pin Criticizes Barack Obama for Not Wearing a Flag Lapel Pin – Friday night’s Real Time with Bill Maher was a riveting display of the dishonest attacks on Barack Obama by the wingnut paparazzi. Rep. Jack Kingston is in his usual wanker form and brings out the most ludicrous talking points to lead the way. Kingston was not wearing a lapel pin. So does this make Kingston unpatriotic, a hypocrite or just plain stupid?

John McCain Ignoring Campaign Finance Law – A few months ago, John McCain applied for and was approved to receive federal matching funds. Because he couldn’t find enough people to fund his campaign, he was also forced to apply for a $4 million line of credit, which he secured by using the federal matching funds as collateral. By taking the federal funding, he agreed to spend no more than $57 million until the Republican convention. But so far, his campaign has spent at least $49 million — leaving him with less than $10 million to campaign with through September.

Now that he’s won the nomination and has the support of the Republican lobbyist and special interest machine, he’s trying to ignore that the whole thing ever happened. He recently wrote a letter to the FEC telling them that he was backing out, even though the FEC is very clear that any request to withdraw from the agreement must be approved; you can’t just change your mind and take it back — legally, you have to be given permission.

McCain isn’t asking because he knows he’ll never be granted permission, and he doesn’t want to have to accept the funding restrictions he agreed to when he used the money as collateral for a loan. He’s ripping a page right from George Bush’s playbook: ignoring the laws when they aren’t convenient and hoping no one will notice.

Comcast blocking the Internet and Public Comments – There was a huge turnout at today’s public hearing in Boston on the future of the Internet. Hundreds of concerned citizens have arrived in droves to speak out on the importance of an open Intsernet. Many people have taken the day off work — standing in outside in the Boston chill — to see the FCC Commissioners. But when they reach the door, they’re told they can’t come in.

The huge crowd here in Boston is yet another example that the public doesn’t want giant corporations like Comcast and Verzion deciding what we can do and where we can go on the Internet. But will the FCC hear these voices? Probably not.

Comcast and Verizon reportedly packed the room with seat-fillers to keep the public out of the public hearing. There are even rumors that many of the seat-fillers were paid to sit there for the afternoon. (And many in the crowd had mysteriously matching yellow highlighters stuck in their lapels.) More than 100 people were turned away by campus police when the hearing room filled to capacity.

Regards,

Jim