Porking not the worst of our problems

Chapter 27 "Rolling Out the Pork Barrel"
The concept of an earmark-ridden budget plan is not really news for the U.S. economy. In 1997, Congress' plan to pass the first balanced-budget bill in two decades fell flat on its face after a run through budget seasons/midterm elections. Most of the pork in the bill was of course spending money that the government did not have, fiscal opportunism at its finest - some credible, but outweighed by the sheer amount of waste; ironically, "all but a few members of Congress claimed to hate the damned thing." But the majority still voted for it, as it gave the Dems their health-care/agriculture reforms and the Republicans got their missiles (The Reps were its main opponents) . Even former president Clinton acknowledged that the Bill had "a lot of little things tucked away there that I wish weren't." While the effects of the 1998 $520 billion omnibus spending spree had already drained billions from any future budget surplus, I can only imagine how much further the $410 billion one will drive us (although this bill has a more significant purpose, we're counting on it). Overall, the amount of pork in both bills is a clear reflection that nothing much has changed; there will never be enough money to satisfy any congressman, and as for the ramifications: leave it for the next generation.

Chapter 28 "Roll Out the Barrel: The Case Against the Case Against Pork"
Its True. Every state has been a 'victim' of pork-barreling. Some Senators aren't exactly shy about it, others sit back and let the House take care of business. Certainly in regard to the $410 billion omnibus bill there was a blatant disregard for Obama's anti-pork connotations. While most of the bacon is written off by the CAGW as, well, waste, with more research we find that its the cheapest way to keep the legislative process from completely stopping; local interests should sometimes trump national interests to keep federal powers in check(1). In this specific case, pork is such a small portion of the budget that "equalizing" its distribution would mean only modest funding changes here and there (1). Congressmen are also counting on the fact that no one will vote against a multi-billion dollar bill for a few million dollars of pork. In the public eye (to the average Joe) Pork is usually lauded - there is a sort of stimulation on the district level that has eventually been known to trickle up. Therefore its no suprise that, once again, although with strong Republican opposition the bill was still passed.

Source(s):

1. The Enduring Debate. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2006