War & Pork

Paying for wars already underway is a great way to sneak a few pet projects under the President's pen.

President Bush signed the emergency supplemental act to cover the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and tsunami relief into effect this week. It'll cost you $82 billion -- and take the total cost of the Iraq War to more than $200 billion.

But there's pork a-plenty feeding at the act's trough. Sen John McCain (R-AZ) has rooted a lot of it out:

• $2,000,000 to continue funding for the Southeast Regional Cooling, Heating and Power and Biofuel Application Center in Mississippi
• $4,000,000 to pay off debt at the Fire Sciences Academy in Elko, Nevada
• $2,000,000 for the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences in Michigan


Sen McCain told the Senate, "Are we restraining our spending? No, of course not. We’re at it again, finding new and ever more creative ways to funnel money to the special interests."

Among those special interests the Senator pointed out:

• A viability study for a Rio Grande Silvery Minnow sanctuary
• Completing the Indiana Harbor and Canal disposal project
• San Gabriel Basin restoration in California

Of course, Sen McCain is probably going to feel pretty foolish the minute that a Rio Grande Silvery Minnow uses technology developed at the National Center for Manufacturing Sciences to finally catch Osama bin Laden.