Now that the Sandy relief bill is back on track thanks to Governor Christie and his attacks on John Boehner and his heartless Republicans, we can discuss what their reasons were for ignoring this much needed bill. Although our Governor was right to have demanded passage of this bill to help rebuild his storm ravaged state, we must acknowledge that some politicians may have wanted to cancel the bill due to the large mount of extras, or pork, that was added to the bill by the Senate.
The pork-barrel feast includes:
$8 million to buy cars and equipment for the Homeland Security and Justice departments.
$150 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to dole out to fisheries in Alaska
$2 million for the Smithsonian Institution to repair museum roofs in DC.
Now that the Sandy relief bill is back on track thanks to Governor Christie and his attacks on John Boehner and his heartless Republicans, we can discuss what their reasons were for ignoring this much needed bill. Although our Governor was right to have demanded passage of this bill to help rebuild his storm ravaged state, we must acknowledge that some politicians may have wanted to cancel the bill due to the large mount of extras, or pork, that was added to the bill by the Senate.
The pork-barrel feast includes:
$8 million to buy cars and equipment for the Homeland Security and Justice departments.
$150 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to dole out to fisheries in Alaska
$2 million for the Smithsonian Institution to repair museum roofs in DC.
Now that the Sandy relief bill is back on track thanks to Governor Christie and his attacks on John Boehner and his heartless Republicans, we can discuss what their reasons were for ignoring this much needed bill. Although our Governor was right to have demanded passage of this bill to help rebuild his storm ravaged state, we must acknowledge that some politicians may have wanted to cancel the bill due to the large mount of extras, or pork, that was added to the bill by the Senate.
The pork-barrel feast includes:
$8 million to buy cars and equipment for the Homeland Security and Justice departments.
$150 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to dole out to fisheries in Alaska
$2 million for the Smithsonian Institution to repair museum roofs in DC.
An eye-popping $13 billion would go to “mitigation” projects to prepare for future storms. Much of this money will probably end up as unnecessary construction projects and wasted by well connected contractors. It is doubtful that anything will be built that could prevent this from occurring again.
$207 million for the VA Manhattan Medical Center
$41 million to fix up eight military bases along the storm’s path, including Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
$4 million for repairs at Kennedy Space Center in Florida
$3.3 million for the Plum Island Animal Disease Center
$1.1 million to repair national cemeteries.
$58.8 million for forest restoration on private land.
$197 million “to… protect coastal ecosystems and habitat impacted by Hurricane Sandy.”
$10.78 billion for public transportation, most of which is allocated to future construction and improvements, not disaster relief.
$17 billion for wasteful Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), a program that has become notorious for its use as a backdoor earmark program which is used by politicians to repay donors and supporters for helping keep them in office.
There once was an old man that came to a rich businessman to collect for a Kollel. The businessman asked the collector, "so tell me, what percent do you take for collecting?"
"Fifty percent" he answered.
"And how much does the guy that drives you to the rich people's homes get?" "Also fifty percent".
"So what is left for the kollel students?"
"They're young and strong, let them go to work!!"
In the end we will be lucky if we see ten percent of the money from this bill go to help rebuild people's homes and businesses.
Government at its best.
$8 million to buy cars and equipment for the Homeland Security and Justice departments.
$150 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to dole out to fisheries in Alaska
$2 million for the Smithsonian Institution to repair museum roofs in DC.
An eye-popping $13 billion would go to “mitigation” projects to prepare for future storms. Much of this money will probably end up as unnecessary construction projects and wasted by well connected contractors. It is doubtful that anything will be built that could prevent this from occurring again.
$207 million for the VA Manhattan Medical Center
$41 million to fix up eight military bases along the storm’s path, including Guantanamo Bay, Cuba
$4 million for repairs at Kennedy Space Center in Florida
$3.3 million for the Plum Island Animal Disease Center
$1.1 million to repair national cemeteries.
$58.8 million for forest restoration on private land.
$197 million “to… protect coastal ecosystems and habitat impacted by Hurricane Sandy.”
$10.78 billion for public transportation, most of which is allocated to future construction and improvements, not disaster relief.
$17 billion for wasteful Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), a program that has become notorious for its use as a backdoor earmark program which is used by politicians to repay donors and supporters for helping keep them in office.
There once was an old man that came to a rich businessman to collect for a Kollel. The businessman asked the collector, "so tell me, what percent do you take for collecting?"
"Fifty percent" he answered.
"And how much does the guy that drives you to the rich people's homes get?" "Also fifty percent".
"So what is left for the kollel students?"
"They're young and strong, let them go to work!!"
In the end we will be lucky if we see ten percent of the money from this bill go to help rebuild people's homes and businesses.
Government at its best.
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