Chewing the fat

CommieTommie Harkin is criticizing the President's veto
of a Human Services bill the he authored.

President Bush said...

"This bill is 44 days late and nearly $10 billion over budget, and filled with more than 2,000 earmarks. "Some of its wasteful projects include a prison museum, a sailing school taught aboard a catamaran, and a "Portuguese as a second language" program."

He also said those earmarks totaled more than $1 Billion.

Harkin harps...

"...there is nothing frivolous about providing job retraining to workers laid off at Maytag..."

The Ragister reports...

Aides to Harkin said that there was not a specific amount of money in the vetoed bill for laid-off Maytag workers.

That certainly lacked a bit of truthiness and the scientific community is united in that fact!

Also...

A separate federal job retraining grant for Maytag workers, announced Tuesday by Harkin and Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Ia., would not be affected by the veto.

Here's what really makes CommieTommie cringe, $23 Million was coming to Iowa that included...

* $5 million for the Harkin School Grants-- you should only get to put your name on it if it comes directly from your pocket.

* $100,000 to educate parents about teen drug use-- it's nearly 2008 and parents should know drugs are bad, unless they're stoned.

* $300,000 for exhibits at the Des Moines Art Center--Why? Do they need more shop vacs?

* $150,000 for exhibits, multimedia collections and displays at the Italian-American Cultural Center of Iowa--I'm Italian and even I think that's fottuto.

* $100,000 for outreach to at-risk youth by Creative Visions in Des Moines--No money, I repeat NO MONEY should ever go to Creative Visions!

* $1.5 million statewide for wellness programs in communities that would promote walking trails, fruit and vegetable programs and physical fitness programs--like the ones supported by the Big Lug & Fatty Judge?