Topic: Democrat Watch
Aren’t You Mad Yet? Just Some of the Pork in the Stimulus Bill
The true cost of the stimulus is estimated to be $3,270,000,000,000.00.
As you peruse the list below, you will probably see things that you would approve of, but other things you find outrageous (which will likely vary from person to person). That is the insidiousness of pork/earmarks: the authors try to “grease enough palms” with taxpayer money that those who benefit are willing to swallow other things along with it.
The welfare in the bill brings overall federal welfare spending to a total of $1,340,000,000,000, which works out to a burden of $17,400 per household that actually pays income tax in the U.S. (This does not include state taxes.)
And now the list, which is not exhaustive, in descending order by dollar amount.
$264,000,000,000 New federal welfare spending
$140,000,000,000 The “Making Work Pay” credit (wealth redistribution welfare)
$8,000,000,000 Harry Reid’s Disneyland-Las Vegas speed train
$6,000,000,000 Making federal buildings green
$5,500,000,000 Making federal buildings green
$5,000,000,000 ACORN Neighborhood Stabilization Programs
$2,000,000,000 Low-emissions powerplant in Mattoon, Illinois
$2,000,000,000 Batteries for hybrid cars
$1,500,000,000 Carbon capture projects
$1,300,000,000 NASA
$1,200,000,000 Summer jobs for youth
$1,000,000,000 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration office buildings
$850,000,000 Amtrak, in addition to its current subsidy
$800,000,000 Federal Prison System buildings and facilities
$750,000,000 National Computer Center
$650,000,000 Digital TV transition coupon program
$650,000,000 Abandoned mine sites
$600,000,000 Hybrid vehicles for federal employees
$522,000,000 Bureau of Indian Affairs construction
$500,000,000 Wildland fire management
$500,000,000 National Institutes of Health facilities
$500,000,000 State and local fire stations
$412,000,000 Centers for Disease Control headquarters
$307,000,000 National Institute for Standards and Technology office buildings
$300,000,000 Hybrid and electric cars for federal employees
$300,000,000 Federal Bureau of Investigation office buildings
$275,000,000 Flood prevention
$200,000,000 Re-sod the Mall in Washington
$200,000,000 Workplace safety in Department of Agriculture facilities
$200,000,000 Leasing alternative energy vehicles for military installations
$200,000,000 Public computer centers at community colleges and libraries
$200,000,000 Filipino World War II Veterans
$198,000,000 Design and furnish Homeland Security headquarters
$180,000,000 Bureau of Land Management facilities
$125,000,000 Washington, D.C. sewer system
$110,000,000 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service construction
$110,000,000 Farm Service Agency computer upgrades
$100,000,000 Grants to Small Shipyards
$100,000,000 U.S. Marshalls office buildings
$100,000,000 Lead paint hazard reduction
$100,000,000 U.S. atomic energy program site cleanup
$88,000,000 Public Health Service renovations
$75,000,000 Smithsonian Institution
$75,000,000 FBI employee salaries
$75,000,000 State Department Security officers training facility
$65,000,000 Watershed rehabilitation
$60,000,000 Arlington National Cemetery
$10,000,000 Fighting Mexican gun-runners
$10,000,000 Urban canals
$5,500,000 “Energy efficiency initiatives” for National Cemetery Administration
The bill also contains:
Temporary Increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit, a wealth-redistributing welfare program
Waiver of Requirement to Repay First-Time Homebuyer Credit
“Build America” bonds to finance public building projects
Sources:
http://blog.heritage.org/2009/02/12/true-cost-of-stimulus-327-trillion/
http://www.reason.com/news/show/131611.html
http://www.heritage.org/Research/Economy/wm2276.cfm
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/12/AR2009021203502_pf.html
http://gawker.com/5153361/harry-reids-disneyland-train
