Demanding a federal budget that is fair, responsible, and meets our nation's priorities

Friday, November 18, 2005

And A Bridge To Be Named Later

There have been many headaches for the GOP in Congress over the past two months, but one of the most public has been a battle over funding for two proposed bridges in Alaska. Funding for the so-called "bridges-to-nowhere" was included in the six year transportation reauthorization bill earlier this year (over $452 million in total), but had become a political liability to the Republican party over the past two months.

In fact, the earmarks had caused the party so much embarrassment - particularly the span to be named "Don Young Way" after 16-term Rep. Don Young (R-AK) - that House leaders decided to remove the funding in the FY06 Transportation appropriations conference report, which was passed today by the House 392 - 31. Young was reportedly so angry at his colleagues that he confronted Reps. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) and Marilyn Musgrave (R-CO), hurling angry comments at them for sabotaging his pet project and calling other lawmakers hypocrites for not criticizing other "pork" transportation projects in their own districts.

But the real kicker here is that the funding wasn't actually removed from the bill. Alaska will still receive the more than $400 million dollars originally outlined for the bridges, but will now be free to spend it on any transportation projects they see fit - perhaps, say, a new bridge.

So the temper-tantrum Young threw was either a result of a lack of understanding of the implications of the appropriations conference report or a overinflated sense of theatrical hubris - or perhaps both.