Does pork spending really matter?
Many lawmakers make no apology for pushing pet projects. For some, it’s the grease that makes the legislative engine run smoothly; for others, it’s one of the main reasons they are in Washington. One senator singled out in the Citizens Against Government Waste “pig book” is Sen. Conrad Burns, a Montana Republican. Burns was judged responsible for $27,388,000 in pork-barrel spending in his home state, including nearly $22 million for housing at Malmstrom Air Force Base. Embarrassed to be in the “Pig Book”? “Not at all,” Burns press secretary Matt Raymond told AllPolitics. “Montana has not had a member on the appropriations committee since Senator Mike Mansfield … Conrad feels that there are a certain amount of discretionary funds in the budget and Montana has been neglected over those years.” “One person’s pork is another person’s legitimate expenditure,” Raymond explains. Some lawmakers say they oppose pork-barrel spending, but as long as Congress funds discretionary projects, they w
