Congressman Abercrombie has come under scrutiny for his military earmarks.  The CBS news first highlighted Abercrombie’s  $3.5 million earmark to Pacific Biodiesel to grow fuel for the Army.  The founder of Pacific Biodiesel is the co-chair of the Congressman’s gubernatorial campaign.  But as Dave Shapiro points out in the Honolulu Advertiser, Congresswoman Hirono actually was the top porker in the House, mostly because she ‘hitchhiked’ on Senator Inouye’s earmarks.

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http://volcanicash.honadvblogs.com/2009/12/03/abercrombie-called-on-pork-spending/

Abercrombie called on pork spending

December 3rd, 2009

by David Shapiro

Hawai’i Congressman Neil Abercrombie was singled out for criticism in a CBS News report on $5 billion worth of congressional earmarks tacked onto the $623 billion Pentagon budget — including millions going to campaign supporters of lawmakers.

CBS said Abercrombie arranged for Pacific Biodiesel to get a $3.5 million earmark to grow fuel for the Army in Hawaii. Kelly King, the founder and vice president of Pacific Biodiesel, is an honorary co-chair of Abercrombie’s planned 2010 campaign for governor.

The report said Abercrombie also arranged an earmark for BAE, a defense contractor that contributes to his campaign, for “mammal awareness.”

Abercrombie said he carefully vets and discloses his earmarks, and awards them to beneficial projects.

Abercrombie is one of the strongest defenders in Congress of earmarks, also known as porkbarrel spending. In March, he was fourth in the House in earmarks attached to President Barack Obama’s $410 billion stopgap spending bill at $111.4 million.

Hawai’i Congresswoman Mazie Hirono was first at $138 million, mostly because she hitchhiked on earmarks proposed in the Senate by Hawai’i’s senior senator and Appropriations Committee chairman Daniel Inouye, who has drawn criticism and praise for being the Senate’s second most prolific porker in 2009 with $220.7 million.

Taxpayers for Common Sense said 18 Inouye earmarks totaling more than $68 million went to donors who have given more than $300,000 to Inouye’s campaign since 2007.

Hawai’i delegates defend earmarks, which don’t get the scrutiny of regular appropriations, on the grounds that senators and congressmen are closer to their communities than administrative agencies and better know the needs.

Obviously, they’re also closer to the needs and desires of their campaign contributors.

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http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/11/25/eveningnews/main5778601.shtml

Nov. 25, 2009

Congress Spends Billions in Earmarks

Department of Defense Budget Has $5 Billion in Pet Projects

By Sharyl Attkisson

(CBS) President Obama has declared war on “earmarks,” funding for special projects that end up costing taxpayers billions. But some in Congress still haven’t gotten the message.

The new defense budget is once again chock full of them, reports CBS News correspondent Sharyl Attkisson.

The United States is now $12 trillion in debt, but Congress doesn’t seem too concerned. They just added billions of dollars to next year’s Pentagon budget in the form of earmarks.

The 2010 Defense Department budget starts at a whopping $623 billion. Pet projects of individual members of Congress add 1,858 earmarks equaling $5 billion tax dollars on top of it.

Sen. Tom Coburn is against earmarking altogether, saying it’s fraught with conflicts of interest. Party leaders and those on the appropriations committees get the lion’s share of earmarks.

“The appropriators reign supreme because they’re like pirates who divide up the bounty and share it among themselves,” Coburn said.

There is a stack of House and Senate earmarks tacked onto next year’s Defense Department budget without the normal public review. None of these add-ons was important enough to be included in the regular budget. A lot of the companies getting tax dollars have campaign ties to the member of Congress giving the money.

For example, Congressman Neil Abercrombie of Hawaii awarded Pacific Biodiesel a $3.5 million earmark to try to grow fuel for the Army in Hawaii. It turns out the founder of Pacific Biodiesel is a co-chair of the Congressman’s gubernatorial campaign.

The pattern is repeated over and over.

Abercrombie also gets donations from defense contractor BAE. BAE gets a defense earmark for “mammal awareness.”

Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen of New Jersey receives thousands from defense contractor Honeywell. He gives Honeywell a $2 million earmark to develop specialized ink. Honeywell’s lobby firm, Winning Strategies, happens to be managed by the Congressman’s former chief-of-staff.

Congressman Robert Aderholt gets donations from the founder of Victory Solutions and Miltec. Each company gets an earmark.

Frelinghuysen had no comment. Abercrombie and Aderholt told us they carefully vet and disclose their earmarks, and award them to projects that will be beneficial.

At least one congressman is bucking the trend. John Adler of New Jersey has taken the unusual step of returning more than $6,000 in donations from a list of lobbyists and others who benefited from his earmark requests.

Last week, Coburn proposed giving up all earmarks and using the money to expand veteran’s benefits.

“I believe we ought to pay for what we do,” Coburn said.

Not surprisingly, Coburn’s idea fell to overwhelming defeat, proving that even in hard economic times, it’s easy for Congress to spend your money.