{"id":1960254,"date":"2023-06-29T12:21:02","date_gmt":"2023-06-29T16:21:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-congress-secures-16-billion-in-earmark-funding-for-local-pet-projects\/"},"modified":"2023-06-29T12:23:35","modified_gmt":"2023-06-29T16:23:35","slug":"report-congress-secures-16-billion-in-earmark-funding-for-local-pet-projects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-congress-secures-16-billion-in-earmark-funding-for-local-pet-projects\/","title":{"rendered":"Congress secures $16B for local pet projects in earmark funding."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Freport-congress-secures-16-billion-in-earmark-funding-for-local-pet-projects%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1960254&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">From the American LGBTQ+ Museum to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/report-congress-secures-16-billion-in-earmark-funding-for-local-pet-projects\/\" title=\"Congress secures B for local pet projects in earmark funding.\">struggling rail transit plan<\/a>, members of Congress secured $16 billion in earmarks for initiatives in their respective districts for fiscal year 2023, a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.openthebooks.com\/assets\/1\/6\/OpenTheBooks_Earmarks_Media_Kit_FINAL_06.2023.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">new report<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> from Open The Books says.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">An <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.openthebooks.com\/maps\/?Map=90054&#038;MapType=Pin\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">interactive map<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> from Open The Books breaks down the projects, amounts allocated, and the politicians who requested the funds by state.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Earmarks, which were banned in 2011, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2021\/03\/17\/politics\/house-republicans-earmarks-spending-practice\/index.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">became legal again<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> in 2021 with bipartisan <a href=\"https:\/\/www.openthebooks.com\/substack-congressional-combine-fleeced-america-using-16b-in-earmarks-to-pass-17t-omnibus-bill\/\">support<\/a>\u00a0to reinstate the practice, a move that Open The Books CEO Adam Andrzejewski compared to \u201copening a bar tab for a bunch of alcoholics.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cBy definition, Congress is picking winners and goofing up the marketplace with highly dislocating favors,\u201d <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">he continued.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>According to the report, <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cEarmarks allow federal legislators to set aside specific sums of money for local projects in their states or districts. Earmarks help members of Congress \u2018bring home the bacon.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The $16 billion sum includes $3 million for the New York Historical Society\u2019s effort to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/newyorkyimby.com\/2022\/12\/renderings-revealed-for-ramsas-expansion-of-the-new-york-historical-society-building-at-170-central-park-west-on-manhattans-upper-west-side.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">create<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> the American LGBTQ+ Museum, located in Rep. Jerry Nadler\u2019s (D-NY) district. President and CEO of the New York Historical Society Louise Mirrer <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">thanked<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Rep. Nadler for their assistance in securing the funding.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Another <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wmar2news.com\/local\/national-great-blacks-in-wax-museum-received-2-million-in-funding-for-upgrades#:~:text=The%20National%20Great%20Blacks%20in,Doctors%20Joanne%20and%20Elmer%20Martin.\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">$2 million<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> will go toward the \u201cNational Great Blacks in Wax\u201d museum in Baltimore, Maryland, in Rep. Kweisi Mfume\u2019s (D-MD) district. A <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcpalm.com\/picture-gallery\/news\/local\/st-lucie-county\/2022\/02\/11\/wax-figures-historic-black-leaders-display-fort-pierce\/6692721001\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">wax figure<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> of Mfume, the former president of the NAACP, stands at the museum, as do figures of Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, and Martin Luther King Jr.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">There\u2019s also the Universal Hip Hop Museum, located in the Bronx, which will receive $5 million in federal funding <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gillibrand.senate.gov\/news\/press\/release\/gillibrand-schumer-bowman-and-hip-hop-legends-announce-5-million-for-the-universal-hip-hop-museum-to-celebrate-and-preserve-hip-hop-in-the-heart-of-the-community-where-it-was-fo\/?type=video\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">attained<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Sen. Schumer, and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cWith the 50th anniversary of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/walsh-while-others-are-canceled-for-tweets-and-jokes-cardi-b-suffers-no-consequences-for-drugging-and-robbing-men\/\" title=\"WALSH: While Others Are Canceled For Tweets And Jokes, Cardi B Suffers No Consequences For Drugging And Robbing Men\">hip hop<\/a> right around the corner, I am proud to have secured funds to help the Universal Hip Hop Museum celebrate everything that is beautiful about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/watch-msnbcs-joy-reid-claims-ben-shapiro-is-anti-vax-using-nicki-minaj-to-drag-people-into-anti-vax-camp\/\" title=\"WATCH: MSNBC\u2019s Joy Reid Claims Ben Shapiro Is \u2018Anti-Vax,\u2019 Using Nicki Minaj To \u2018Drag\u2019 People Into \u2018Anti-Vax Camp\u2019\">hip hop culture<\/a>,\u201d Gillibrand stated.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Meanwhile, Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.schatz.senate.gov\/news\/press-releases\/schatz-secures-nearly-64-million-in-new-funding-for-honolulu-rail-project\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">secured<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> $64 million for the Honolulu Rail Transit Project. The projected costs have <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.hawaiibusiness.com\/hart-history-hawaii-rail-project-when-finished-budget\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">more than doubled<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> from the initial estimate of $5.12 billion to $12.45 billion since local officials signed the agreement with the Federal Transit Administration in 2012. The project is now projected to be completed by March 2031, 11 years later than first agreed upon.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Columbia University, which has an endowment of $13.3 billion, received nearly $3 million in federal funds to create a climate action <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/news.climate.columbia.edu\/2023\/01\/13\/new-project-will-develop-climate-action-plan-to-ensure-new-york-city-water-quality\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">plan<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> addressing water quality. The funding was approved by Rep. Jerry Nadler, who attended the institution.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Outgoing Senators Richard Shelby (R-AL) and Patrick Leahy (D-VT) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.openthebooks.com\/substack-congressional-combine-fleeced-america-using-16b-in-earmarks-to-pass-17t-omnibus-bill\/\">earmarked<\/a> $100 million and $30 million, respectively, to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.al.com\/educationlab\/2023\/02\/richard-shelby-earmarks-100-million-for-university-of-alabama-faculty-unprecedented.html\">University of Alabama<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uvm.edu\/news\/story\/parting-gift-sen-leahy-helps-secure-millions-federal-funding-support-uvm\">University of Vermont<\/a>, which will hold each senator\u2019s Congressional papers. Both schools are also creating programs <a href=\"https:\/\/www.uvm.edu\/news\/story\/uvm-honors-college-named-senator-patrick-leahy\">named after<\/a> the politicians who secured the funding.<\/p>\n<p><b data-stringify-type=\"bold\"><\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Several lawmakers even secured earmarks for institutions that employ their <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/themessenger.com\/politics\/lawmakers-sent-millions-in-earmarks-to-their-spouses-employers-despite-reforms\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">spouses<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">. Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) tapped $750,000 for the University of Redlands, his alma mater. Aguilar\u2019s wife works for the private university as <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">an operations support director in student financial services.\u00a0 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/napavalleyregister.com\/community\/star\/news\/thompson-secures-1-84-million-for-adventist-health-st-helena-water-system\/article_234d2de6-dada-11ec-9bc4-2f79917b9c20.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">secured<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> $1.84 million for Adventist Health St. Helena, a hospital that employs his wife. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) sponsored nearly $3.5 million for George Mason University, where his wife is a professor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The report also notes that Democrats earmarked $9.1 billion compared to $6.4 billion by Republicans. However, it also points out that Congressional Republicans \u201cout-earmarked their Democratic colleagues in<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">21 states\u201d and that \u201cseven of the top ten Members of Congress who earmarked the most were Senate Republicans.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>According to Open The Books, Congress members obtained $16 billion in earmarks for various projects in their districts for fiscal year 2023. The report highlights initiatives like the American LGBTQ+ Museum and a rail transit plan. Open The Books&#8217; interactive map provides details on the allocated amounts and the politicians responsible for requesting them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":503,"featured_media":1960255,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1960254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-daily-wire"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1960254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/503"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1960254"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1960254\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1960255"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1960254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1960254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1960254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}