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December 16, 2004
Spot The Pork: Is A Million Enough to Say Happy Independence Day?
The latest unsurprising budget news from CQ Midday Update:
Ah, the omnibus -- the gift that keeps on giving. The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that Rep. Martin Olav Sabo, D-Minn., slipped a provision into the 2,900-page spending bill directing $1 million to the Norwegian American Foundation to honor the 100th anniversary of Norway's peaceful independence from Sweden in 1905. The head of the Seattle-based foundation didn't know the funding had been secured until Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., complained publicly about it, the paper said. Sabo said it is "common for nations to commemorate the anniversaries of their friends and historic allies." Norwegian Ambassador Knut Vollebaek first learned of the money from an e-mail about McCain's protest, the Star Tribune said. "The embassy has not lobbied for this, by no means," Vollebaek said. "We do not interfere with the budget processes of other countries. But we are very grateful to Congressman Sabo."Nevermind the poor, the homeless, the jobless, the uneducated in the US. Let's use our hard earned tax money to celebrate the peaceful history of Norway!
Posted by cj at December 16, 2004 1:28 PM
Comments
But we have to help the poor struggling country of Norway to properly celebrate its heritage. Without our financial help, their celebration would devolve into torrents of bloodshed and violence.
Between this and Bush's new yacht, this omnibus spending bill is driving me nuts. And with this one, the Republicans can't even claim to have a partisan reason for passing pork: they just wrote and proofread incompetently. Ah, par for the course.
Posted by: Hyoun at December 16, 2004 10:39 PM
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