Senate appropriations chief dubbed biggest pork spender

Once again, Senate Appropriations Chairman Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, has come up the big winner in the annual pork barrel derby sponsored by Citizens Against Government Waste.

The organization cited Stevens Wednesday in its "Pig Book" for getting the most money per capita for his state -- a total of $524 million, or $808 for each person -- in fiscal 2004. This was 26 times the national per capita average of $31. Defense Appropriations Subcommittee ranking member Daniel Inouye, D-Hawaii, followed with $494 million, or $393 per capita. New Jersey slipped to last place on the list -- it had been No. 42 last year -- getting $101 million, or $11.70 per capita.

Not only did Stevens get the big spender prize, but he was also criticized by the citizens group for getting $2 million to improve recreation at the city of North Pole, Alaska, which has a population of 1,570. Stevens responded with this statement: "We are Americans -- we need schools, libraries, airports, water and wastewater facilities. There is no pork in the money I have sought and received for investment in Alaska's future."

Thomas Schatz, the president of Citizens Against Government Waste, said at a news conference that Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, got the biggest project in the fiscal 2004 omnibus spending bill -- $50 million for an indoor rain forest in Coralville, Iowa. Schatz said this was only a down payment on a "$225 million tropical boondoggle."

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said at the news conference that "this system has lurched out of control" and called for procedural changes to prevent projects being inserted into conference committee bills "in the dead of night" without floor votes. Appropriations ranking member Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., who has long been celebrated for his ability to bring federal money to his state, was found to have brought home $238 million, or almost $132 per person, ranking the state No. 5.

The citizens group listed 630 of the "most egregious pork barrel projects" in its "Pig Book," which made up a smorgasbord of projects that included the likes of wild turkeys and shrimp farming. For fiscal 2004, the organization said 10,656 projects were listed in the 13 appropriations bills, a 13 percent increase over the 9,362 projects in fiscal 2003. The total cost was $22.9 billion, or 1.6 percent over the $22.5 billion appropriated the year before, the group said.

"Today, rather than devote every penny to protect the nation, members of Congress continue to protect their incumbency," Schatz said. "In fact, Sept. 11 and the war with Iraq have become excuses to spend money on just about anything."