Watchdog group says there's less 'pork' in Washington

WASHINGTON (AP) -- After seven record-breaking years in a row, the number and cost of so-called pork barrel projects is way down, thanks to voter outrage and a one-year moratorium imposed by Democrats after taking over Congress.

That's good news, according to Citizens Against Government Waste, a watchdog group that has railed against congressional "earmarks" for years.

"There are no indoor rain forests, National Peanut Festivals, mariachi music grants, or teapot museums to be found," according to the group's annual "Pig Book." - CNN
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The cost of such projects has increased greatly in the last decade, with 2006 setting a record of $26 billion. Certainly, spending some of that money could be justified, but a very large part of that total was just "feel good" and "donate here payback" money designed to make a Congressman's constituents feel good about him or get big money to back re-elections. It is past time to move away from that type of politics, and with luck, the prison terms served by former elected officials and their cronies will help convince present and future Representatives and Senators that the payoff for cheating the public is no longer huge wads of money or free golfing vacations to Scotland, but has become an all-expenses paid vacation somewhere in the federal prison system. The one-year moratorium will not solve the problem, but it is certainly a move in the right direction, and that alone represents a major change.