Danger! Atomic Daschle Bomb about to be dropped on SDSU
The Argus Leader is reporting today over the howls of protest regarding an atomic earmark that was dropped into the federal appropriations bill to memorialize Tom Daschle:
A massive federal appropriations bill that includes a $1 million earmark to create a center for former Sen. Tom Daschle is drawing heavy fire in Washington, D.C. today.
The earmark would fund the Thomas Daschle Center for Public Service and Representative Democracy at South Dakota State University. It’s among 150 pages of earmarks in a combined bill that would fund education, health and human services, veterans programs, and other areas of federal government.
and..
“We’re violating our own rules to do this,” Flake said. “A million dollars for the Thomas Daschle Center for Public Service and Representative Democracy. We’re spending a million dollars on this bill, airdropped into this bill, with no opportunity to amend it out.”
Daschle’s former colleague, South Dakota Sen. Tim Johnson sponsored the earmark along with three other Democratic senators: Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada; Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Iowa’s Tom Harkin.
First off, I don’t recall South Dakota asking for this.
Second, see my first point.
But they’re going to throw it at us anyway. 1 million dollars for the Tom Daschle vanity project. And after that, South Dakotans will get to foot the bill for the staffing and upkeep.
Thanks, but no thanks.
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Comments
I wonder what John Lauck thinks? Maybe instead of taking the Feds money, John could pay back all the money he made while working at SDSU and blogging for Thune at the same time.
This funding is outrageous and exactly what is wrong with Congress…Daschle’s buddies corruptly funding a vanity project for him. Disgusting. Wait, I thought the Democrats were going to PUT AN END TO EARMARKS!!??
“Airdropped earmarks are ones that were added to the bill during conference committee, which means they did not go through the normal appropriations process in either the House or Senate.”
So the Daschle Center for Democracy is being started by circumventing the legislative process and corruptly adding in secrets provisions in the dark of night? That’s a perfect memorial for Daschle.
Holy crap people…..if it were called the Ronald Regan Center for Democracy you would all be peeing your pants about what a great program this will be and what a coop for South Dakota.
Give him this. When he asks for more we can tell him he already got something.
Next up he will want a library.
Corrupt Democrats giving away your taxpayer money to build a monument to their good buddy. I’m not surprised. Daschle is such a sap.
Why can’t the Daschle’s pay for their own darn vanity project with the millions they make lobbying for earmarks?
Did Linda Daschle lobby for this earmark for her husband’s vanity project?
This is almost as big of a waste as that $1.3 million we spent on the Iraq Study Group. Or the $5 million we used to pay for the Future of Iraq study in 2002. I man if we are going to blow a million dollars why don’t we spend it on something we will actually use. Right?
Isn’t the idea that this is a place to house the Daschle papers, much like the Mundt Library at Dakota State? That is what I assumed, I guess.
This is a disgusting abuse of power and cronyism and old-boys-club BS….why are Daschle’s buds stealing tax payer money to fund this crap???
Thank you Tim Johnson for reminding us that you really are as corrupt as your old buddy Daschle. With all the concern over your health, we kinda forgot what a political liberal hack you are.
If this isn’t abuse of the public trust, open corruption, and stealing of taxpayer money in the dead of night for a dumb project that never had a hearing or was openly debated, then I don’t know what is.
Right on UGH. They should stop this earmark just like they did Thune’s DM&E one. Then we should close Ellsworth just like Rumsfeld said we should. I mean who’s smarter Sec. Don Rumsfeld or South Dakota’s congressional delegation?
If Tommy Daschle wants a monument to himself he can sell his $8 million mansion in Washington financed by his corporate lobbyist/shill wife and his own lobbying
this is pathetic
I don’t know if the Mundt Library got federal money for his papers. If so, this seems fair as well. Agree or disagree with Mundt or Daschle, their papers are a tremendous resource to the public, historians, political scientist, and bloggers from Mitchell with too much time on their hands.
I couldn’t stand Karl Mundt. But his library and a decent place for his papers so we can all access them is a good thing for scholarship and our democracy. Daschle served as long or longer than Mundt in Washington and his papers will also be a great resource far into the future.
Dole has a similar facility at Kansas U. I can think of worse ways to spend our tax dollars than on preserving our history.
Todd: the Karl Mundt Library was NOT done with federal money. The money was donated by Karl Mundt. Daschle is having his buddies steal money from the public treasury in the dead of night to build a shrine to him. This is CORRUPTION. And the Democrats have always been the worst offenders at this kind of thing. This is BS and must be stopped.
What Todd Epp and the liberal apologists for corruption seems to missing is that this process was completely UNdemocratic. There was no hearing, no floor debate, no process, no notice. Todd, you’re a lawyer you know this is wrong. This was slipped into a 900 page bill hours before it was supposed to be voted on.
Why hasn’t there been millions of dollars stolen from the public treasury for Abdnor and Pressler libraries????
I am pretty sure the money is going to an exsisting building on SDSU’s campus that in a couple of years it is not going to be used. The money is for repairs and to the library’s program. And yes SDSU asked for the money and for his papers. Students and adults will do research and policy work with his papers for years to come. It is just another item SDSU will be known for. He is an alumni and if you have not been around for the last few years a huge part of South Dakota.
19. These earmarks are done all the time. That’s why we send our people to Washington–to get this stuff. Don’t hate the player, hate the game. Then Congress should do away with all earmarks. Until that day comes, if you’re not willing to play with the rules as they are, stay home.
My guess you’d be much less outraged if this was an appropriation for the Thune Center for Public Policy at USD or BIOLA done by a fellow South Dakota Republican Senator at the conclusion of Sen. Thune’s political career.
And what about the benefit to SDSU?
Your hatred of Tom Daschle gets in the way of the good that comes from this–to the public, to scholars, to SDSU.
I’d be more concerned about the billions we are pouring down a whole in Iraq to quench the bloodlust of our chickenhawk President and VP. There’s a much better place to put your fiscal outrage.
Todd Epp supports dark-of-night crony corruption by liberals who steal from the public treasury without the public knowing. This is from the guy who is always attacking “crony capitalism.” Todd, you’re a hypocrite.
Of all the anonymous GOP P-words going apeshit in here over a $1 million project in the name of a man who brought home hundreds of millions of dollars for our state’s economic development during his 26 years of, clearly, thankless public service – I’ll wager the overwhelming majority of you fully support throwing away $10 billion a month policing an endless civil war in Iraq.
Stop equating the spending of public money on Iraq to sneaking in an expenditure like the Daschle deally, which WE ALL WILL BE PAYING FOR as the university system continues to suckle a bigger share of public funds.
DME never got an ear-mark, duh. They applied for a loan, just like any other railroad can.
The mind is a terrible thing to waste, Penny.
All earmarks should be done away with, but since the ones who could do so are the ones who like them, this will never happen. Such is politics of today.
Why not take the $1M, buy a governor’s house or two for his fancy sounding center, and use the remainder of the $1M for upkeep, salaries, etc etc.
So did SDSU ask for this under the table or not? Couldn’t they refuse?
I just hope this comes back to bite Johnson if he decides to actually run. I’m sure not going to forget his loose fingers with my money.
If you’re gonna get an earmark Tim, get one for an overpass, bypass, underpass, interchange, on- ramp, road, health plan, economic plan, homestake, something! $1M on this crap is pure stupidity and doesn’t have a chance in hell other than a nice gentle stroke to your mentor, Tom.
Jer-Bear(?) sounds anonymous to me. Do you even pay taxes?
If anyone thinks the DM&E would have repaid their “loan” they are sadly mistaken.
Earmarks are dirty but they are commonly done, and the R’s did a TON of them in this manner — it’s part of why they lost congress and the public trust. Just because it’s Daschle you’re outraged now? That’s pretty weak.
come on guys, show me your outrage for the $6 million appropriated for the Bob Dole institute at the University of Kansas.
look in the mirror and tell me honestly if you’re foaming at the mouth out of principle or out of pure, unadulterated hate for Tom Daschle.
I am honestly foaming at the mouth out of pure, unadulterated hate for wasted money and corruption of public officals.
If Tom wants to bequeath his papers to SDSU then he should donate the money for a place to house them and enough endowment for upkeep. This is what good public servants do–(esp when their wife has made millions scamming the tax payers.)
And NO! if it were Thune, Pressler–any Republican– I would expect the same thing–but there likely would be no controversy because they, like Mundt, would pay for their own as a matter of course.
“Common Sense” –
SDSU asked for his papers and for this funding.
and, in light of the $6 MILLION EARMARK FOR BOB DOLE, your last sentence makes sense how?
PS – throwing in an offhand insult to someone’s wife doesn’t exactly strengthen your argument. it actually sorta makes you look petty. and weak. and somehow threatened by successful women. just sayin’…
Dear #29.
Honesty you need a help so here it is:
I’m not the only one calling the DM&E “Loan” (no one could prove if they could ever repay it) an earmark.
This is from US News and World Report 5/21/06
“But Steve Ellis, with the budget watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense, calls it the ‘granddaddy of all earmarks,’ given its large price tag.”
It was such and outrageous form of corperate welfare it got squashed, remember?
Dear #29.
Honesty you need a help so here it is:
I’m not the only one calling the DM&E “Loan” (no one could prove if they could ever repay it) an earmark.
This is from US News and World Report 5/21/06
“But Steve Ellis, with the budget watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense, calls it the ‘granddaddy of all earmarks,’ given its large price tag.”
It was such and outrageous form of corporate welfare it got squashed, remember?
SDSU wanted this project. Daschle is a distinguished alumni and they have always been interested in his papers. Like it or not, he was a political leader at a pivotal time in our history and his papers will be of interest to historians for decades to come.
As far as earmarks, Senate Democrats never said they would be outlawed, only that the sponsor of the earmark would be known, and Sen. Johnson has been very public about this, and other earmarks.
But I hope all the SD right wingers thing twice, if they think at all, about knee jerk opposition to earmarks and federal government spending.
Do they really think that the millions and millions of SD water projects are being funded because everyone in the country is concerned about South Dakotans? Do they really think expedited funding for the Heartland Expressway is supported because everyone in the nation is concerned about economic development in southwest SD? Do they really think that support for SD’s Medical School construction is done because people around the country want South Dakota to have a first class med school? Give me a break.
And as far as $1 million for the SDSU project, are the right wingers as concerned about the MULTI-million for the Robert J. Dole Center at the University of Kansas? Are they upset about similar amounts being spent for the Howard Baker center in Tennessee? My guess is no.
Is this a BUILDING, or just a PROGRAM? If it is a building, $1M is not very much of a building for a university campus. If it is a program, a one-time earmark is not very helpful. I’d be interested to hear more details.