Citizens Against Government Waste has announced this year's winner...

WASHINGTON - (Business Wire) Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) today announced the results of its online poll for the 2009 Porker of the Year. House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank, (D-Mass.) won with 49 percent of the vote. In second place was Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) with 26.3 percent. Third-place honors went to Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) with 6.6 percent. Honorable mentions go out to Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-Mo.) with 5.9 percent and Rep. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) with 5.5 percent.

Porker?  If you're a gay liberal congressman and the biggest city in your district is full of Portuguese fishermen, you better know how to bring home the bacon! 'Nuff said.
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/07/oink.gif

Porker?  If you're a gay liberal congressman and the biggest city in your district is full of Portuguese fishermen, you better know how to bring home the bacon! 'Nuff said.
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/07/oink.gif


I was thinking the same thing  ;D

I'd like to know what they define as "pork".  My reps in both houses bring home a good deal of $$$ for Vermont projects that either put people to work, assist people who are working, or contribute to the well being of citizens of the state.  Is that pork, or is that what our reps should be doing?  Oh, and by the way, none of them would help Rutland become a port on Lake Champlain (THAT'S AN INSIDE JOKE)

My reps in both houses bring home a good deal of $$$ for Vermont projects that either put people to work, assist people who are working, or contribute to the well being of citizens of the state. 


Pretty much ANY government spending can fit those descriptions.  If anything (or service) is being bought at all, then SOMEBODY is gonna work to produce it.  Whoever receives the money will certainly have their well being improved.

My definition of pork would be "spending that we could have done without".  Like a second engine manufacturer for the F-35 or a new microwave oven for Marine One.  Both of these examples were putting people to work and certainly improved somebody's well being, but the current administration wisely extinguished them.

The problem with pork is that a very few people benefit, but the money comes out of EVERYBODY's wallet.

http://standupforamerica.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/barney-frank-chutzpah.jpg

You're damn right I've been waiting for an excuse to bust this out.

http://standupforamerica.files.wordpress.com/2009/07/barney-frank-chutzpah.jpg

You're damn right I've been waiting for an excuse to bust this out.


Actually I think it shoudl read "Freddie Mac"...

;D

Actually I think it shoudl read "Freddie Mac"...

;D


Yeeeah, Barney would say so himself.
:-\\

Responding to what Don Carlos said, I don't mind "pork barrel" spending if it gives a person a job and a paycheck.  Conservatives keep drumming the mantra that it should be the private sector, not the government, employing people.  However, the esteemed "private sector" is not interested in employing tens of millions of adults who need living wage jobs in this country.  So, if the private sector doesn't want you and the government refuses to help you out, what's left?  Crime, that's what.  You like crime?  Who likes crime? (I mean besides Washington hacks and Wall Street banksters)
???

Yeeeah, Barney would say so himself.
:-\\

Responding to what Don Carlos said, I don't mind "pork barrel" spending if it gives a person a job and a paycheck.  Conservatives keep drumming the mantra that it should be the private sector, not the government, employing people.  However, the esteemed "private sector" is not interested in employing tens of millions of adults who need living wage jobs in this country.  So, if the private sector doesn't want you and the government refuses to help you out, what's left?  Crime, that's what.  You like crime?  Who likes crime? (I mean besides Washington hacks and Wall Street banksters)
???


Why should they pay us living wages when K-Mart and Wal-Mart go to places like Haiti and pay people as much as a dollar a day(and no benefits) for 12 hours days and still call themselves American companies. 

I love how some of these members of Congress bitch, moan, & gripe about others having "pork" when they are just as guilty. Can you say, "HYPOCRISY?"




Cat

I love how some of these members of Congress bitch, moan, & gripe about others having "pork" when they are just as guilty. Can you say, "HYPOCRISY?"

Cat


Agreed.  The only major point of bipartisanship in DC is that they ALL are porkers.

I would like to see a ban on earmarks enacted somehow.

Frank really is a douchebag.  He needs to retire or resign.  Chris Dodd is at least doing us the favor of retiring.

Frank really is a douchebag.   


Too bad.  Nobody in his household would need one.
:(

But what I was saying is what it does come down to with the Miltie Freakman predatory capitalism. 

"You don't want to hire me because there's a gap in my resume and I have a bad credit score, but you don't want the government to pay me way either.  What do you want I should do, shoot myself?"

"Yes."

"Okay, thank you for being honest for once.  Give me a revolver with two bullets."

"Why two?"

"Because I'm taking you with me."
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/07/pfiade.gif

I'm not a free market economist, but I don't like Frank's brand of economics either.

Having shelter is a right.  Owning a house is a privilege.  The recent mortgage crisis was partially the fault of the CRA and Frank's corruption and partially the fault of banks acting unethically.

What we really need is regulators with common sense.  Ending regulation isn't the answer, but neither is regulating lenders into giving money to people who can't pay them back.

Dodd is far worse than Frank.  Dodd is a traitor.  He's stripping out bank reform legislation because he wants a seven-figure salary job with one of those big banks when he quits the senate this year.  F**k him!
>:(

Dodd is far worse than Frank.  Dodd is a traitor.  He's stripping out bank reform legislation because he wants a seven-figure salary job with one of those big banks when he quits the senate this year.  F**k him!
>:(


Hmmm... He and Barney would make a nice couple, eh? ???

I thought Murtha held that title. :-\\

ooohhhh... an ONLINE POLL found Frank something something... seriously? an online poll.  You might as well say the tooth fairy and the easter bunny both agree they hate Barney Frank.

let me know when you find something based on research instead of popularity.

In order to fill out the CAGW (Citizens Against Goddam Washington) online poll, don't you have to be on CAGW email list?  Who wants to be on their mailing list?  If I found their poll or anything else from that group in my email, I would send it to the spam box and I wouldn't respond at all, lest I get more spam from CAGW.  So, yeah, their sample is probably tainted.

And yet, short of embracing explicit white supremacy, there is no such thing as a group too far right for the major media to fawn over.  That's why I mentioned all the news networks going apesh*t over the Tea Party Convention.  I saw some of that, sounded like a frikkin' Klan rally!
::)

So much gay bashing in this thread. Some of you people should be ashamed of yourselves.

I don't understand how this guy even has a house seat. I mean the people of Massachusetts have intellegent(even if I don;t agree with him) politicians like John Kerry, Edward Markey, and Steven Lynch but why Frank though?

I thought Murtha held that title. :-\\


If he did, it's past tense as of this afternoon.
:\'(


I don't understand how this guy even has a house seat. I mean the people of Massachusetts have intellegent(even if I don;t agree with him) politicians like John Kerry, Edward Markey, and Steven Lynch but why Frank though?


Please do yourself a favor.  Proofread your posts.
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/12/icon_biggrin.gif

So much gay bashing in this thread. Some of you people should be ashamed of yourselves.


Karma for raising the issue - but I respectfully disagree.  We're not making fun of Barney Frank because he likes the w33n.  We're making fun of him because he likes the pork.  Bill Clinton and his intern were likewise fair game for humorous political commentary, and if Barney were straight, we'd be making cigar/sausage jokes about Fannie Mae instead of Freddie Mac. 

(We made similar fun of Larry Craig and Ted Haggard not because they liked the w33n, but that also wasn't gay-bashing.  That's closeted-hypocrite-bashing.  We're making fun of the fact that they hid their kinks while criticizing others for it.)

In the interests of fairness, there's one issue on which I agree with Frank.  It's just another bit of pork for the banks that make up his power base, but the day Frank manages to legalize online gambling, he'll have struck a blow for economic freedom.  He's already run it up the flagpole a few times to see if anyone would salute, and maybe this is the year he manages to ram it through.

Karma for raising the issue - but I respectfully disagree.  We're not making fun of Barney Frank because he likes the w33n.  We're making fun of him because he likes the pork.  Bill Clinton and his intern were likewise fair game for humorous political commentary, and if Barney were straight, we'd be making cigar/sausage jokes about Fannie Mae instead of Freddie Mac.  

(We made similar fun of Larry Craig and Ted Haggard not because they liked the w33n, but that also wasn't gay-bashing.  That's closeted-hypocrite-bashing.  We're making fun of the fact that they hid their kinks while criticizing others for it.)

In the interests of fairness, there's one issue on which I agree with Frank.  It's just another bit of pork for the banks that make up his power base, but the day Frank manages to legalize online gambling, he'll have struck a blow for economic freedom.  He's already run it up the flagpole a few times to see if anyone would salute, and maybe this is the year he manages to ram it through.


Frank got outed in a lurid sex scandal in 1989.  Instead of denying the gay identity, he embraced it.  Frank is indeed a very liberal politician and a gay activist.  However, he's first and foremost a politician.  I saw him speak at UMass in 2003.  I asked him what we should do about the wantonly unconstitutional decision known as Bush v. Gore.  He said there was nothing we could do, and we shouldn't mention it in the 2004 election season because it would make Democrats look bad.  He also said in his speech praising John Kerry, regarding Kerry's service in Vietnam, "he killed communists!"  A guy in the auditorium yelled back: "What is a communist?"
Frank raised his hands in a defensive posture and replied, "I know, I know."
The unspoken answer, of course, is a communist is a human being, Frank understood that, and he was advocating the New Democrat tactic of placating the right-wing by agreeing with them -- which doesn't work.

I lost a bunch of respect for Barney that day.
http://www.inthe00s.com/smile/12/disgust.gif

He's already run it up the flagpole a few times to see if anyone would salute, and maybe this is the year he manages to ram it through.


You were talking about online gambling, correct? ???

;)

I don't understand how this guy even has a house seat. I mean the people of Massachusetts have intellegent(even if I don;t agree with him) politicians like John Kerry, Edward Markey, and Steven Lynch but why Frank though?


Barney Frank takes care of the people in his district that's why, and they have always known, since his first local run in 1972, he was gay, he never hid it from his constituents and they it was a big who cares as long as you represent us. 

Barney Frank takes care of the people in his district that's why, and they have always known, since his first local run in 1972, he was gay, he never hid it from his constituents and they it was a big who cares as long as you represent us. 
Oh you are in Frank's district. I don;t care if Frank is gay but he is one of the causes of the financial crisis(i.e. housing crisis) besides being a pork barreler.

Oh you are in Frank's district. I don;t care if Frank is gay but he is one of the causes of the financial crisis(i.e. housing crisis) besides being a pork barreler.


But they are ALL pork barrelers.  Sen Shellby (R-ALA?) has held up nominations for vital adminossitions until he got some of hi9s pet projects approved.  That's not just pork barrel, that's blackmail against the national interest.

Oh you are in Frank's district. I don;t care if Frank is gay but he is one of the causes of the financial crisis(i.e. housing crisis) besides being a pork barreler.


No, I'm not in Franks district, never have been.  I do try to be aware of what, and who, is around me.  What I am aware of isn't the only one involved in this mess, but he is the one the spin machine would like people to focus on, and in that they have done their job.

But they are ALL pork barrelers.  Sen Shellby (R-ALA?) has held up nominations for vital adminossitions until he got some of hi9s pet projects approved.  That's not just pork barrel, that's blackmail against the national interest.
Yeah I think Shelby went too extreme there by holding 70 nominations up just for a few projects in his district.  Interestingly enough Shelby is up for re-election this year.

No, I'm not in Franks district, never have been.  I do try to be aware of what, and who, is around me.  What I am aware of isn't the only one involved in this mess, but he is the one the spin machine would like people to focus on, and in that they have done their job. Thats true Barney is not the only one too blame for the housing crisis.

Yeah I think Shelby went too extreme there by holding 70 nominations up just for a few projects in his district.  Interestingly enough Shelby is up for re-election this year.


And that is ... what? An excuse?  A reason?  An indictment?

Barney Frank takes care of the people in his district that's why, and they have always known, since his first local run in 1972, he was gay, he never hid it from his constituents and they it was a big who cares as long as you represent us.  


Yeah, he takes care of his people at the expense of the rest of us.  Granted, he's not unique in that respect.

The biggest problem with our system of government is that voters reward politicians for local pork.  If the average citizen really had our nation's best interests in mind, they would shun pork and only support federal politicians that only commit to projects that help the whole country.

Local projects should be limited to local governments.

And that is ... what? An excuse?  A reason?  An indictment?
I;m just saying  its  a coincidence Shelby is up for re-election this year but at the same time he's holding 70 nominations up. Its not a reason, or an indictment, or an excuse.

Yeah, he takes care of his people at the expense of the rest of us.  Granted, he's not unique in that respect.

The biggest problem with our system of government is that voters reward politicians for local pork.  If the average citizen really had our nation's best interests in mind, they would shun pork and only support federal politicians that only commit to projects that help the whole country.

Local projects should be limited to local governments.


All politics is local.  A military contract for for GE in Rutland could very well help the whole country if the product is needed and GE made the lowest bid.  If Pat or Bernie expedited the process, so what?  That's why this argument is fallacious, most "pork" are projects that need to be done and the question is where.  Boston use to build lots of navy ships, now they are mostly built in Mississippi thanks to Trent Lott.  Is that pork or redirected contracts?  Is fed support for infrastructure like interstate highways, bridge maintenance etc pork?  By definition they have to be local.

All politics is local.  A military contract for for GE in Rutland could very well help the whole country if the product is needed and GE made the lowest bid.  If Pat or Bernie expedited the process, so what?  That's why this argument is fallacious, most "pork" are projects that need to be done and the question is where.  Boston use to build lots of navy ships, now they are mostly built in Mississippi thanks to Trent Lott.  Is that pork or redirected contracts?  Is fed support for infrastructure like interstate highways, bridge maintenance etc pork?  By definition they have to be local.


Yes it is pork.  Your entire post reflects the ESSENCE of pork and that is "Pork is OK if it is spent in my district".  There are vast amounts of defense spending done buying weapons that the Pentagon does not want.  I do have to give O'bama some credit for attacking many of these programs and getting them killed.  Like the F-22, or the second engine venfor for the F-35 program.  Pure pork, USDA.

As for infrastructure, the nation would be FAR better off if the scope of Federal spending were vastly reduced, and then let individual localities (state, county, city) build their own bridges and schools.  Federal spending on such things is simply confiscation of local monies to redistribute wealth and garner favors.  ALmost $400 million of Federal money has been wasted in Pittsburgh to drill a mass transit tunnel under the Allegheny River even though Pittsburgh has more bridges over its rivers than any city in the world, a declining population, and crossing the rivers is no problem at all.  Federal pork money was also spent on building a "HOV Tunnel" under our Mt Washington, which has been time-studied to handle maybe 20 cars an our DURING RUSH HOUR.  To think that Federal tax money gathered actoss the 50 states went into these wasteful pork projects is a disgrace.

One question about ol' Barney though... Does he have any of his pork projects named after him?  My opinion the most blatant porkers are the ones who spend pork having things named after themselves.  The kings of this practive were Rep. Murtha and Senator Byrd.  I don't recall of Barney getting his name carved in granite, but then I don;t frequent his state so maybe I never paid attention.

All politics is local...but we're all going broke-al!
:(

All politics is local.  A military contract for for GE in Rutland could very well help the whole country if the product is needed and GE made the lowest bid.  If Pat or Bernie expedited the process, so what?  That's why this argument is fallacious, most "pork" are projects that need to be done and the question is where.  Boston use to build lots of navy ships, now they are mostly built in Mississippi thanks to Trent Lott.  Is that pork or redirected contracts?  Is fed support for infrastructure like interstate highways, bridge maintenance etc pork?  By definition they have to be local.


There are certainly cases where some local projects are under the jurisdiction of federal governance, like the military and interstate highways.  However, the majority of pork is extended into things that should be state, county, or city based.

For example, my state is guilty of sucking up tons of federal funds for unnecessary farm subsidies.  Several other states do the same.  If a state wants pork for that, then it should do it among its own taxpayers, not the taxpayers of other states.

Yes it is pork.  Your entire post reflects the ESSENCE of pork and that is "Pork is OK if it is spent in my district".  There are vast amounts of defense spending done buying weapons that the Pentagon does not want.  I do have to give O'bama some credit for attacking many of these programs and getting them killed.  Like the F-22, or the second engine venfor for the F-35 program.  Pure pork, USDA.

As for infrastructure, the nation would be FAR better off if the scope of Federal spending were vastly reduced, and then let individual localities (state, county, city) build their own bridges and schools.  Federal spending on such things is simply confiscation of local monies to redistribute wealth and garner favors.  ALmost $400 million of Federal money has been wasted in Pittsburgh to drill a mass transit tunnel under the Allegheny River even though Pittsburgh has more bridges over its rivers than any city in the world, a declining population, and crossing the rivers is no problem at all.  Federal pork money was also spent on building a "HOV Tunnel" under our Mt Washington, which has been time-studied to handle maybe 20 cars an our DURING RUSH HOUR.  To think that Federal tax money gathered actoss the 50 states went into these wasteful pork projects is a disgrace.

One question about ol' Barney though... Does he have any of his pork projects named after him?  My opinion the most blatant porkers are the ones who spend pork having things named after themselves.  The kings of this practive were Rep. Murtha and Senator Byrd.  I don't recall of Barney getting his name carved in granite, but then I don;t frequent his state so maybe I never paid attention.


Without wanting to be insulting, this is just nonsense.  Who financed the railroads in the 19th century?  Who built the interstates in the 20th?  Your ideology getith in the way of your common sense and historical memory.