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Political Notebook: Lawmakers push ahead for local projects Sunday, Feb 3, 2008 By Aaron Sadler Stephens Washington Bureau WASHINGTON - All the talk in Washington about earmark reform won't stop Arkansas lawmakers from seeking federal funds for state and local projects this year. President Bush called on Congress to cut in half the number of earmarks loaded into appropriations bills. Others have sought an end altogether to what they see as wasteful spending. Rep. John Boozman, R-Rogers, said Friday he favors a moratorium on earmarks to buy time for a reform effort, but that doesn't mean he will turn away requests from communities and groups in the state's 3rd District. Sen. Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., said she, too, will continue to entertain requests from Arkansas residents. "The projects that I fight for are not things that I dream up," she said. "Those are projects brought to me by Arkansans - universities, communities, nonprofit agencies." Lincoln said it is fair to criticize obvious wasteful earmarks like the $200 million "bridge to nowhere" in Alaska. But she praised improvements instituted last year that increase transparency, like having lawmakers attach their names to the earmarks in legislation. Boozman joined House Republicans in seeking a moratorium and calling for a commission to examine the earmark process. But in the meantime, he said he would write letters to federal agencies asking them to spend money on the local projects he favors. Agencies directed money for local projects based on written congressional requests last year after Congress failed to pass annual appropriations bills, Boozman said. But federal employees have no business deciding how to spend money for Arkansans, said Rep. Mike Ross, D-Prescott. "Earmarks are how we have funded interstates like I-49 and I-69 and I think I have a better idea of the needs of my district than the bureaucrats in Washington," Ross said. Convention connections With his daughter and two of his former employees on the Republican National Convention payroll, Boozman should be well taken care at the big event this summer. Shannon Boozman is directing hotel and venue planning for the event expected to draw 45,000 people to St. Paul, Minn., in early September. Last week, Boozman's press secretary Ryan James announced he was leaving to become deputy communications director for the convention. Former Boozman aide Hayden Pruett took a job last fall as a media coordinator for the convention. So with the key connections, will Rep. Boozman spend his days in the media spotlight and nights in a luxurious hotel? He doesn't think so. "It's just the opposite," Boozman said. "Usually what happens, in an effort to be fair, the tendency is to go the other way. I'll probably be in the Motel 8." James is the son of state Education Commissioner Ken James. Lawmakers urge Delta increase Members of Congress' Mississippi River Delta Caucus asked the president last week to fully fund the Delta Regional Authority, a federal agency never funded to its $30 million authorization level in its eight years of existence. Eleven lawmakers sent a letter to Bush with the request. Ross, co-chair of the Delta caucus, and Rep. Vic Snyder, D-Little Rock, signed the letter. Bush releases his budget proposal Monday. Last year, he requested $6 million for the authority, created to spur economic growth in the 240-county Delta region. Congress bumped up the budgeted amount to $12 million. The most money the agency has ever received was $20 million, in its first year. |
