John Whitehead's Commentary

It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress.--Mark Twain

With the hearings on the 9/11 fiasco and the continuing questions on corruption in governmental high places, the American people, I am sure, have had their fill of political lies. But it seems there is no end to what some politicians will do.

Power does corrupt, and hypocrisy reigns. Indeed, during election years, politicians make speeches about how they are outraged at wasteful government spending, the out-of-control deficit and the generally dire economic state of the country. However, when the television cameras are turned off, many of these same politicians brag about "the pork"--or otherwise wasteful and illicit programs--they are bringing back to their state or district, all at taxpayer expense.

As catalogued in the new 2004 Congressional Pig Book published by Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) and available at www.cagw.org, such pork expenditures constitute a record-breaking $22.9 billion for 10,656 pork-barrel projects. In fact, as the "war on terror" continues and the federal deficit mushrooms to a record $521 billion, the number of pork projects has increased by 28 percent over the last two years. In other words, members of Congress pig out even as the U.S. military fights insurgents and our soldiers in Iraq die.

What are some of the projects you and I are paying for? $50 million for an indoor rain forest in Coralville, Iowa; $3 million for a golf program in St. Augusta, Florida; $400,000 for a health group in Austin, Texas; $200,000 for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland (with an additional $100,000 for a Kids Rock Free Educational Program); $100,000 to restore an old Coca Cola building in Macon, Georgia; $200,000 for recreation improvements in North Pole, Alaska--and on and on.

How does this kind of craziness happen? Many of these projects are inserted into spending bills at the final hour. In this way, the standard congressional budget procedure is bypassed and such expensive pork barrel projects are not the result of competitive bidding, debate or presidential authorization. In other words, there is no semblance of democracy at work and the taxpayers have no say-so whatever as billions are spent on ludicrous and wasteful programs.

What makes this even more outrageous is that members of Congress would partake of such tomfoolery as the U.S. military dogs it out day after day in the Middle East and various parts of the world. This is a drastic break from past practices when Congress, during times of armed conflict, curbed its appetite while focusing on financing the war effort.

By contrast, members of this Congress passed the Omnibus Appropriations Bill in January, knowing very well that the war and occupation of Iraq will grind on for years. "The fiscal 2005 budget now before Congress," as Tom Schatz, president of CAGW notes, "slyly leaves out new funding for Iraq and Afghanistan until a budget-busting emergency supplemental is passed after the November elections." Obviously, foregoing the $22.9 billion in junk projects would have significantly eased this financial burden on the American taxpayer.

Early in its history, the U.S. Supreme Court, speaking through Chief Justice John Marshall, noted that "the power to tax involves, necessarily, a power to destroy." And there are many today who believe that unless Congress takes steps to control the monstrous deficit and stop such taxpayer waste, America will go bankrupt--and soon.

Unfortunately, much of the federal bureaucracy is no longer accountable to the American people. Besides acting as minor despots and taxing the average American to the hilt, our government allows those with the most money to get off scot-free. As recently reported by the General Accounting Office, nearly two-thirds of the companies operating in the United States reported paying no taxes from 1996-2000. And 71 percent of foreign companies doing business in this country reported no tax liabilities for those years, either.

Clearly, our representatives and senators should be ashamed. Too many of our elected officials are more interested in insuring their incumbency than in protecting the physical and financial security of the American people.

But American citizens must also shoulder much of the blame. As the preamble to the U.S. Constitution states, it is "We the People" who own this government. And until we act and throw the scoundrels out of office, they will continue to steal from us.

ABOUT JOHN W. WHITEHEAD

Constitutional attorney and author John W. Whitehead is founder and president of The Rutherford Institute. His most recent books are the best-selling Battlefield America: The War on the American People, the award-winning A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State, and a debut dystopian fiction novel, The Erik Blair Diaries. Whitehead can be contacted at staff@rutherford.org. Nisha Whitehead is the Executive Director of The Rutherford Institute. Information about The Rutherford Institute is available at www.rutherford.org.

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