Tiahrt passes spending bill destined to fail

Rep. Todd Tiahrt has lost votes for his bill to save Tax dollars by creating a “waste-fighting” department. It’s not surprising the bill didn’t go. Right now the Republicans are worried the voters might get tired of their pork barrel spending and personal perks, such as taking unnecessary trips to exotic locations, such a Hawaii or East Asia.
Tiahrt has taken such trips, with his family and he has attempted to get federal project passed to justify his job. Right now he has little to show for his time spent in the House of Representatives, except personal and campaign spending at the tax-payers expense.

According to The Wichita Eagle, Jul. 29:
“- As the U.S. House of Representatives wrapped up before its August break, Rep. Todd Tiahrt's bill to create waste-fighting federal commissions failed to get a House vote, as united Democrats and worried Republicans stopped a bill that once seemed destined to pass.
"We didn't have the votes we needed" to pass the legislation, said Chuck Knapp, spokesman for Tiahrt, R-Goddard.”

Yes all are worried the bill would cost them money and it would create a whole new bureaucracy to oversee other bureaucracies already created by congress. It is more likely that Tiahrt sponsored this bill knowing it would not get a vote. That way he can take it to the voters as proof he’s trying to cut waste, yet knowing in advance no one would support the bill. As with him, many congress-people are taking perks at the taxpayer’s expense.

Tiahrt favors jailing journalists

What would it be like to live in a country where you can be thrown in jail for what you print in a newspaper? That would be Rep. Todd Tiahrt’s idea of democracy here in the U.S. Just consider what Tiahrt said in a reply to a Wichita Eagle editorial, which was printed on July 9:


“Jailing media leakers is not 'authoritarian'
BY REP. TODD TIAHRT
The Eagle editorial board apparently believes we should err on the side of trusting the media rather than trusting the government to protect us from terrorists ("Reckless: Free societies need independent media," July 5 editorial). The editorial board also contends we do not know if leaks of classified information have harmed U.S. efforts in the global war on terrorism.
As a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, I am probably in a better position than the editorial board to draw conclusions on this matter. However, I believe most clear-thinking individuals would presume that if you tell the enemy how we are tracking them, that indeed harms our ability to track them.
The editorial board also said that my call for locking up journalists who refuse to finger leakers is "authoritarian." If enforcing current law and protecting the citizens of this country is how the board defines "authoritarian," it needs a new dictionary.”

NOT AUTHORITARIAN? When I was in grade school the constantly told us of countries were people were jailed for speaking out against the government. Now Tiahrt want to do that here. That’s not only “authoritarian” it totalitarian. Dictators have always made the excuse that they were suspending rights in order to “save democracy.” But journalists were jailed and political parties and elections often suspended, often with political party officials jailed.
The Wichita Eagle has been flooded with letters protesting his comments. People know when their rights are being threatened.
Once again, Tiahrt simply ignores history. He also puts words into other people’s mouth. The Wichita Eagle had to print the following comments at the end of Tiahrt’s reply:

“Editor's note: Contrary to Rep. Todd Tiahrt's claim, The Eagle editorial board didn't question the length of the war or call for a timetable for ending it. The editorial board also has not supported gay marriage, desecrating the flag or surrendering the war on terror.
Tiahrt is free to disagree with the editorial board about whether journalists should be jailed for not revealing confidential sources. But making phony claims undermines his arguments.
--Phillip Brownlee”

Tiahrt misses out on Pork spending

Since Rep. Todd Tiahrt does little spends most of his time lining his pockets with campaign funds and other congressional perks, he needs plenty of pork projects to justify his job at election time. Not everyone votes solely on abortion or gay marriage, so Tiahrt tries to bring the pork home to his constituents in Wichita.
Congress as a whole has dealt him a blow lately. According to The Wichita Eagle, Jul. 04:

“Outrage on Capitol Hill that started with a "bridge to nowhere" in Alaska could end up slowing the pace of construction for central Wichita's railroad bridges and other area projects.
Backlash against congressionally funded projects such as last year's $315 million bridge from Alaska's Gravina Island, population 50, to Ketchikan, population 8,000, is making it more difficult for lawmakers to set aside targeted federal funds for projects in their districts.
That practice of "earmarking" funds normally steers tens of millions of federal dollars to Wichita each year.
But perceptions that Congress is abusing its earmark ability are slowing some projects and putting others on hold nationwide.”

The first thing to go is money that was earmarked to speed up the building of rail-road bridges, to smooth out traffic in Wichita. So that leaves Tiahrt with less to brag about at election time. He will have to count on his hard core base of far-right Christian wing-nuts for support in the next election,

Tiahrt says we can work as merchants of death

Worried about the job situation in Wichita? Rep. Todd Tiahrt has it all figured out. We can hire people to build weapons for our continuing involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places around the world. With our interventionist, modern day Julius Caesar president, were going to need lots of military equipment and ammunition. And let’s not forget the coffins and body bags, for those “brave men and women” Tiahrt mentions, who will not make it home alive.

According to a Tiahrt web page
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representatives Tuesday passed a $377.6 billion defense appropriations bill that contains approximately $8.9 billion in defense projects that provide work for south central Kansas workers. U.S. Representative Todd Tiahrt (R-Goddard), a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, secured $52.6 million in additional funding for area companies.
“After fighting hard to keep the federal government’s spending down with the passage of a sensible budget, I am honored to bring federal dollars back to Kansas,” said Tiahrt. “We have the best workers in the nation and I am pleased the House passed a bipartisan defense spending bill that addresses the needs of our country while our brave men and women are protecting our homeland.”

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