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July 25, 2008 7:13:35 AM CDT

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McCain Blames Earmarks for Bridge Disaster

Posted Aug 5, 07 1:35 PM CDT in US,  Politics 

(Newser) – John McCain blasted fellow legislators yesterday for contributing to the Minnesota bridge collapse by spending billions of taxpayer dollars on pet projects rather than transportation safety. "Maybe if we had done it right, maybe some of that money would have gone to inspect those bridges and other bridges around the country," he said during a town hall meeting in Iowa.

Still smarting from last week's passage of what he considered an inadequate ethics-reform bill, McCain railed against lawmakers' habit of earmarking funds for personal political gain, including Charles Grassley's $50 million pledge for an indoor rain forest in Iowa. "I'm angry today because we just had a chance to reform this process in Washington and we punted," said McCain.

Source Associated Press

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Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., speaks to Peter Robinson of The Hoover Institution before the start of an open forum at Stanford University, Wednesday Aug. 1, 2007 in Stanford, Calif. (AP Photo/George Nikitin)   (Associated Press)
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Presidential hopeful Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., speaks with reporters in Boston, Thursday, July 26, 2007, where he complained about the format of this week's CNN/YouTube debate. Earlier in the day, McCain...   (Associated Press)
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John McCain  • Congress  • Iowa  • Minnesota  • bridge collapse  • earmarks  • Senate Finance Committee  • Charles Grassley


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