Palin Projects Hit Mac's Pork List

Requests from Sarah Palin made it onto McCain's 'pork list' 3 times
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 3, 2008 7:57 AM CDT
Palin Projects Hit Mac's Pork List
John McCain has criticized the federal "earmarking" spending system for much of his political career, and picked out three of his running mate's projects for special criticism on his "pork list."   (Getty Images)

Requests from Sarah Palin made it onto John McCain's "pork list" of objectionable spending three times while Palin was mayor of Wasilla, the Los Angeles Times reports. McCain's lists came as part of his long campaign against the earmarking system in which members of Congress can chuck cash at pet projects with little or no scrutiny.

The Palin projects targeted by McCain included a $1 million emergency communications center for Wasilla that local law enforcement officials say is redundant. A McCain spokesman said that small-town dependence on federal earmarks was a major factor in forming Palin's reform-minded views. According to public records however, Wasilla only began receiving earmarked funds after Palin became mayor and launched an aggressive campaign to snare federal cash.
(More earmarks stories.)

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