Defense Bill BS: Screw body armor or bullets, let's have a party

Defense bill pays for Breathalyzers, Lewis and Clark celebrations
By Roxana Tiron

Budget watchdogs warn that the 2006 defense appropriations bill includes more earmarks for questionable projects than ever before.

Several watchdogs argue that the bill is peppered with millions of dollars for museums and national parks, as well as natural resources and roads, projects that at least on the surface, appear to have little to do with military operations.

The 2005 defense appropriations bill contained a record 2,671 parochial and politically motivated earmarks worth $12.2 billion, and the 2006 spending bill is set to surpass that, according to Keith Ashdown, vice president of policy at Taxpayers for Common Sense.

“In other appropriations bills, earmarking appears to be declining, but in contrast defense earmarks are continuing to increase,” he said. “This concerns us deeply. Earmarking defense dollars dilutes the effectiveness of defense spending.”....

http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/Business/010406_earmarks.html