Thursday, April 3, 2008

Darrell Issa has a Better Idea

Hammering on this a lot, but it just keeps getting more ridiculous

So Darrell Issa finds it inappropriate for the federal government to be funding medical care for sick 9/11 rescue workers. Says Rep. Issa, "I have to ask ... why the firefighters who went there and everybody in the city of New York needs to come to the federal government for the dollars versus this being primarily a state consideration."

So as to prove that he's not just running off incoherently about hating rescue workers, Issa wants you to know he's proud of his alternative plans for spending federal funds. To that end, he's triumphantly sent around a press release listing all of his new earmarks (word doc, h/t Chris Reed). So what, you're probably wondering, has Representative Issa chosen to crow about that exemplifies the "local money for local issues, federal money for screw you" spending mantra? Here's the quick list:

San Diego Regional Interoperable Computer Aided Dispatch Project -$6 million
San Diego Regional Communications System (RCS) Upgrade -$3.5 million
Gang Prevention Program (City of Oceanside) -$500K
Lake Elsinore Emergency Operations Center -$250K
Murrieta Creek Flood Control Project -$13 million
San Luis Rey Flood Control Project -$7.2 million
Perris II Desalter (Perris, CA) -$2 million
Non-Potable Distribution Facilities and Demineralization/Desalination Recycled Water Treatment and Reclamation Facility Project (Riverside County) -$2 million
Santa Margarita Conjunctive Use Project (Camp Pendleton) -$1 million
San Jacinto & Upper Santa Margarita Watersheds Project -$355K
San Diego County Fire Safety and Fuels Reduction Program -$45 million
Corpsmen/Medics Civilian Nursing Training Program (Oceanside) -$1.6 million
Vista Community Clinic -$1 million
North County Health Project Oceanside Clinic Expansion (Oceanside) -$1 million
Railroad Canyon I-15 interchange project -$8 million
State Route 76 (widen and realign) -$5 million
San Luis Rey Transit Center (Oceanside) -$3.1 million
West Vista Way (City of Vista, widen) -$2 million
French Valley Airport (Temecula) -$1 million
Renovation and expansion of Fallbrook Boys and Girls Club -$500K


Some pretty nice projects in there. But it begs the question: Ahem, why do all these people need "to come to the federal government for the dollars versus this being primarily a state [or local] consideration?" Rep. Issa? Bueller? Bueller?

Lemme just venture one guess. Rescue workers in New York don't vote in Temecula or Oceanside do they? Oh yeah. So only when Issa is trying to hook it up for his own self should federal money be spent on state and local projects. Not only cruel and hateful, but selfish and duplicitous too. He's building himself quite a nice collection of adjectives. Full of crap isn't technically an adjective, but it also applies.


Robert Hamilton is challenging Darrell Issa this year.

Cross posted at Calitics

3 comments:

Lucas said...

To follow Issa's logic- the WTC attack was, for budgetary purposes, an attack on New York not on the United States. Based upon that, is it not a bajillion times worse for the entire country to be fighting in (and paying for) Afghanistan and Iraq? Shouldn't this all be funded by New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia? And be fought exclusively with their respective National Guards?

Darrell Issa is an idiot.

Anonymous said...

I second that!

Anonymous said...

If Issa feels that way, he should visit every rescue worker from across the country who responded. Let him tell them to their face that he doesn't think their bravery and heroics deserve any repayment from the feds.