Way to go Josh Marshall!
Apparently for all that John McCain's tired jokes about not earmarking millions to study the DNA of bears in Montana ("I don't know if it was a paternity or a criminal matter." Har),
Sarah Palin, just a few months ago, asked Congress for a multi-million dollar earmark for studying seal DNA and half a million to study the mating habits of crabs (not the McCain kind).
See for yourself:
Obviously, the details are a bit slim, but Josh Marshall claimed that Alaska gets the most money in earmarks than any other state in the union.
I'll update with more links as they come in.
Personally, ahem, I'm a little interested in finding out about the mating habits of crabs. Maybe not %500,000 worth....
I actually think it's important to study animals and, if can be done through earmarks (like building infrastructure), so be it. But the stupidity of the McCain campaign rolling out Palin without looking into this and all her other marquee claims is phenomenal.
UPDATE: Andrew Sullivan has more:
Here's what Sarah Palin brought home to Alaska in pork:
According to a "summary of requests for federal appropriations" posted to her budget office’s website earlier this year, Palin requested millions of federal dollars for everything from improving recreational halibut fishing to studying the mating habits of crabs and the DNA of harbor seals.
Sure, he vetted her. But all this is only really instructive when you listen to Palin on the stump:
"In just three years our opponent has requested nearly one billion dollars in earmarks. That’s nearly a million dollars for every working day," Palin told a crowd in Lebanon, Ohio, Tuesday. "So as we reform the abusive earmarks in our state our opponent was requesting nearly a billion dollars in earmarks as a senatorial privilege as I was vetoing half a billion as an executive responsibility."
The DNA of seals?
Here's the Summary of Requests for Federal Appropriations (warning pdf) that USED to be on the governor's website.
From Politico, more details:
Here are a few, with the state’s description of the project:
• $400,000: Alaska Invasive Species Program: Continues to comprehensively prevent, identify, and respond to the threat of invasive species on the Alaska environment.
• $494,900: Assessment of Recreational Halibut Harvest in Alaska: This is an ongoing effort to collect data on the recreational halibut fishery that is conducted by federal agencies though relying on the state for data.
• $2 million: Bering Sea Crab Research and Management: Researches Bering Sea crab productivity and sustainability as necessary to restore crab stocks.
• $3.2 million: Seal and Steller Sea Lion Biological Research: Funds monitoring of ice seal populations in Native villages, research on the species delineation and genetics of harbor seals to understand the declines in population and provide for population restoration, and continues research into Steller Sea Lion population decline.
Is that cologne you're wearing or are you just happy to see me?