United Liberty

Many politicians in Washington rail against wasteful spending. It’s become a convenient part of campaign rhetoric and in communications back in their districts and states. Few, however, have actually done anything to rein waste, fraud, and abuse more than Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK). While he has done much in the last year to make fiscal conservative uneasy, Sen. Coburn has been on the forefront of cutting waste.

Yesterday, Sen. Coburn released a new report, Wastebook 2011, that documents and outlines some $6.5 billion in wasteful spending, which are described as “unnecessary, duplicative and low-priority projects spread throughout the federal government.”

Here some examples of waste in the report, as provided by Sen. Coburn’s office. Keep in mind as you’re reading these example and the full report, that the budget deficit for this year was well over $1 trillion and our national debt is current $15 trillion. Granted, the money saved by eliminating these projects wouldn’t make a dent in the deficit, it’s the principle of the matter:

• $75,000 to promote awareness about the role Michigan plays in producing Christmas trees & poinsettias.
• $15.3 million for one of the infamous Bridges to Nowhere in Alaska.
• $113,227 for video game preservation center in New York.
• $550,000 for a documentary about how rock music contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union.
• $48,700 for 2nd annual Hawaii Chocolate Festival, to promote Hawaii’s chocolate industry.
• $350,000 to support an International Art Exhibition in Venice, Italy.
• $10 million for a remake of “Sesame Street” for Pakistan.
• $35 million allocated for political party conventions in 2012.
• $765,828 to subsidize “pancakes for yuppies” in the nation’s capital.
• $764,825 to study how college students use mobile devices for social networking.

You can read the full report below.

Sen. Tom Coburn’s “Wastebook 2011”