St. Cloud bridge closure: Will Bachmann rethink no-pork pledge?
Monday, March 24, 2008 at 1:28 pm
- 2 Comments
The cost to replace the Minnesota Highway 23 DeSoto Bridge is between $30 and 35 million, a lot of which will likely come from the transportation bill passed by the legislature earlier this year after a contentious debate. But, will the area see any federal funds for the bridge?
Rep. Michele Bachmann, in whose district the fated bridge stands, pledged a week ago to not request any earmarks for the district.
“The question would be whether her conscience allows her to work for these funds for a critical need in her district,” Jon Schadl, spokesman for U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn., head of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee told the St. Cloud Times.
The St. Cloud Times contacted Bachmann’s office for comment on the earmark pledge. Bachmann’s office, predictably, did not return a request for comment.
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Comment posted March 25, 2008 @ 12:25 pm
If the St. Cloud bridge is so damn important …. I’ll go out on a limb and say I will be disappointed if Bachmann requests an earmark for the bridge. I won’t hate her or call her evil, but the earmark process is bad government, and if people that know better don’t stop it (even when it hurts), those that want to exploit it only get more powerful.
I’ll also flip the issue – if the St. Cloud bridge is so damn important, why don’t we fund it with the bonding money going to a couple of hockey arenas and polar bear exhibits and not worry about Bachmann and the Feds?
Comment posted March 25, 2008 @ 7:25 am
If the St. Cloud bridge is so damn important …. I'll go out on a limb and say I will be disappointed if Bachmann requests an earmark for the bridge. I won't hate her or call her evil, but the earmark process is bad government, and if people that know better don't stop it (even when it hurts), those that want to exploit it only get more powerful.
I'll also flip the issue – if the St. Cloud bridge is so damn important, why don't we fund it with the bonding money going to a couple of hockey arenas and polar bear exhibits and not worry about Bachmann and the Feds?
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