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Romney Campaign Press Release - A Question for Rick Santorum

February 09, 2012

Are These "Good" Earmarks Or "Bad" Earmarks?

Today, Senator Santorum Declined To Identify Any Earmarks He May Regret, Saying "There Are Good Earmarks And Bad Earmarks":

Santorum: "There Are Good Earmarks And Bad Earmarks." SANTORUM: "There are good earmarks and bad earmarks. There are things that the Congress stood and fought for on a lot of programs and the administration got involved. What happened was it was an abuse of the process. And when the abuse of the process became an issue, I stood up and said the process itself is not bad but the abuse is, and we need to stop it." (Maggie Haberman, "Santorum Calls Out Romney For 'Gotcha Politics,' Defends 'Good Earmarks,'" Politico, 2/9/12)

"[Santorum] Declined To Identify Any Earmarks He Regretted." ("Under Attack, Santorum Defends 'Good' Earmarks," The Associated Press, 2/9/12)

A Question For The Senator — Which Of These Earmarks Was Worth Borrowing From China To Pay For?

The Erstwhile $400 Million "Bridge To Nowhere": "Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum is defending his votes to spend federal money on politically earmarked projects, including the so-called 'Bridge to Nowhere' in Alaska that was never built. ... [Santorum:] 'People say that I voted for "The Bridge to Nowhere." I did. I went with the federalist argument..." (William Petroski, "Santorum Defends Votes For 'Bridge To Nowhere' And Other Political Earmarks," Des Moines Register, 12/29/11)

$500,000 For A "Luxurious Polar-Bear Exhibit": "Typical of his campaigning these days was a stop earlier this month at the Pittsburgh Zoo, where he boasted to local reporters about how he'd fetched $500,000 from federal taxpayers to build one of the most luxurious polar-bear exhibits outside Arctic climates." ("Santorum Goes Full Circle," The Washington Times, 8/22/06)

$900,000 For "Hides And Leather Research": "$900,000 for Eastern Regional Research Center Hides and Leather Research conducted by the United States Department of Agriculture. The research, conducted at the Eastern Regional Research Center in Wyndmoor, provides the hides and leather industry with cost-effective and environmentally safe tanning processes which will enhance U.S. producers' competitiveness in world markets." (Sen. Rick Santorum, Press Release, 6/23/05)

$400,000 For "Exhibits To Highlight Bird Migration": "$400,000 for the Avian Conservation Center at the Philadelphia Zoo to develop exhibits to highlight bird migration and the mutually beneficial relationship between agriculture and conservation." (Sen. Rick Santorum, Press Release, 7/17/01)

Mitt Romney, Romney Campaign Press Release - A Question for Rick Santorum Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/299994

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