Oct 3, 2008 6:24 pm US/Central
Reality Check: Pork In The Bailout Bill
(WCCO)
What do wooden arrows, stock car race tracks and Caribbean rum have to do with the Wall Street meltdown? They're getting bailed out, too.
A funny thing happened on the way to the Wall Street bailout. $110 billion of pork showed up: those infamous earmarks politicians love to hate. But they took 'em anyway.
It's TRUE.
Manufacturers of wooden arrows hit the bull's-eye with new tax breaks. There's even special assistance for rum makers in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. And stock car race tracks took a victory lap.
There's MORE.
A lot more.
Fringe benefits for bicycle commuters. Tax breaks for movie-makers if they film in the U.S. Energy efficient tax credits for dishwashers, refrigerators and clothes dryers.
And there's a Minnesota connection, too.
"To praise my colleague Jim Ramstad and Dave Wellstone whose father is looking down on us today in praise of his son for all the hard work he did to see this day come to pass," said Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I.
Here's the STORY.
Minnesota Congressman Jim Ramstad changed his vote from "no" to "yes" because the bill includes the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Act, removing insurance company barriers for covering mental health and substance abuse.
But even with all the political sweeteners, it still left a sour taste.
"It's like a tourniquet. It will stop the bleeding, but then we have to set about fixing the way we do business in Washington, D.C.," said McCain.
Here's the REALITY.
Fighting earmarks is the centerpiece of John McCain's presidential campaign.
But even with $110 billion of earmarks here, McCain voted YES.
That's Reality Check.
To check the resources for this Reality Check click on the links below.
Taxpayers For Common Sense Bloomberg.com Los Angeles Times 
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