PsychoPhil

The Club For Growth – The Club for Growth Blog: The ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ Is No More!

CNBC’s Squawk Box is reporting that the ‘Bridge to Nowhere’ has been officially defunded. However, this can only be seen as a small victory. The millions of dollars allocated for this pork project will go to the Alaska state government for them to spend as they see fit�instead of the money going to the Katrina relief effort�or, heaven forbid, back to federal taxpayers.

The Seirra Club press release has more info (though their website does not appear to be handling the traffic load very well right now):

SENATE STRIPS EARMARKS FROM ‘BRIDGES TO NOWHERE’

The Senate Appropriations Committee removed earmarks for two controversial “bridges to nowhere” in Alaska: the Gravina bridge, which would connect Ketchikan to an island of 50 people, and the Knik Arm bridge, which would link Anchorage to a sparsely populated area. The projects have been the subject of strong criticism because of the general backlog of existing roads and bridges in desperate need of repair, especially those affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. According to the National Association of Civil Engineers, one in four bridges nationwide is structurally deficient or functionally obsolete, not including the damage from Katrina and Rita.

The issue has been particularly controversial for Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) who has served as a strong advocate for the Gravina bridge despite the fact that her family owns 33-acres of undeveloped land 3/4 of a mile from the point where the bridge would touch down. Since the State would now decide how the money would be spent, her father, Governor Frank Murkowski, would now face the same ethical scrutiny.

Did you catch that? Let me repeat it to be sure: The issue has been particularly controversial for Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) who has served as a strong advocate for the Gravina bridge despite the fact that her family owns 33-acres of undeveloped land 3/4 of a mile from the point where the bridge would touch down.

I’ve suspected for quite a while these bridges have been nothing more than a way to open prime development property for few well placed people. That opinion has been pretty much solidified.

Some are calling this a small victory against pork. I call it no victory at all. If you read the articles, you’ll see that Alaska is still getting the Federal taxpayer money, it’s just no longer earmarked for the bridges. It is up to Alaska to decide how they want to spend the money. Don’t be shocked if Alaska comes back and says ‘You know, we’ve got these two bridges we really need to have built….’