The Billings Gazette and the Great Falls Tribune recently ran stories about the earmarks that our congressional delegation are attempting to obtain from this year’s appropriations bills. You can read the articles HERE and HERE.

October 1, 2007 is the start of the new Fiscal Year (FY 08) in the Federal Government. All the appropriations bill are supposed to passed and signed into law by this date. In the last few years under Republican control, Congress did not get them done in time. During the elections of 2006, the Democrats vowed to change it and change the way earmarks are done. So far no appropriations bills have been signed into law for FY 08. So far the earmark process remains the same only that democrats on the appropriations committees are getting more pork for their states.

Seeing these lists is a lot like reading a Christmas list from adults. The Tribune article also talked about the campaign donations each member has received from the people who were getting the earmarks. This was an election killer in 2006 when the Republicans were in charge, but its fine now that the democrats have the majority. My how times change.

In my view, too much credit was given to the two members of the delegation who are NOT on the appropriations committee, Senator Max Baucus and Senator Jon Tester. Every person in congress can request funding. Those who are not on the committee get just a few of the requests funded. Besides, Tester campaigned against earmarks (among other things) and Baucus, for years, rode on the coattails of Conrad Burns who was on the Senate Appropriations committee. I contend that most of the work for any of these projects to make it through the whole process and be signed into law will have to be done by Congressman Denny Rehberg, who is on the House Appropriations Committee. I’m sure the left will not see it that way.

Sadly, it looks like Malmstrom AFB is being forgotten as the only funding it looks like they will receive is for a community center. As you may remember, Malmstrom is losing 50 missiles and I heard from a friend that they are losing about half of the 493 houses that were approved in 2006, ironically when Burns was a member of the military construction appropriations committee. I mentioned in early 2007 that without the clout of someone serving on a military committee, Montana’s military will suffer. It looks like this is true.