Rep. Michelle Bachmann (R-Minn.) has found herself in a bit of hot water on earmarks by declaring:
"I have not taken earmarks in the last three years that I've been in Congress, because the system is so corrupt."
LegiStorm's searchable earmarks database, however, shows that Bachmann sponsored seven earmarks - two on her own and five co-sponsored with other members - that totaled $3,767,600. The data was generously researched and provided to LegiStorm by Taxpayers for Common Sense.
This discrepancy earned mention in several blogs and on MSNBC's "Countdown with Keith Olbermann" where the liberal commentator tagged Bachmann with the moniker of "worst people in the world," a label he hands out each day to people, usually from the conservative political sphere, who ire him.
According to a story today in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Bachmann was forced to clarify her earlier remark, admitting she did take earmarks when she first joined Congress.
The debate on earmarks has obviously gotten heated lately, especially involving their use in the recent omnibus spending bill. We will add the Fiscal Year 2009 earmarks as soon as they are available from Taxpayers for Common Sense, which is now busy compiling the records.
