Yesterday, the house passed an Omnibus Bill that would give the Pentagon its biggest budget ever. Media attention on the massive Wall Street bailout has allowed the omnibus spending bill to move through Congress with relatively little scrutiny. The spending bill, which passed 370-58, was fueled by a need to keep the government running past the Oct. 1 start of the new budget year. Passage also was greased by 2,322 pet projects totaling $6.6 billion.
The bill calls for $488 billion for the Pentagon and another $40 billion for the Department of Homeland Security. The bill wraps together a record Pentagon budget with increased funding for Gulf Coast hurricane relief, provides a multi-billion dollar bailout to US auto manufacturers, and increased health care funding for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.
In a major victory for Republicans, Democrats capitulated and agreed to lift the offshore drilling ban. The legislation, which the Senate is expected to approve and send to President Bush for his signature, is flying under the political radar compared with the White House's contentious plan to bail out Wall Street.
The administration also succeeded in blocking Democrats' efforts to extend unemployment insurance, increase food stamp payments and help states deal with shortfalls in their Medicaid budgets. The bill provides for:
- 20 F-22 fighter planes over and above the Pentagon request;
- Funds for armored vehicles, body armor and combating roadside bombs;
- Expansion of Veterans' health programs;
- Increase in mileage reimbursements Veterans driving to medical clinics;
- Increase in federal firefighting account;
- $365 million in economic help to the Republic of Georgia to recover; and,
- $25 billion in low-interest loans to help the motor vehicle industry develop technologies and retool factories for cleaner vehicles
The bill would also pay, until March, for agencies whose budgets have not passed. This would eliminate the need for a much-dreaded, lame-duck session after the Nov. 4 election to deal with unfinished work.
Some of the 2,322 pet projects identified from watchdog group, Taxpayers for Common Sense, included 2,025 in the defense portion that cost a total of $4.9 billion and a new $182 million federal courthouse in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
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