Bachmann Was For Earmarks Before She Was Against Them

Budget earmarks would be such a handy issue to grandstand against (for both sides), if only they weren't so damn addictive. No politicians who hope to be re-elected can afford to turn down millions of dollars in funding for their districts. But that doesn't stop the pathological from self-righteously condemning earmarks even while accepting them.

To wit, here's Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann (R-Minn.) earlier this month bragging that she hasn't asked for a single earmark for her district in over three years.



And here's Bachmann yesterday, on FOX News again, contradicting her previous statement. Turns out she has requested earmarks, just not that many. After all, Bachmann says, the average earmark for representatives from Minnesota is $70 million and she's requested just a fraction of that.

The only problem is that $70 million figure is a myth. As Think Progress points out, the average earmark for a member of Congress from Minnesota is $2.1 million. Last year, Bachmann secured $3,767,600 for her district.