And he openly demonstrates his lack of concern. During Thursday night's floor debate, Bunning did not complain on behalf of Kentucky's unemployed citizens. Instead, he complained that he had been ambushed by the Democrats and, as a result, was missing the Kentucky-South Carolina basketball game.
The sometimes inconvenient overlap of Kentucky's basketball schedule with Senate schedules may account for why Bunning missed 21 Senate floor votes last December - almost half of all Senate floor votes during the month - including votes on the health care and defense appropriations bills. In December, Bunning missed more floor votes than Senator Robert Byrd, who is 92 years old, in poor health, and confined to a wheelchair. So much for Bunning's dedicated and hard-working claims.
In fitting recognition of his obstructionism, Bunning has been nominated to receive the prestigious "f*ck You Too" award, signified by a solid mud statue of a defiantly raised middle finger, proudly riding backward on the rear-most quarter of a male donkey, biblically called an ass.
I modestly submit that, rather than trample upon the increasingly desperate unemployed, Bunning should trim the deficit by moving his colleagues to void Kentucky's earmark requests, all 460 of them, which this fiscal year total over $2.6 billion. Bunning led Kentucky's delegation, with 99 requests totaling $720 million.
Included in Bunning's list of worthy causes is $12 million for Raytheon, which ranks fifth on the list of federal prime contractors. In 2009 Raytheon was awarded contracts totaling $5.94 billion.
Raytheon also ranked fifth in the list of contractors with a history of misconduct, such as fraud and environmental violations. Since 2005, Raytheon has been assessed $479 million in fines and penalties for aircraft maintenance overcharges, kickbacks, defective pricing, violations of the False Claims Act, violation of SEC rules and pollution of Tucson's municipal water supply wells with cancer-causing toxic chemicals.
Bunning also earmarked $17 million for Northrup Grumman for purchase and installation of infrared countermeasures systems on C-130 cargo planes operated by the Air National Guard in Louisville, presumably to protect them from a Pearl Harbor-type shock and awe sneak attack by the fearsome Taliban Air Force.
Equally as vital to what little remains of the future of America is Bunning's $3 million earmark for expansion and "enhancement" of the Patton Museum at Fort Knox. Clearly this is more important than sheltering and feeding the children of unemployed Americans who can not afford to visit the enhanced museum.
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
