PORKBUSTERS UPDATE: Bush vetoes pork-laden water bill:

President Bush just added another resident to Vetoland, this resident being the water projects bill that got saturated with pork-barrel projects in conference. Despite having enough votes to override his veto, Bush sent the bill back as a protest against its escalating earmarks . . . .

The reason for the veto seems rather obvious. The House approved a $14 billion waterworks bill, and the Senate approved a $15 billion companion bill. Rather than split the difference and approve a $14.5 billion bill, or even go with the Senate’s $15 billion, the conference committee reported out a $23 billion bill that proves that when pork multiplies, it’s because taxpayers are getting screwed.

Seriously — how did an extra $8 billion get added to the bill in conference? That’s an increase of over 50% from the Senate bill, in conference. The larger embarrassment is that our elected representatives didn’t see this greedy manipulation of the conference process as any big deal and overwhelmingly supported the results.

That’s what pork does to corrupt the legislative process — it buys votes. It’s a bribery system that helps cover up another bribery system. One porcine paw washes the other, and the resulting appropriations grow on grotesque scales almost overnight.

Couldn’t have said it better myself. Of course, if Bush had been willing to veto pork-laden bills a couple of years ago, Republicans might have held onto the Congress. Still, better late than never, I guess.