Follow-up on the Coburn Amendment

Last week my favorite Senator, Tom Coburn of Oklahoma, introduced an amendment which would have moved some highway money ($220 million) from a go-nowhere town to a virtually uninhabited island in Alaska. The money would go instead to Louisiana where a bridge on I-10 was destroyed by hurricane Katrina. As expected, the amendment was defeated by a vote of 85 to 15 and the honorable senators and lone congressman from that fair state went bonkers. Here is follow-up from the Washington Post.

My favorite part is the response from Don Young, Alaska's Congressman. The residents of Alaska were writing the paper in support of giving up their bridge to help Louisiana. When asked by a reporter what he thought of his constituents reaction, he said "They can kiss my ear! That is the dumbest thing I've ever heard."