Props to Shadegg

The Arizona Republic reports that Representative John Shadegg refused funds for his home district and then voted against the highway bill it was to be a part of.

In fact, both Shadegg and fellow Arizona GOP Rep. Jeff Flake said they refused a House leadership offer of $14 million in earmarks for each of their respective districts, money that Shadegg could have steered to the I-17 and Happy Valley Road reconstruction, among other projects.

The $284B bill, which passed overwhelmingly, included more than $12.4B in earmarks.

The problem with attacking pork is that you have to start by giving it up yourself. Which leads to people complaining that you're not helping your home state.

I did not vote for Shadegg back in November (I was one of the 20% (~36,000) who voted for Mark Yannone, LIB) but this makes me more likely to vote for him in 2006. Unfortunately if he keeps voting against spending bills and refusing pork for Arizona he's going to run into trouble with the Republicans 'round here. (To be fair he'd run into just as much trouble with the Democrats were he one of them.)