Marking Time
Strapped for Funds?
The budget struggle between Congress and the President may impact next year’s Lincoln Bicentennial.
Congressman Ray LaHood represents much of Lincoln’s old House district, and he’s been counting on an earmark he secured as an Appropriations Committee member. It may be a casualty of a Congressional tactic, knocking out earmarks to overcome an anticipated Bush veto:
“There are a lot of people who were very disappointed last year when nobody got any earmarks. If they do it again for the second year in a row, it will be a very bitter pill to swallow,” said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.), an appropriator who complained that he could lose $400,000 he needs for the Abraham Lincoln bicentennial celebration, slated to begin Feb. 12.
The Bicentennial Commission looks like it could use some help. Their web page’s most “recent news” is from July, and they appear so starved for material that they repeat a quiz about Lincoln’s dog twice.
