War for Pork

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If the United States ever withdraws from Iraq and the central government collapses, or, god forbid, the country plunges into civil war, who’s going to get blamed? Why, the liberal media, of course, along with various antiwar types who, as Tom Friedman declared, “don’t want the Bush team to succeed.” Because naturally, every morning, Zarqawi and his band of jihadists wake up, depressed and unsure if they can get through the day, moping about until they take their first sip of coffee and see the New York Times front page cheering them on. Then they get “emboldened” and spring to action. That’s why Iraq has so many problems, you know. Surely this sort of stuff isn’t to blame:

Congress, taking advantage of wartime support of national defense spending, is using the military’s budget to steer billions to pet projects that apparently have little to do with Iraq or the ongoing war on terrorism, according to congressional documents, government budget officials, and watchdog groups.

The projects range from an unneeded warship and a seriously flawed cargo plane the Pentagon tried to cancel to millions each for a Mississippi wastewater treatment plant, a Nevada fire training station, and a Texas research hospital, the documents show.

The liberal media made them do it?

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ONLY HOURS LEFT—AND EVERYTHING RIDING ON IT

A full one-third of our annual fundraising comes in this month alone. That’s risky, because a strong December means our newsroom is on the beat and reporting at full strength—but a weak one means budget cuts and hard choices ahead.

With just hours left, we need a huge surge in reader support to get to our $400,000 year-end goal. Whether you've given before or this is your first time, your contribution right now matters. All gifts are 3X matched and tax-deductible.

Managing an independent, nonprofit newsroom is staggeringly hard. There’s no cushion in our budget—no backup revenue, no corporate safety net. We can’t afford to fall short, and we can’t rely on corporations or deep-pocketed interests to fund the fierce, investigative journalism Mother Jones exists to do. That’s why we need you right now. Please chip in to help close the gap.

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