The Sunlight Foundation, a D.C.-based group that uses information technology to educate the public about the political process, has been turning earmarks into art. The group has mapped federal disbursements by state and agency, creating spangled almost Miro-esque charts of where the money (er, pork) winds up. No surprise, the Defense Department crushes all other agencies with $9.319 billion in 2005 earmarks. The Department of Transportation is a distant second with $3.174 billion.
More intriguing is the chart that maps to which states the money flows. Although California and Pennsylvania get the most total money from 2005 earmarks with $1.634 billion and $1.08 billion, respectively, Alaska is the per capita king with $1,053 dollars coming in from earmarks for each resident. Well done Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska). Well done, indeed.
