The GOP's Next Anti-Pork Rallying Cry: Blueberries!
The next anti-pork rallying cry for the GOP is coming in the form of small, purple fruit.
On Friday, Minority Leader John Boehner attacked the omnibus spending bill currently heading through Congress by honing in one particularly odd-sounding earmark: federal money for "blueberry research."
"They had money in this bill for blueberry research, a nature center, a whole bunch of other beautification projects," said the Ohio Republican, but "they couldn't find money to continue the D.C. scholarship program."
Absurdity was the effect that Boehner was hoping for, and the crowd at the Conservative Political Action Conference ate it up (not literally). But there was, as usual, another side to story: without the money, experts say, the blueberry industry could fall by the wayside; hundreds if not thousands of jobs could be at risk, and the U.S. government could deny itself serious advancements in medicine and cancer research.
Overall, the total cost of blueberry expenditure (in the form of four separate earmarks) in the omnibus -- roughly $940,000 -- is a drop in the bucket when looking at the total cost -- $410 billion -- of the entire package. And some of the co-sponsors of those earmarks include members of Boehner's own party: Sens. Saxby Chambliss, Susan Collins, Olympia Snowe, and Reps. Jack Kingston and Frank LoBiondo.
Indeed, lawmakers in states like New Jersey, Michigan, Maine and Georgia, insist that blueberries and cranberries are major economic engines in their states, impacting hundreds if not thousands of jobs.
"Maine is the number one producer of wild blueberries in the world," said Rep. Mike Michaud, D-ME. "In fact, the total economic impact on our state is $250 million per year, and the industry supports 2,540 jobs -- many of which are in the most economically challenged areas of our state."
Moreover, much of the money, as Michaud notes, is aimed at minimizing reliance on pesticides and integrating crop management programs, both of which can mean healthier food. The same holds true in other states.
"What we are trying to do is breed blueberries that have a resistance to diseases," said Dr. Nick Vorsa, of the Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. "This funding is actually critical to keep that research growing."
But the loftiest benefits of investing in blueberry research are the far-reaching medical benefits that it can help uncover. Some of the research will be geared towards advancing and understanding the ways in which antioxidants are beneficial in the prevention of cancer and heart disease. Asked if he thought the additional funding for his lab -- however minimal -- could help uncover measures to more effectively combat ovarian cancer, Vorsa's replied "absolutely."
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February 27, 2009 12:30 PM