Quit Using Tax Dollars To Erect Shrines To Politicians! Quit It Now!

Submitted by: Barbara Payne

Dear Conservatives,

Former Senator Ted Kennedy was no stranger to pork. Given the excessive number of federally funded projects he brought back to Massachusetts, it’s no small wonder how echoes of his legacy continue for the most important cause Ted Kennedy ever championed — himself.

…and unless we act quickly, Congress will fleece taxpayers to institute the capstone to Ted Kennedy’s liberal legacy: the Ted Kennedy Shrine.

Traditional Values Coalition has alerted you before that taxpayers will be forced into subsidizing a shrine for Kennedy. And if it all goes as planned, you the taxpayer will foot the bill for almost half of this monument to Ted.

The $150 million dollar Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the United States Senate has been funded so far with at least $38 million siphoned off from other vital programs, including from the Defense Department.

To date, TVC has discovered three major appropriations for the Kennedy shrine in 2009 and 2010 budgets.

• In 2009 budget,
  • $5,813,000 this money was funneled through the Labor Department and Department of Health & Human Services spending bill.
• In the 2010 budget,
  • $18,900,000, was funneled through the Defense spending bill.
  • $13,600,000 was funneled through the Labor Department and Department of Health & Human Services spending bill.

These three appropriations come to a whopping $38.3 million! (so far)

Massachusetts Senator John Kerry (D-MA) are Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA) now desperately trying to secure an additional $30 million, bringing the total taxpayer funded contribution to a whopping $68 million — nearly half of the project’s total cost.

And just like any welfare queen standing in line for the government handout she supposedly “deserves”, Vicki Kennedy is lining up as well, informing reporters that she would graciously accept no more than $68 million from the American taxpayer.

After all, as quoted in the Boston Globe last May, “We’re not going to shy away from Teddy’s legacy here,” insists Mrs. Kennedy. In other words, working families owe an additional $30 million to her late husband as a way to “honor” Ted Kennedy’s achievements.

Here’s a thought: if the Kennedy family wants to build a shrine for the late senator, let Kennedy’s rich friends finance the Kennedy Shrine, not working families and certainly not taxpayers!

There is a very short window to stop this shrine from being funded in what is called a Continuing Resolution (CR) funding bill. The newly-elected House is expected to vote on the CR the week of February 14th. The Senate must then pass it before March 4th.

As the new Congress looks for ways to trim the fat from the federal budget, Traditional Values Coalition heartily recommends those spending cuts start with the “Kennedy Shrine” being built in Dorchester, Massachusetts.

Do the right thing. Defund the Ted Kennedy Shrine. There is no need to dip into the budgets of working families to fund legacy projects while Americans are out of work, short on money, and thin on patience.

TAKE ACTION: The U.S. House and Senate must zero out or prohibit any taxpayer funding of the Kennedy Shrine and tell Congress not use your hard-earned tax dollars to build the Kennedy Shrine. Let Kennedy’s rich friends finance the shrine, not working families and certainly not taxpayers!

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