Hal Rogers to Head Up Appropriations Committee: Mr. Rogers Neighborhood Was Named Because of the Mr. Rogers' Pork

You think the Republicans are serious about cutting spending? Then ask yourself what is Hal Rogers doing heading up the appropriations committee in the House.

ABC News' Jonathan Karl reported on Monday on the prospect of Rogers emerging as the ranking Republican on the committee for the upcoming legislative session:

Roger's has brought so much federal money to his hometown (Somerset, Kentucky; population 11,000) that it is known as Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. There's a $52 million National Center for Hometown Security. The tiny airport that received $17 million in federal dollars but has so little traffic that the last commercial airline pulled out in February. And then there's the Hal Rogers Parkway, which was formerly known as the Daniel Boone Parkway before being renaming for Kentucky's Prince of Pork.

Most recently, Rogers pushed through a $5 million dollar measure this year for conservation groups that work with endangered wild cats. It just so happens that one of the few groups eligible is the Namibia-based Cheetah Conservation Fund. Who works for them? The Congressman's daughter.

The Louisville Courier-Journal reports:

Rogers secured 137 earmarks worth $251.9 million between 2008 and 2010, according to LegisStorm, a nonpartisan congressional watchdog group. That ranked him 99th among Senate and House members with earmarks.

He is the Robert Byrd of Kentucky, and he even needs his name on everything just like Byrd. He took Daniel Boone's name off the parkway to put his own name on it. Daniel Boone?

Same old Republicans...