Congress could save taxpayers $50 billion by cutting environmentally harmful projects and subsidies, according to a report released yesterday by the Green Scissors coalition, which includes enviro and government watchdog groups. Among other egregious expenditures of public money, the coalition pointed to subsidies for hard rock mining, fossil-fuel research, and the oil, timber, and sugar industries. Only 11 Senators and eight House members rated a perfect score on fighting “polluters’ pork,” according to the report. GOP presidential contender John McCain, who prides himself on cutting pork and fighting special interests, was not one of them. Meanwhile, some enviros are wondering whether the money spent on subsidies for ethanol, a clean-burning gasoline additive made from corn, might not be better spent on other environmental projects.
