Say Anything Blog

A reader sends this along in response to this Associated Press report in the Jamestown Sun about a $500,000 earmark Senator Byron Dorgan secured to “study” the expansion of North Dakota’s one oil refinery.

Dorgan is at it again.  Tesoro just announced a $125M expansion of their Mandan refinery.  Why on earth would the REC’s [Rural Electrical Cooperatives] need half a mil to STUDY the expansion of refining?  We only have one refinery!  And why the electric assoc?  Except that they are going to turn around and contribute to your [Dorgan’s] campaign in ‘10.

The National Association of Rural Electrical Cooperatives has given a total of $16,000 to Senator Dorgan since 1997.  Getting $500,000 back is a pretty good return on investment, no?

Of course, the oddest part of this whole thing is why the Rural Electrical Cooperatives would get money to study the expansion of an oil refinery?

Kind of reminds me of Dorgan’s $8 million earmark for Killdeer Mountain Manufacturing which is owned by the parents of Kristin Hedger, who just happens to be a former member of Senator Dorgan’s staff and a prominent Democrat politician in her own right.

Nothing like using the taxpayer dollars to buy votes.