Fishing For Your Tax Dollars

Shedd Aquarium Reels In Dough, But It's Still Getting Millions In Earmarks

(CBS)  Chicago's Shedd Aquarium is a spectacular showplace.

With two million admissions a year and 159 corporate donors, there's no question of staying afloat.

Yet aquarium officials have come to Washington with their hands out, seeking taxpayer-funded earmarks, grants of money without the normal public review, CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports.

And the Aquarium has found friends among at least six of their home state members of Congress, including Sen. Barack Obama.

They each received campaign donations from Aquarium officials, and then colectively channeled nearly $1.8 million in earmarks to the Shedd Aquarium for this year, after first receiving campaign donations from Aquarium officials. Both sides say the donations have nothing to do with the earmarks.

"The insinuation that somehow I got a contribution, that's what led to this, is nutty - to be direct," said Rep. Rahm Emanuel, D-Ill.

Emanuel says he supports the Aquarium because it raises awareness about the Great Lakes.

But the Aquarium does lots of other things with the money it makes. It spends some of it on Washington lobbyists to get the earmarks: more than $270,000 dollars.

It spends a healthy chunk of money on fancy fundraising parties, more than $600,000 worth in 2006.

And the non-profit Aquarium is also generous with its executives. The head of the Aquarium got a $60,000 raise in 2006. That's more than most people make all year.

His salary and benefits total over $600,000.

Even with all those costs, the Shedd Aquarium takes in much more than it spends through ticket sales, donations, souvenirs and more. Last year they cleared $8 million after expenses - and they're sitting on hundreds of millions of dollars in net assets.

All of that was enough to make a tax watchdog group classify earmarks for the Shedd Aquarium as pure "pork."

"The interesting thing about the Shedd Aquarium is that it's extremely wealthy," said Leslie Paige of Citizens Against Government Waste. "Why they need $1.8 million of taxpayers' money is beyond us. They don't."

"It's almost as if Congress is looking for an excuse to find somebody to give money too when they don't need it," Attkisson said.

"And I would guarantee ya those who know about it, and they do know about what I've done for Shedd Aquarium, support it," Emanuel said.

Which is why Emanuel has already announced his plan to earmark $2 million more to the Shedd Aquarium for next year. When fishing for tax dollars ... there's always a good catch in Washington.

[cyberus-2009]

This is news because?

If and until they reform the bill process this is and will be how things are done ... and citizens expect their congresscritters to bring home as much bacon as possible while complaining about what other states are getting.

IMHO what we need is a minimum time of 5 session days between submission/changes and vote on all bills, a requirement that a summary cover sheet be put on all bills that includes the cost of the bill, cost of and author of any insertions, and summaries of all attached bills that include costs and authors.

While this wouldn''t actually CURE the problem .. the fact that there would be a period of time between final bill and vote combined with summary covers gives the public and media time to get the facts and raise holy wrath or unholy heck might make some politicians think twice about what they are trying to slip though.

[randynason]

Talk about waste of tax dollars: 700 million has been poured into the Iraq embassy and Republican members of Congress are fretting over a mere 1.8 million being channeled into raising awareness about the Great Lakes. How idiotic and absurd is that?

[verarta]

PURE SPECULATORS

They are pure speculators. They deserve to be prosecuted by FBI or other law enforcement agencies for abusing with taxpayers money. Justice for the speculators.

[rudy654-2009]

Nothing new here. Produce is selling at top dollar plunging billions into starvation and they too come after our taxes for their subsidies. More corporate welfare anyone?

[excoachken]

Interesting that CBS would run this story, instead of the McCain income tax report, released after the end of this week''s new cycle, last night. McCain''s wife Cindy refuses to release her information (NBC estimates it to be over $100 million per year) and John, who in spite of vast personal wealth AND great pay and benefits as Senator, still feels the need to accept over $23,000 per year in Social Security, were among the first to ask for the tax reports of BOTH Clintons. But, in a way, you can understand Cindy''s rejuctance, because she must feel somewhat distant from the man she is married to since hearing that he has used the "C" word to describe her personaliy. It could be, however, that her wealth, earned from the family ownership of an alcohol producing empire, is built on selling a product that "transforms" 10% of it''s cstomers into "addicts," according to the National Council on Alcoholism. Personally, I think hypocrisy like this calls for a toast!

[som1uno]

I visited Rep. Emanuels''s web site and I cannot send him an email because I''m don''t live in his congressional district. However, he''s able to get his hands on my federal tax dollars to fund his pork projects.

That''s called TAXATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION.

Don''t they remember what happened the last time someone tried to pull that on the American people?
Wake up America!
Our money is being taken "legally" from our pockets while our culture and future is being sold in the name of corporate profits and cheap labor.

Boycott the Shedd Aquarium until they spend all their stockpiled millions and shutdown.
They lobby for tax dollars and turn around and give some of it to politicians, it''s like some perverted legal/financial circle-jerk and we''re all locked outside the bedroom.

[i_am_emac]

so what if mccain collects social security, he paid into it, its his money. Its not like he''s just came to the country with his hand out. Whether I need it or not I plan on getting back as much from SS as I can when I retire.

[hypnotoad72]

There are times when a deserving entity needs help.

Given the context in this article, this aquarium is not one of them.

They rank up there with sports teams begging for tax money so they can have a new stadium for free too. Why not ask the managers and players to take a pay cut? The health benefits they get great on their own, and surely a $3 mil pay cut from a $30 mil contract isn''t going to hurt THAT badly?

[payasyougo]

Just keep taxing the "rich". It is important that the "rich" pay their fair share. Why shouldn''t the "rich" pay for important government services for the rest of us.

As long as your government keeps you thinking that it is acceptable to villify the rich and take from them you will never solve the spending problem. And that spending problem is a train wreck in the making.

[ddaryl1]

I have an idea

lets make lobbying, Bill riders, and pork barrel spending completely illegal.

All Bills presented in Congress or the Senate must fly on their own. No addin griders to anything. It ewither passes or it doesn''t end of story...

as for this Aquarium BS.... if the Aquarium has 2 million visitors then raise the friggin prices...

this country better be puttin ga lot more money inot our social security system, AND REDUCING THE AGE WHEN WE CAN COLLECT... before they spend a dime on anything ANYTHING !!!!

I''m so pissed off at the direction of this country everything I read seems to **** me off a little bit more

[forthepeopl1]

US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson
Has Already Received His PERSONAL BAIL-OUT

Under Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson%u2019s .. Former leadership at
Goldman Sachs, the company has been instrumental to its penetration of Western
capital and other markets. - - Henry Paulson was vastly effective in Communist
China%u2019s .. Interests and enabling their access to Western economic assistance
and high technology

In late January 2006, Goldman Sachs purchased a stake in the Industrial and
Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), China%u2019s biggest bank, for $2.58 billion
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson''''''''s .. Personal stake .. In this transaction
was $25 million ( WHAT IS THIS ALL ABOUT??SOUNDS LIKE A INSIDE TRADE DEAL TO ME, HOW ABOUT YOU?????????)

A PERSONAL BAIL OUT for : Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and His
Criminal Friends

[forthepeopl1]

now this is a waist, bush,cheney,rice,rumsfeld,rove,paulson

[forthepeopl1]

oh i forgot, congress