Washington, D.C. – Citizens Against Government Waste today reacted to President-elect Barack Obama naming retiring Representative Ray LaHood (R-Ill.) as his nominee for Transportation Secretary.

As the new Secretary of Transportation, Rep. LaHood would likely play a major role in overseeing the public works agenda the new administration plans on initiating as part of an economic stimulus.  Unfortunately, Rep. LaHood has proven throughout his career to be an eager waster of taxpayer dollars.

In fact, he has explicitly stated this himself.  A February 2, 2008 Rockford Register Star article quoted Rep. LaHood as saying, “The reason I went on the Appropriations Committee, the reason other people go on the Appropriations Committee is they know that it puts them in a position to know where the money is at, to know the people who are doling the money out and to be in the room when the money is being doled out.” 

Rep. LaHood made good use of his time on the House Appropriations Committee.  He requested 52 projects worth $58.9 million in fiscal year 2008, ranking him 53 in the House.  Included was $793,407 for soybean research, $245,000 for the Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield, and $150,000 for the Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commission, which seeks to inspire Lincoln observances until his bicentennial birthday in 2009. 

Rep. LaHood received an 11 percent rating, classified as “Hostile,” from the Council for Citizens Against Government Waste 2007 Congressional Ratings, and has received a lifetime rating of 49 percent.

Other groups have given Rep. LaHood similarly poor ratings.  The American Conservative Union 2007 rating for Rep. LaHood was 52, and the National Taxpayers Union awarded a C- in the same year.

Instead of keeping with his campaign theme of a new face for Washington, President-elect Obama has tapped an old porker to fill the vacancy at Transportation Secretary.  Politics-as-usual appears to have again ruled the day.

Citizens Against Government Waste is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, mismanagement and abuse in government.