COLUMN: Rep. Jim Clyburn and earmarks

A few years ago a Columbia newspaper editorial criticized Congressman Jim Clyburn for making a large number of small earmarks. It asked, "Why doesn't he do something big?" Well, he has. The big one - $1.6 billion to clean up 55 square miles of roped-off, contaminated soil bordering the Savannah River - has already hired 3,500 of an expected work force of 5,000 people for a 30-month project.

The money comes from the federal stimulus act, which many "conservatives" have attacked for "not creating jobs." As Clyburn likes to point out, the Savannah River Plant (the research and development center for atomic and hydrogen bomb research), isn't located in his district. "They've been trying to do something there for more than 20 years," Clyburn says, "to get the 35,000-acre tract cleaned and available for productive use."

"It's timely, temporary and targeted," he adds. "It benefits South Carolina and the country." He pointed out that many people who reside in his district have jobs at the SRS clean-up project.

Clyburn also secured $45 million for Clemson University's wind turbine research and development facility in North Charleston. Both these funds and those for the SRS clean-up funds came from technically non-earmark grants.

When speaking with him a week or so ago to flesh out this piece on earmarks, I asked if he had any comments in regard to the then-proposed and now-approved audit of South Carolina State University's inability to move forward on the decade-old multi-million federal grants for the James Clyburn Transportation Center. He seemed to welcome the audit, saying it "will clear up a lot of things." He indicated a willingness to fully share what he knows to the auditing team.

Among the 272 of the 435 members of the House, Democratic whip Clyburn secured $55,874,000 in earmarks for fiscal 2010, either alone or in some cases jointly with other member of the House. He ranked 36th in total earmarked funding.

In terms of campaign contributions from earmark recipients, however, he ranked near the bottom. He and Republican First District Rep. Henry Brown, who secured funds for Charleston harbor development, each received $1,000 in campaign contributions from earmark recipients.

They were among the bottom 79 earmarkers during fiscal year 2010 who received that amount or less. The House leader in campaign contributions received from earmark recipients, Democrat Jim Moran of Virginia, got $89,600.

The information is contained in a June report by two nonpartisan organizations generally critical of earmarks, Taxpayers for Common Sense (TCS) and the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP). The two groups give major credit to Sen. Jim DeMint, for his efforts to end the practice of keeping earmarks hidden from the public. Both DeMint and Sen. Lindsey Graham reported no earmarks for fiscal 2010.

Clyburn basically agrees with DeMint, an ardent foe of earmarks, on opening the records. Clyburn adds that he has always posted his on-line. None of Clyburn's 2010 earmarks went to for-profit companies.

Earmark funding for projects outside Clyburn's district include $8 million for the Medical University of South Carolina for an international study of Health Disparities in Troop Readiness for the Department of Defense. He also secured $525,000 for Charleston's planned African-American Museum.

He received $750 in campaign contributions from three individuals at the Medical University of South Carolina and a $250 individual contribution related to the museum. Clyburn said he was unaware of the contributions until learning about it from staff compiling his official report on campaign contributions.

In addition to funding for MUSC and Clemson, the University of South Carolina, College of Charleston, Columbia College, Trident TEC, Florence-Darlington TEC and five of the state's historically black colleges and universities received earmarked grants ranging from $250,000 to $4 million. Clyburn joined other members of the Congressional Black Caucus in securing $10 million for the United Negro College Fund, a consortium of the nation's historically black colleges and universities.

Other major earmarks funded $7.7 million for two multi-county water and sewer projects that will cover all or part of 10 counties in his congressional district, $7.3 million for three projects or programs for the South Carolina National Guard, $4 million for the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Alliance, and $2.5 million for the South Carolina Research Authority.

A number of smaller grants went to various programs or projects ranging from $110,000 for Healthy Learners Midlands for rural health outreach to $500,000 for drainage and concourse repair at the Florence Regional Airport.

Whether one likes earmarks or dismisses them all as wasteful spending of "pork," Clyburn sees them as a positive means of helping meet the needs of the state, the country and the people in the Sixth Congressional District, which contains a majority of the state's poorest counties.

Jack Bass is a Citadel Fellow and co-author of "The Palmetto State, The Making of Modern South Carolina."