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Area Republicans Decry Plan As 'Pork-Ridden'

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By BILLY HOUSE

bhouse@tampatrib.com

Published: January 29, 2009

WASHINGTON - Like most of their House colleagues, Tampa Bay lawmakers split along party lines Wednesday on the economic stimulus package.

The area's only Democratic House member, Kathy Castor of Tampa, voted for it, saying "doing nothing would be disastrous."

Overall, the bill would send at least $29.3 billion to Florida, says The Center for American Progress, a liberal think-tank.

Republican Gus Bilirakis of Palm Harbor called it "a long-term spending spree."

GOP Rep. C.W. Bill Young of Indian Shores thinks the bill should have been crafted through a more "thoughtful and deliberative process."

Republican Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite of Brooksville was the only House member not to vote on the bill, citing a "family emergency." She would have voted against it, she said, calling it a "pork-ridden bailout that produces few jobs."

"We'll be depending on the Chinese and a lot of other countries to finance a program that spends hundreds of millions of dollars on things that have nothing to do with stimulating the economy," said Republican Rep. Adam Putnam of Bartow.

Reporter Billy House can be reached at 1 (202) 662-7673.

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