Lindsey Graham Out-Earmarked Jim Clyburn

37-27.

It wouldn’t be a blowout in a football game, but that score certainly raises the question of whether or not one S.C. politician is playing for the right team up in Washington D.C.

Looked at from our cheap seats, when the Senior Republican Senator from the “most Republican State in America” request more earmarks than the Democratic Majority Whip, something’s gone terribly, terribly wrong with the GOP.

And when those requests becomes public knowledge scarcely a week after that same Senator blasted President Barack Obama for not standing his ground on earmark reform … well, somebody’s become terribly, terribly hypocritical.

With the exception of U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint and Rep. Joe Wilson, every Republican member of the S.C. Congressional delegation requested earmarks in the current federal pork-a-pallooza – including gubernatorial candidate Gresham Barrett, who wants nearly $1 million for a “Cellulosic Biofuel Plant” for Clemson University.

But Sen. Lindsey Graham had the most requests, surprise surprise.

Interestingly enough, one of Graham’s earmark requests was even bashed by former GOP presidential candidate John McCain, who “tweeted” on it yesterday without realizing Graham had sponsored it.

The funniest earmark request of them all isn’t from South Carolina, though.

It’s Iowa’s $1.7 million request to study pig odor.

“You hold your breath and when it’s really bad you get the taste in your mouth,” one of the corn-feds told MSNBC.

We know what you mean, dude.

All told, Washington politicians from all 50 states inserted nearly 9,000 earmarks totaling $7.7 billion into the appropriations bill.

Obama promised to veto earmark-laden legislation during his campaign, but has since changed his tune and said he would sign the bill.

Smell that pig odor yet?

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