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Giving Credit for the Bypass

By Beacon Staff

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has been targeting Montana Congressman Denny Rehberg and many of his Republican colleagues for taking credit for securing stimulus projects in their districts after voting against the larger recovery package.

In fact, my colleague Dan Testa asked Rehberg’s staff about accusations of hypocrisy back in November. Then, the congressman countered that in his role on the House Appropriations Committee he often inserts earmarks that may benefit his delegates even if he opposes spending legislation, which is common practice in Congress. And now that the stimulus has passed, many Republican lawmakers who voted against the bill have argued that they still feel like its their duty to make sure their constituents get their fair share since they’re already going to pay for it.

Still, a Montana Democratic official forwarded the following newsletter from the Kalispell Chamber of Commerce and wrote: “Rehberg being praised for Kalispell bypass funding … which he voted against. That’s what I call ‘securing funding.’”

The 93 Bypass is a huge project for Kalispell. And one would expect the Chamber of Commerce to thank Montana’s entire U.S. delegation for helping direct any dollars its town’s way. But each time Rehberg is seen getting credit for anything involving the stimulus, he should expect a similar response.