"Ronald Reagan proved that deficits don't matter." Vice President Dick Cheney

The tax-and-waste Republicans in Congress are at it again. In a report released Jan. 23, the Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) stated that the Republican-dominated Congress "porked out at record levels."

According to the group, the 13 annual appropriations bills included 9,362 unnecessary special-interest projects costing $22.5 billion.

"Pork" is generally defined as spending allocations requested by only one chamber of Congress or serving only a local or special interest. It also refers to spending projects not specifically authorized, competitively awarded or the subject of a congressional hearing.

Pork spending per capita was $34 nationally, though Alaska reaped a staggering $611 per person, probably because the Appropriations Committee is chaired by Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska.

Virginia ranked 37th with special-interest spending at $24 per person. North Carolina was dead last, getting only $9.81 per person in pork spending.

Here are just a few of the many wasteful projects that the Republicans approved:

? A catfish health study in Stoneville, Miss. ($500,000)

? Program for alternative salmon products in Alaska ($631,000).

? Sea otter research in Alaska ($750,000).

? Ranch in Bozeman, Mont., to "assist entrepreneurs" ($450,000).

? Hoop barns in Iowa ($210,000).

? "Swine lagoon alternatives research" in South Carolina ($500,000).

? National Cowgirl Museum in Fort Worth, Texas ($1.19 million).

? Pennsylvania Trolley Museum ($400,000)

? "Automated nursery project" in Mississippi ($1.0 million).

? First Tee Program in various states (golf for youngsters) ($500,000).

? National Peanut Festival Fairgrounds in Dothan, Ala. ($202,000).

? Shrimp research in various states ($4.2 million).

? Anger management project for preschoolers in Iowa ($250,000). ? Denver Art Museum ($900,000). [Note: in its 2001-2002 annual report, the museum listed assets valued at more than $35 million].

Prince William County got its share of pork, thanks to Reps. Frank Wolf, R-10th District, and Tom Davis, R-11th District. Projects include:

? Parking deck in Old Town Manassas ($1.5 million).

? River dredging to benefit fewer than 100 boaters in Occoquan ($710,000).

? Improvements to Washington Street in Haymarket ($500,000).

The madcap spending authorized by members of Congress is particularly odious when considered alongside the deficit figure, now estimated at $477 billion for fiscal 2004.

In other words, the Republicans want to spend money on unnecessary projects even though the federal treasury is bare. These "no new taxes" politicos figure the federal government will simply borrow money for pork programs, thus shifting the financial burden to our children and grandchildren.

Conservative pundits wag about "tax-and-spend Democrats," though there is no evidence that is the case. The big spenders on Capitol Hill are Republicans, not Democrats. They proved that when Ronald Reagan was in the White House and also when George H. W. Bush was president. Now George W. Bush and Republicans in Congress are following in their footsteps.

Bill Clinton established an enviable record of fiscal responsibility during the eight years that he was president. His record on restraining spending and reducing the deficit is far better than any Republican who preceded or followed him.

Americans are not wasteful in their private lives, and they normally don't like to see waste in federal programs. Curiously, however, they keep voting the big spenders back into office, proving once again that in a democracy, the people pretty much get the kind of government they deserve.

Gary Jacobsen lives in Woodbridge.