I see your bet

Too bad he can't raise McCain one.

Earlier today, John McCain called on fellow Senators Obama and Clinton to release the earmarks they requested. This is part of an initiative he is co-sponsoring to block all earmarks for one year. According to information released last month, Clinton was in the top 10 Senators requesting earmarks, having requested more than $340 million in 2007, Obama was in the bottom 25 Senators, having requested $91 million, and John McCain (and my home state Senator, Claire McCaskill) are among the 5 Senators that did not request any earmarks.

Both Democratic candidates have agreed to co-sponsor the amendment proposed by Jim DeMint amendment to the 2009 budget. Sen. Obama has also, with a very quick turn around, released a full list of his earmark requests, not only from the 2007 budget year, but also from 2006. This list also includes a full description of what the request would do. I haven't looked over the full list (it's $91 mil., and, just skimming it, the average request is for 1/2 to 3/4 of a million), but it includes requests for scientific grants for local universities, law enforcement funding, education, health, and others. Dig through it, let me know what you find.