Sen. Tom Coburn, an Oklahoma Republican who requested the inspector general’s report, tried to get a measure passed that would place a moratorium on earmarks until all of the nation’s deficient bridges were either repaired or replaced. It should come as no surprise that he was unsuccessful. The measure failed by a lopsided vote of 82 to 14.

“The bridge in Minnesota didn’t fail as much as Congress failed,” Coburn said. “We failed to direct dollars where they were needed most because this body is obsessed with parochial pork-barrel politics.”

The House passed a similar bill prior to the Minneapolis bridge collapse that also was packed with pork totaling $2.2 billion.

The projects include: * A museum to present and interpret the colorful and fascinating history of Las Vegas — $200,000. * A peace garden on North Dakota’s border with Canada — $450,000. * A minor-league baseball stadium in Billings, Montana — $500,000. * A mule and packers museum in Bishop (population: 3,575), Calif. — $50,000.

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