Politics, earmarks don’t mix paper concludes

This year New Hampshire's congressional delegation requested money for 107 earmarks however The Nashua Telegraph finds that campaign donations played almost no role in the earmarking process.

"Earmarking" is when a member of the U.S. House or Senate specifies certain money of the federal budget go to a specific project. The process has come under scrutiny after several House members were convicted on corruption charges relating to earmarks.

Over this year, U.S. Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-Rochester) has not accepted any money from people connected to an earmarked project, while U.S. Rep. Paul Hodes (D-Concord) returned money to contributors once he discovered they would benefit from a project.

While, both U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg (R-Rye) and U.S. Sen. John Sununu received donations from a PAC representing employees of BAE Systems. In a separate article, BAE systems told The Nashua Telegraph that the campaign donations were not influenced by projects the company received.

"We make financial contributions to House and Senate candidates who reflect our interest in a strong national defense," BAE Systems spokesman Greg Caires said. "It's unfair to suggest a tie to an earmark and a contribution. BAE doesn't make contributions with the expectation of support for a program."