Greater Greensboro Open Blog Nonsequitur

"In August, the South Carolina Parks and Recreation Foundation renamed its public golf-training center in Columbia after Rep. James Clyburn (D., S.C.), the House Democratic whip and an avid golfer. The center, which includes a driving range and putting and chipping practice greens, went so far as to erect a statue of Clyburn in front of its main building. (Their website features http://clyburngolfcenter.com/InstallationofStatue/content/index.html a 25-photo slideshow on the statue’s installation.) According to the city of Columbia’s website, the newly rededicated golf center "will not only focus on honoring Congressman James E. Clyburn, but it will also allow our community to highlight his many contributions to our city, our region, and our state."

Three months after being thus honored, Clyburn quietly requested the $3 million in Department of Defense funds for "First Tee," a youth program of which the center is the local host. Neither house of Congress voted on this earmark when the bill first passed earlier this year, as Clyburn had not requested any money at that point. He instead inserted the money for First Tee into the conference report (the final version) of the Defense Appropriations bill (it appears on page 207 of this 621-page pdf document http://www.rules.house.gov/110/text/110_hr3222crtxt.pdf.
Clyburn's spokeswoman, Kristie Greco, said the earmark had nothing to do with the Clyburn Center or its recent dedication. "This does not relate to a golf center in Columbia," she said. "It’s a program he supports and believes in."

She said that the funds are for First Tee to conduct its program for children of servicemembers all over the nation - hence its inclusion in the Operations and Maintenance Defense-Wide (OMDW) title of the Defense Appropriations bill.

"It’s to fund the program at military installations, for children," said Greco. "It builds life-skills. They learn setting goals and reaching them, sportsmanship, etiquette.""

This excerpt was taken from the following link. To learn more go to:

Hole in One!$3 million in defense money for ‘first tee.’
By David Freddoso
http://article.nationalreview.com/? q=ZjYyODRiZThiZmVkMmUyM2U4NjZhYWU5YmFmNGVjNDg=