Pork Barrel
PORK BARREL
PORK BARREL. Pork barrel politics consist of trying to obtain appropriations for one's own district. Politicians consider fighting for their constituents' best interests virtuous, but fiscal conservatives, claiming the practice has led to unnecessary investments at taxpayers' expense, use the term in a derogatory manner. "Pork barrel" originally referred to American slaves' rushed attempts to obtain some of the pork given to them as a group in large barrels. The term entered the political vocabulary after the Civil War. Harbor and river improvements were classic examples of pork, later surpassed by defense contracts and highway construction.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Ferejohn, John A. Pork Barrel Politics: Rivers and Harbors Legislation, 1947–1968. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press, 1974.
Philippe R.Girard
See alsoConservatism ; Interstate Highway System ; Veto, Line-Item .
