Senator Tom Coburn is a collector. Every year he amasses a list of the most wasteful and what he calls “Low Priority Government Spending” that adds up to big bucks. 
This year is no exception. He has uncovered $3.3 million to bail out a failing Alaska tourist boat that he says is “sinking private business”; $505,000 to promote specialty hair and beauty products for cats and dogs; and our personal favorite, $97,000 for floating outhouses for Oregon fishermen. (We know this is a drop in the bucket.)
With the federal government chalking up trillion-dollar deficits four years in a row, it will take a lot more than eliminating $11,700 for “Star Wars Day” from the budget to solve the fiscal crisis.
Still, every dollar counts when you’re trying to save money, and Coburn, a Republican from Oklahoma, has been the champion of fiscal prudence. In all, his 2012 "Wastebook" includes 100 projects costing $18.9 billion.
Click here to see part of Tom Coburn’s 2012 Wastebook.