The New York Times has an interesting editorial on Senator Blanche Lincoln’s (D-AR) apparent aid-for-votes program, which would benefit her state’s rice and cotton farmers:

Relief payments would be based not on a farm’s actual loss but on the amount it received under the government’s direct payments program, a generous annual subsidy based on a farm’s size regardless of market conditions. Anyone with a loss of more than 5 percent would get a check amounting to 90 percent of the subsidy. This would be a big, unjustified windfall, especially for big farmers.

Let’s hope the NYT makes a habit of calling out shady spending.