First Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.) surrenders his chairmanship of the Ways and Means Committee amid an ethics investigation. Now Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) proposes an idea that she hopes will help her make good on her promise to help lead “the most ethical Congress in history”—a party-wide ban on earmarks. Will it happen? Don’t bet on it. Reason.tv’s “Pork Party House” helps explain why neither party can resist the pull of pork.

If you’re a politician, lobbyist, or insider and you’re in the mood to party, check out a Washington D.C. mansion called the Sewall-Belmont House. Party with senators and celebrities at thousand-dollar-a-plate fundraisers! You might even get to ride a mechanical bull! The Sewall-Belmont House hosts so many A-list events, you might be surprised to find out that your tax dollars help fund this hotspot for Washington insiders. “Over the last 10 years, the Sewall-Belmont House has gotten over $3.4 million in earmarks,” says Leslie Paige of Citizens Against Government Waste.

Reporters often highlight the most ridiculous examples, but politicians have learned how to make their pork projects sound uncontroversial, even appealing. Just say your project will help children, senior citizens, or—if you really want to slip under the radar—direct taxpayer dough to a museum.

“Museums are one of the biggies because they sound so good,” says Paige. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) used that angle to direct a million-dollar earmark to the Sewall-Belmont House (after the Senator received an award from the Sewall-Belmont House). Turns out Landrieu was just getting warmed up, because her recent $300 million “Louisiana Purchase” shot her into the ranks of pork legends.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this, laments Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), one of Congress’s few legitimate pork busters. Flake tells Reason.tv that despite pork-laden scandals that stuck some members behind bars—remember Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.)?—and promises from Barack Obama to reform earmarks, spending on pork continues to swell in the giant pork party house called the U.S. Congress.

“Pork Party House” is written and produced by Ted Balaker. Producer: Hawk Jensen; Host: Nick Gillespie; Field Producer: Dan Hayes; Associate Producer: Paul Detrick; Additional Camera: Meredith Bragg; Production Assistant: Josh Swain; Music: “Get What You Want?” by Beight (Magnatune Records).

Approximately six-and-a-half minutes. Go to Reason.tv for iPod, HD, and audio versions of this and all our videos.

Subscribe to Reason.tv’s YouTube Channel and receive automatic notifications when new material goes live.

And come back to Reason.tv March 15 through March 19 for the debut of Reason Saves Cleveland With Drew Carey: How to fix the “Mistake on The Lake” and other once-great American cities, an original six-part documentary series.

However, there’s another Caribbean scandal that could burn Democrats. In February, Pro Publica’s Marcus Stern reported that Congress and the Virgin Islands will give British alcohol conglomerate Diageo a $3b subsidy if they shift production from Puerto Rico to the US Virgin Islands. Previously, I had written about this issue, including Rangel’s threats against the Puerto Rican health system.

But now an ad, pictured here, is running in Montana asking Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus why he is putting up with this. That’s turning up the heat a little.

Another rum producer told the Billings Gazette that the subsidy “is so large it’s twice the cost of production.”  That is, if Diageo spends $100 making rum in the Virgin Islands, they get $200 from the federal government. Then Diageo gets to sell the rum too! Diageo’s 2008 operating profit was £2.2 billion and 2009 sales were $20 billion.

Now, I understand — disagree but understand — US taxpayers giving struggling American farmers a subsidy to make ethanol. (rum is also ethanol) I don’t understand why US taxpayers are giving billions to an already highly profitable, publicly traded British booze company.

You would think at a time with record deficits, historic unemployment, etc. Congress could find better things to do with $3b than boost profits of a foreign company. Or they could even end the excise tax on rum that funds this boondoggle. But I guess not. As the ad says, the Congressional Democrat are letting the “pirate lobbyists” win.

The Secretary of Transportation says “it’s fun playing Santa Claus to states and cities around the nation”

…as the Department of Transportation furloughs federal bridge and road inspectors

Washington politicians and bureaucrats enjoy ‘lavish’ government pensions; Federal employees can draw on their pension beginning at age 50 and can get as much as 80 percent of their final salary

National Institutes of Health spends $3.9 million to develop ‘Avatar’ sex-ed video game for kids

National Science Foundation pays to produce a “free” CD for road trips on a highway in California

Director of Louisiana housing agency charged taxpayers for personal expenses; Unallowable charges included a $150 bill at hair salon, items from a sporting goods store and Wal-Mart, and telephone and electric bills

BAILOUT WATCH: Fannie Mae seeking a $15.3 billion bailout

78 percent of Americans say government spending is out of control and 59 percent of U.S. citizens do not trust the federal government

Most voters think the country would be better off if most members of Congress were not re-elected, according to a new poll

Company accused of defrauding the government by filing bogus receipts, double billing for the same services and charging government agencies for strippers and prostitutes; A prostitute in Afghanistan was put on the payroll under the “Morale Welfare Recreation” category and the company billed the prostitute’s plane tickets and salary to the government, according to the accusation

The government paid more than $284 million on recruitment, retention and relocation bonuses to federal employees in 2008

California county to spend federal stimulus funds to pay students to make mini- documentaries about professionals whose work the youths find inspiring

A $500,000 federal stimulus grant will pay a consultant to design a promotional campaign to encourage more recycling in Dayton, Ohio

Montana town spends federal stimulus funds to renovate a pavilion used for receptions, craft fairs, dances and class reunions

Federal funds pay to research impact of “fair trade” on flowers from Ecuador and tea produced in South Africa

The Postal Service lost $297 million in the first quarter of the year, marking the Postal Service’s eighth consecutive unprofitable quarter

Despite millions in federal tax credits, wind-equipment manufacturers cut thousands of jobs in the U.S. last year

Las Vegas receives $4.5 million federal grant to build the neon museum

Alaska Senators fight to restore funding for earmark that both President Bush and Obama have tried to eliminate

New Jersey Senator prodded the Federal Reserve to aid a struggling bank whose chairman and vice chairman were big campaign contributors

Media critics agree the U.S. Census Bureau’s $2.5 million Super Bowl ad was one of the worst

$501,940 of federal stimulus aid will help finance an animal shelter, which will include pet bathing areas and a kitten nursery

Only 11% of Americans think the government spends taxpayers’ money wisely and 83% say the size of the federal budget deficit is due to the unwillingness of politicians to cut government spending

75% of voters are angry at the government’s current policies; 59% believe cutting taxes is better than increasing government spending for job-creation, but 72% expect Washington politicians to increase spending instead

Taxpayers billed $1,000 per week for booze and other “in-flight services” for the Speaker of the House that “read like a dream order for a wild frat party”

Hundreds of convicted criminals may have been hired by the U.S. Census Bureau

California wine trail will be getting signs, a new map and an iPhone application thanks to a $98,500 federal stimulus grant given to the Monterey County Growers and Vintners Association

Federal stimulus funds supporting Napa Valley Wine Train, despite local opposition

The federal government “likely overspent by millions” when it negotiated a no bid contract for the $54 million Wine Train stimulus project

The pork bell curve: Boston College has more than doubled what it spends on lobbying and, according to the college’s spokesman, “our earmarks have increased since we started paying [the lobbyists] more.”

The Wine Institute receives $7 million grant to promote wine in foreign countries; Raisin Administrative Committee receives $3 million and the California Walnut Commission pulls in $4.5 million

Bad publicity leads martini & wine bar to withdraw from contract for $25,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant Recovery stimulus funding

A year after the city claimed it needed a billion dollars from the federal government for subway safety upgrades, the District of Columbia spends federal stimulus funds intended for transportation projects to replace garage escalators

Most TSA employees to receive performance-based pay hikes

Taxpayers spent more than $1.1 million to send members of Congress and their staff on junkets to the Copenhagen Climate Summit in Denmark

More than half of the companies that have received federal stimulus dollars to do highway work in Massachusetts have a history of breaking the law

Monterey wine association receives $98,5000 federal stimulus grant

$2 million of federal stimulus money paying to teach Ohio residents how to cut, color and style hair

Atlantic City spends federal stimulus money to pay for more than $276,000 worth of playground equipment

Nearly three out of four Americans think that at least half of the money spent in the federal stimulus plan has been wasted, according to a new CNN poll

Texas spends federal transportation funds on “spectacular” rest areas that include “state-of-the-art” vending machines and even a Battleship Texas restoration project

Louisiana spent millions of dollars of federal funds intended for health care for low income and uninsured patients to pay for the state’s hazardous road claims