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House votes down ban on military sponsorship of NASCAR teams

February 20, 2011, 2:11 pm by Christina Wilkie

The House on Friday voted down a proposed budget amendment by Democratic Rep. Betty McCollum (Minn.) that would have ended the U.S. Army's sponsorship of an official NASCAR racecar.

The amendment sought to bar the use of Pentagon funds to sponsor NASCAR vehicles. In 2010, the U.S. Army spent some $7 million to sponsor the No. 39 Chevy Impala stockracing car.

The final vote was 148 in favor of the amendment, 281 opposed.

Republicans provided 209 of the 281 nay votes, while 72 were cast by Democrats; 118 Democrats supported the ban, along with 30 Republicans.

McCollum is traveling to the Middle East; she did not vote and was not available to comment immediately on the outcome.

Debate surrounding the proposal took a menacing turn Thursday, when McCollum's staff alerted U.S. Capitol Police to a threatening fax sent to her office relating to her NASCAR amendment. First reported by Talking Points Memo, the obscenity-laden message concluded with the words, "Death To All Marxists, Foreign And Domestic!" Capitol Police said Thursday that they are investigating the incident.

McCollum's amendment was among many being debated this week as part of a continuing resolution to fund the remainder of fiscal 2011.

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