Has Palin Requested More Earmark Money Than Obama?

In the Wall Street Journal, Elizabeth Holmes and Laura Meckler report:

At a rally today, Sen. McCain again asserted that Sen. Obama has requested nearly a billion in earmarks. In fact, the Illinois senator requested $311 million last year, according to the Associated Press, and none this year.

It seems that the WSJ reporters imply that McCain said Obama requested about $700 million more in earmarks than he actually did. In fact, ABC’s Jake Tapper reports that McCain is right: “Since joining the Senate in January 2005 he has requested 330 projects totaling $931.3 million, according to his Senate website where he discloses all his requests.” The WSJ reporters also write that “Gov. Palin has requested $750 million in her two years as governor — which the AP says is the largest per-capita request in the nation.” But Tapper reports that “In two years as governor, Palin sought 83 federal earmarks at a cost of $453 million, according to the Anchorage Daily News.”