There's an old adage that if every congressman was just like mine, Congress would be a far better place.

The adage, as much as it applies today in an era of political scandal and corruption, reflects voter attitudes that might be verbalized: "Why do you people keep electing bums? Can't you elect someone like my guy or gal?"

Some recent votes in Congress, though, should cause North Carolina voters to reflect on who is the problem in Washington, and who is electing the bums.

Conservative columnist Robert Novak wrote last week about the depths of Congress' addiction to pork, and the corrupting influence of congressional earmarks, while following 12 attempts by U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican, to remove the stuff from a budget bill.

Not surprisingly, all 12 attempts failed.

The House defeated some of Flake's amendments on a voice vote. Others went down in recorded, roll call votes. The recorded votes weren't close.

Novak noted that the new House leadership, elected in the wake of scandal, showed little inclination to stop the pork earmarking. The earmarking is at the root of some of the corruption probes taking place in Washington.

So, how did North Carolina's congressional delegation hold up in what should be considered litmus test votes on cleaning up the place?

With the exception of Rep. Howard Coble, a Greensboro Republican, not very well.

Coble is the only one of North Carolina's 13 members of Congress who voted consistently in favor of the Flake amendments.

He and Rep. Walter Jones, a Farmville Republican, were the only North Carolina congressmen to vote to drop $500,000 in renovations for a Banning, Calif., swimming pool. They were the sole congressmen from the state to vote for removing $250,000 to renovate a theater in Plattsburgh, N.Y.

Jones, though, voted to keep building money for a West Virginia town. On that vote, Reps. Sue Myrick, a Charlotte Republican, and Patrick McHenry, a Gastonia Republican, joined Coble in opposing the appropriation.

North Carolina's voting wasn't that different from Congress as a whole.

Republicans made up the overwhelming majority of those voting to drop the projects. Still, a majority of Republicans -- who control the chamber -- voted to keep the pork.

In North Carolina's case, none of the six Democrats jumped on the Flake wagon. Among the seven Republicans, three consistently kept off it. Apparently, in each of their eyes, the status quo in Washington is perfectly fine. After all, they wouldn't want to jeopardize their own little pork fiefdoms.

Who cares if these budget earmarks are being determined by lobbyists who steer thousands in campaign contributions to the committee chairs who control the process? Who cares if federal investigators have determined that, at least in a few cases, this amounts to exactly what it appears to be -- a bribe?

Voters may care. And they come to realize that their guy is no better than all the others.