The $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has nothing to do with the renovation of a Columbus police station. Obama, however, said that the stimulus helped pay for the renovation, providing work to architects at a small firm that otherwise would have had layoffs.

The money, in fact, is coming from a congressional earmark and the city of Columbus. Sens. George Voinovich and Sherrod Brown and Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy in 2009 secured the federal money — $300,000 — in a congressional spending bill, according to interviews and statements their offices put out that year. Congress members routinely obtain earmarks in these bills.