Staffers for the Senate Republican Conference today launched the Pork Report, which is being billed as a website that will “highlight questionable uses of taxpayer dollars included in this year’s appropriations bills.”

The fact that Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.), a member of the Senate GOP leadership team, has dispatched his staff to work on such an endeavor is pretty remarkable. Last year attacks on pork-barrel spending originated from conservative members such Sens. Tom Coburn and Jim DeMint — and certainly not leadership. But as Republicans have sought to return to their roots on fiscal restraint, earmarks have become an easy target.

The Pork Report launched on the same day the Club for Growth announced its 2007 Senate RePORK Card. The scorecard tracks senators’ votes on 15 anti-pork amendments. It’s no surprise that Coburn and DeMint had a perfect score along with Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.). Click here for the full list. (Hat tip to Ericka Andersen at RedState.)

Now that the GOP leadership is picking on pork, it would be nice to see all Republicans take a tough stand against wasteful spending like the water projects bill President Bush vetoed last week. They’ll have their first test when a vote to override Bush’s veto comes before them later this week.

UPDATE — Nov. 6, 3:37 p.m.: Andy Roth of the Club for Growth has a great op-ed on National Review Online today about this very subject.