Dana Bash, senior Congressional correspondent for CNN and reporters Brody Mullins (Update: Both Bash and Brody are two time winners!) and T.W. Farnam of WSJ have won the prestigious 2010 Dirksen Awards for Distinguished Coverage of Congress. The National Press Foundation released the news today.

The awards carry cash prizes. They will be announced on March 1 at the Washington Hilton.

What stories won the journos the awards? Find out and read brief remarks from judges after the jump…

Bash: Cited for her report on Congressional earmarks and Senatorial “holds” – the practice in which a single Senator can put a stop to the approval process for a presidential appointee in order to obtain leverage in unrelated negotiations.
Mullins and Farnam: Honored for articles on Congressional travel – for example, to a golf resort in Scotland. Farnam is now at WaPo. Elizabeth Johnson of Capitol News Connection was given an Honorable Mention for her on-air reporting from Capitol Hill.

Quote from NPF Judges: “These reporters produced good, tight coverage of members of Congress. Their work informed the public about how the system works,” the judges said. “They are all to be congratulated.”