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A Centrist on Earmark Hypocrisy

Posted by PAUL SILVER in At TMV.
Feb 6th, 2008 | Comments

Newt Gingrich reaches out to his readers for Real Change in Earmarks

In essence he asks for support for President Bush and GOP leaders in reigning in earmarks.

“The country is speaking loudly and clearly. The American people are rejecting the special interests, and the bureaucratic status quo in Washington. The question for you now is: What are you going to do about it?”

Well, today at least on one front, the answer is in. President Bush and the Congress, led by House Republican Leader John Boehner (Ohio), are leading an all-out fight for real change by ending the undemocratic, corrupt practice of pork-barrel spending through earmarks.

As an independent I find this superficially self serving. The recent explosion of earmarks began with Speaker Tom Delay using pork to help preserve the seats of incumbent GOP congressman. These continue even through the current proposed Federal Budget. But now that the GOP is about to lose control of some or all of the government they have seen the light and want to reign in spending. And they will use any Democratic resistance to their marketing advantage.

To this I say several things.
One, the Dems should dramatically reduce their contribution to legislatively directed funding (earmarks).

Two, if the GOP wants to persuade a moderate independent like me that they are sincere and not just politically posturing, they should unilaterally reduce all GOP earmark requests until the Dems catch up to their recent excesses; Tied to a mutual agreement to dramatically reform the use of earmarks.

I hope that as the hypocrisy of excessive partisanship is exposed more voters will become skeptical Independents, who will demand candor and integrity from both parties.

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DLS

Line-item veto. No more BS.

pacatrue

Amen to Paul.

Slamfu

The GOP has done this before. Back when the Dems we in control of congress they introduced legislation so that the minority as well as the majority party could force investigations into unethical behavior. Later under DeLay when they were back in control they revoked their own legislation to prevent the Dems into being able to use the ethics commitee to look at GOP activities. Just more sneaky GOP political manipulations that fly in under the radar.

Its good legislation, but the timing of it couldn't be more craven.

pacatrue

It is worth adding that if the legislation is good for the American people, it should be passed even if it is craven and unfair.

That said, the earmark concern seems to match Bush' use of veto. Congress couldn't pass him a budget increase he wouldn't sign when the Republicans were in charge. Now that the Dems are, suddenly spending must be under control.

DLS

"suddenly spending must be under control"

EXCEPTION: It's an election year. So, we get the stimulus vote-buying gimmickry from Bush himself, not just those trying to bid him to spend more money on it.

Also, Bush's proposed defense spending increase must have made some Dems privately laugh. This is a budget that is dead even before arrival in Congress.

DLS

Another thing that's needed in addition to the ability to remove earmarks is to eliminate all appropriations and spending that is mandated by law. That's what cowards do. They don't have to create a voting record on the spending and they can even convince their constituents (if they are Dems) that mandatory spending is a magic solution to funding something. (Such fools would insist all Medicare and other entitlement spending were mandated by law and 100% funded out of general revenue. No details would be needed or provided where the money would come from.)

Slamfu

Lol, wanna talk about enttitlements go check out which states are taking us to the cleaners. Here's a hint, its not the blue ones.

http://www.nemw.org/taxburd.htm

DLS

Oh, LBJ knew what Texas stood to gain by the rise of Washington under FDR and later he even did the state better. Why a space flight HQ in Texas instead of on the Cape?

Rather than have the federal government take taxes and redistribute it, in the form of entitlement programs (which are meant to go directly to individuals, as US rather than state citizens*, and evade the criticism you posted; the entitlements are stimulative but the taxation is the reverse), or worse, in large block grants (or someday, the equivalent of Canada's "equalization payments"), it's better for the federal government to cease and let the citizens, states, and localities decide what they choose to do and have in their societies.

* There is no general grant of power to the federal government -- dishonest people try and fail by referring to the "general welfare" clause, "necessary and proper" clause, etc., and most laughably of all, the Preamble -- but having US citizenship, which we've had since the Civil War, does open a legal Pandora's box.

Slamfu

Why don't you just face facts. Sometimes, often I would argue, these entitlements do the good they were intended to do. And instead of being merely a bottomless trough for those who would fleece the system, they actually have a general benefit for society.

Jim_Satterfield

Slamfu, face facts. There are conservatives that you cannot possibly reason with on these issues. No facts will ever persuade them. The obvious will always fly right over their heads because ideology makes them duck for cover.

PaulSilver

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/10/washington/10...

This article reveals that the President's own budget includes thousands of special requests similar to earmarks.

The Hypocrisy cocntinues. But is can be resolves through a system that apporpriates these federal expenditures proportionately to all congressional districts rather than favoring political parties.

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