Yesterday, The Hill reported that House Republicans were beginning to seek less-stringent rules on earmarks in anticipation of regaining a majority. It’s unfortunate that Washington continues to play politics with little regard for the country’s fiscal future.
Earlier this year, we applauded lawmakers for taking steps to show their commitment to earmark reform, with the Democrats supporting a ban on earmarks for for-profit entities and Republicans pushing a year-long ban on all earmarks. Unfortunately, these measures are beginning to look like they were introduced simply for political expediency.
According to The Hill, “Senior Republicans are pushing for a policy that would allow earmarks, the provisions lawmakers insert in spending bills to fund projects in their districts, but would make the process more transparent. House GOP leaders imposed a temporary moratorium on all earmarks in March in a bid to demonstrate fiscal discipline in an election year.”
This type of positioning is probably why citizens aren’t very happy with Washington these days. It’s time for lawmakers to get serious about fiscal responsibility. Earmarks should be eliminated not just for for-profits, and not just for one year, but to all groups and permanently.
We’ve got one party with two wings in this country. The spend a lot wing and the spend a whole heck of a lot wing. Those aren’t good choices.