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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Facing mounting criticism of a spending package packed with billions of dollars in earmarks, the Obama administration made a vow Sunday: This president will bring a halt to pork-laden bills.
Peter Orszag says it is too late to cut earmarks from the spending bill inherited from the Bush administration.
"[Such bills] will not happen when the president has the full legislative and appropriations process in place," Peter Orszag, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, told CNN's "State of the Union with John King."
He argued that the White House had little choice but to support the $410 billion omnibus spending bill, which it inherited from the previous administration. The bill would keep the government running through 2009.
"This is like your relief pitcher coming into the ninth inning and wanting to redo the whole game," Orszag said. "Next year we're going to be the starting pitcher, and the game's going to be completely different."
Totally lame. Let the blame game begin. He has the same power NOW he is going to have next year.
The really sad thing is that most of the Obama supporters will fall for and start parroting this really lame excuse.
Nobody is going to stop earmarking, folks.
Earmarks may or may not be pork.
But passing laws which specifically direct money to some project or the other is never not going to happen.
Think about what an earmark really is for a second, and you'll understand that I must be right.
Of course, it would be nice if the government NEVER spent money foolishly.
But certainly not every spending bill that earmarks exactly where that money is going to be spend is necessarily pork.
When the government EARMARKS spending on some necessary military project, is THAT pork?
No?
Well, it's STILL an earmark.
If the Obama team does hold to their word, and not allow Pork spending in Congress's spending bills going forward, then I will be praising him... I don't see how they will be able to do this, without a line item veto and so far, that is still unconstitutional, the way it was used before at least....Obama has got to have the fortitude to just veto the entire bill, if Pork is in it....which of course pork will be in it because this is the way congress has become accustomed to....give a yes vote if they can get some money for their district type of thing....
Totally lame. Let the blame game begin. He has the same power NOW he is going to have next year.
The really sad thing is that most of the Obama supporters will fall for and start parroting this really lame excuse.
The really sad thing is that you think that's what any of us just said.
YES, it is still porkNobody is going to stop earmarking, folks.
Earmarks may or may not be pork.
But passing laws which specifically direct money to some project or the other is never not going to happen.
Think about what an earmark really is for a second, and you'll understand that I must be right.
Of course, it would be nice if the government NEVER spent money foolishly.
But certainly not every spending bill that earmarks exactly where that money is going to be spend is necessarily pork.
When the government EARMARKS spending on some necessary military project, is THAT pork?
No?
Well, it's STILL an earmark.
both partys do itWhat is bogus, are the complaints from Republicans in Congress regarding the earmarks in this bill...I have highlighted in bold print just what some of the Republicans are getting in Pork from this appropriations bill... with Democrats having 1 and 1/2 times more members in our congress than Democrats, the republicans GOT, EQUAL the amount of Pork money in this Omnibus bill...so, they have over abused the situation even moreso.
I guess, what I am saying is that ALL PORK should be stripped, BUT PLEASE don't act like the republican poop don't stink to high heaven as well, because IT DOES, don't you think???
If it's budget time, it's good to be a red state. And it's very good to be Mississippi.
According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Taxpayers for Common Sense, Mississippi has won the earmark contest in the omnibus budget package.
Mississippi Republican Sen. Thad Cochran led his colleagues by raking in more than $470 million in 204 earmarks. Mississippi's junior Republican, Roger Wicker, pulled in more than $390 million. The totals can't be added together because the figure includes earmarks each received solo and with others, so the same earmark could be in both senators' column. Cochran, on his own, pulled in roughly $76 million and Wicker brought home $4 million.
Cochran's $76 million ranks him sixth among solo earmarkers. (Earmarks can be requested individually, with other members of Congress or along with the president.)
Senate Democrats and Republican ate roughly the same amount from the government trough on a solo basis, although Democrats have one and half times as many members. Democratic members secured about $677 million in individual earmarks; Republicans brought home $669 million. Those solo figures, however, don't tell the entire story, because about six billion more was requested by groups of lawmakers.
For solo earmarks, nobody beat out Sen. Bob Byrd (D-W.Va.), last year's appropriations committee chairman. The defender of earmarks took home $123 million. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) came in second, with $114 million. Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.) rounded out the top three, bringing home $86 million by himself.
Republican leader Mitch McConnell is bringing $51 million back to Kentucky and Democratic leader Harry Reid earmarked $27 million for Nevada. They ranked tenth and seventeenth, respectively.
Louisiana did well, too. Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu took in the third-most joint and solo earmarks, bringing home $332 million for local projects. Her Republican colleague, Sen. David Vitter, pulled down the fifth-most at $249 million.
The Louisianans straddled Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin, the chairman of the agriculture committee, who brought back $292 million.
Rural and small-state voters were the big winners on an absolute and on a per capita basis, even though it was big states and urban areas that have delivered Congress and the White House to Democrats. Of the top ten earmarking senators, only Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.; $77 million solo; $235 combined), represents a large state and only three of the top ten are blue states. In the top 20, only six blue states are represented.
Red States Gobble Up Omnibus Earmarks
What is bogus, are the complaints from Republicans in Congress regarding the earmarks in this bill...I have highlighted in bold print just what some of the Republicans are getting in Pork from this appropriations bill... with Democrats having 1 and 1/2 times more members in our congress than Democrats, the republicans GOT, EQUAL the amount of Pork money in this Omnibus bill...so, they have over abused the situation even moreso.
I guess, what I am saying is that ALL PORK should be stripped, BUT PLEASE don't act like the republican poop don't stink to high heaven as well, because IT DOES, don't you think???
If it's budget time, it's good to be a red state. And it's very good to be Mississippi.
According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Taxpayers for Common Sense, Mississippi has won the earmark contest in the omnibus budget package.
Mississippi Republican Sen. Thad Cochran led his colleagues by raking in more than $470 million in 204 earmarks. Mississippi's junior Republican, Roger Wicker, pulled in more than $390 million. The totals can't be added together because the figure includes earmarks each received solo and with others, so the same earmark could be in both senators' column. Cochran, on his own, pulled in roughly $76 million and Wicker brought home $4 million.
Cochran's $76 million ranks him sixth among solo earmarkers. (Earmarks can be requested individually, with other members of Congress or along with the president.)
Senate Democrats and Republican ate roughly the same amount from the government trough on a solo basis, although Democrats have one and half times as many members. Democratic members secured about $677 million in individual earmarks; Republicans brought home $669 million. Those solo figures, however, don't tell the entire story, because about six billion more was requested by groups of lawmakers.
For solo earmarks, nobody beat out Sen. Bob Byrd (D-W.Va.), last year's appropriations committee chairman. The defender of earmarks took home $123 million. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) came in second, with $114 million. Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.) rounded out the top three, bringing home $86 million by himself.
Republican leader Mitch McConnell is bringing $51 million back to Kentucky and Democratic leader Harry Reid earmarked $27 million for Nevada. They ranked tenth and seventeenth, respectively.
Louisiana did well, too. Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu took in the third-most joint and solo earmarks, bringing home $332 million for local projects. Her Republican colleague, Sen. David Vitter, pulled down the fifth-most at $249 million.
The Louisianans straddled Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin, the chairman of the agriculture committee, who brought back $292 million.
Rural and small-state voters were the big winners on an absolute and on a per capita basis, even though it was big states and urban areas that have delivered Congress and the White House to Democrats. Of the top ten earmarking senators, only Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.; $77 million solo; $235 combined), represents a large state and only three of the top ten are blue states. In the top 20, only six blue states are represented.
Red States Gobble Up Omnibus Earmarks
it was an attempt to deflectWhat is bogus, are the complaints from Republicans in Congress regarding the earmarks in this bill...I have highlighted in bold print just what some of the Republicans are getting in Pork from this appropriations bill... with Democrats having 1 and 1/2 times more members in our congress than Democrats, the republicans GOT, EQUAL the amount of Pork money in this Omnibus bill...so, they have over abused the situation even moreso.
I guess, what I am saying is that ALL PORK should be stripped, BUT PLEASE don't act like the republican poop don't stink to high heaven as well, because IT DOES, don't you think???
If it's budget time, it's good to be a red state. And it's very good to be Mississippi.
According to an analysis by the nonpartisan Taxpayers for Common Sense, Mississippi has won the earmark contest in the omnibus budget package.
Mississippi Republican Sen. Thad Cochran led his colleagues by raking in more than $470 million in 204 earmarks. Mississippi's junior Republican, Roger Wicker, pulled in more than $390 million. The totals can't be added together because the figure includes earmarks each received solo and with others, so the same earmark could be in both senators' column. Cochran, on his own, pulled in roughly $76 million and Wicker brought home $4 million.
Cochran's $76 million ranks him sixth among solo earmarkers. (Earmarks can be requested individually, with other members of Congress or along with the president.)
Senate Democrats and Republican ate roughly the same amount from the government trough on a solo basis, although Democrats have one and half times as many members. Democratic members secured about $677 million in individual earmarks; Republicans brought home $669 million. Those solo figures, however, don't tell the entire story, because about six billion more was requested by groups of lawmakers.
For solo earmarks, nobody beat out Sen. Bob Byrd (D-W.Va.), last year's appropriations committee chairman. The defender of earmarks took home $123 million. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) came in second, with $114 million. Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.) rounded out the top three, bringing home $86 million by himself.
Republican leader Mitch McConnell is bringing $51 million back to Kentucky and Democratic leader Harry Reid earmarked $27 million for Nevada. They ranked tenth and seventeenth, respectively.
Louisiana did well, too. Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu took in the third-most joint and solo earmarks, bringing home $332 million for local projects. Her Republican colleague, Sen. David Vitter, pulled down the fifth-most at $249 million.
The Louisianans straddled Iowa Democrat Tom Harkin, the chairman of the agriculture committee, who brought back $292 million.
Rural and small-state voters were the big winners on an absolute and on a per capita basis, even though it was big states and urban areas that have delivered Congress and the White House to Democrats. Of the top ten earmarking senators, only Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.; $77 million solo; $235 combined), represents a large state and only three of the top ten are blue states. In the top 20, only six blue states are represented.
Red States Gobble Up Omnibus Earmarks
The OP stated that earmarks should and could be removed..all. Party affiliation was not mentioned so why bring it into the discussion.
ALL should be removed.
