Barack Obama’s one significant legislative accomplishment came in partnership with Senator Tom Coburn in mandating the creation of a federal spending database that showed how the federal budget got spent. Porkbusters cheered this bill, as it allowed for easy searches to research the connection between federal spending and elected representatives, especially on pork. Now that Obama has won the presidency, he has decided to end earmarks altogether but can he do it? Obama promised this change at yesterday’s presser (via Instapundit):
Obama to outlaw pork?
Did Obama check with Harry Reid? Ten months ago, Reid told reporters that the founding fathers created the legislature for the specific purpose of porking up the national budget. And no one will insult the memory of Washington and Jefferson by stripping Reid of his pork-barrel power, lest the Porkbuster be called un-American!
Obama to outlaw pork?
One of the measures of irresponsibility that we’ve seen is the enormous federal debt that has accumulated, a number that has doubled in recent years. As we just discussed, my budget team filled me in on - Peter Orszag now forecasts that, at the current course and speed, a trillion-dollar deficit will be here before we even start the next budget, that we’ve already looked - we’re already looking at a trillion-dollar budget deficit or close to a trillion-dollar budget deficit, and that potentially we’ve got trillion-dollar deficits for years to come, even with the economic recovery that we are working on at this point.
So the reason I raise this is that we’re going to have to stop talking about budget reform. We’re going to have to totally embrace it. It’s an absolute necessity.
And it has to begin with the economic recovery and reinvestment plan that Congress will soon be considering, that we’re going to be investing an extraordinary amount of money to jump-start our economy, save or create 3 million new jobs, mostly in the private sector, and lay a solid foundation for future growth.
But we’re not going to be able to expect the American people to support this critical effort unless we take extraordinary steps to ensure that the investments are made wisely and managed well. And that’s why my recovery and reinvestment plan will have - will set a new higher standard of accountability, transparency, and oversight.
We are going to ban all earmarks, the process by which individual members insert pet projects without review. We will create an economic recovery oversight board made up of key administration officials and independent advisers to identify problems early and make sure we’re doing all that we can to solve it. We will put information about where money is being spent online so that the American people know exactly where their precious tax dollars are going and whether we are hitting our marks.
Did Obama check with Harry Reid? Ten months ago, Reid told reporters that the founding fathers created the legislature for the specific purpose of porking up the national budget. And no one will insult the memory of Washington and Jefferson by stripping Reid of his pork-barrel power, lest the Porkbuster be called un-American!
Xbone Stormsurgezz
