Earmark Moratorium Rejected

Last Thursday, Senator Jim DeMint wanted to stop earmarks in the Federal budget and he had the support of both Republicans and Democrats for this measure. Even with the bipartisan support in the U.S. Senate for an earmark moratorium, this legislation failed due to the pork kings and queens wanting to have the ability to fund pet projects and pay favors back to campaign donors. Whatever happened to representing the common good of those in your states? I am quickly beginning to lose faith in a representative government, because this behavior shows that some U.S. Senators are more concerned about doing what is best for themselves.

There was an interesting twist in this vote with all three Presidential contenders (McCain, Hillary!, and Barack Obama) supporting the earmark moratorium. Perhaps, they realize that many Americans want to return to less government and fiscal conservatism. Wasteful spending by the government will only lead to higher taxes and an increase in the federal deficit, which will result in higher taxes. This will only hurt working families who yearn for financial freedom and prosperity.

Additionally, the House failed to pass a similar measure on the earmark moratorium, which was introduced by Reps. Paul Ryan, Jeff Flake and Jeb Hensarling. This was not surprising considering that the Pork Queen (Nancy Pelosi) and Pork King (John Murtha) have control over the Democrats.

All hope is not lost, because there is great momentum for the elimination of earmarks. FreedomWorks has created a “No Earmark Pledge,” which will hold politicians accountable for their dedication to fiscal conservatism. To date, three U.S. Senate candidates have signed, in addition to several U.S. House candidates. These candidates realize that promoting your own pet projects is unethical and wasteful of taxpayer money. These measures will only lead our country back to controlled, responsible spending and fiscally sound measures.