FreedomWorks recognizes Rep. Dave Brat (R-Va.) as member of the month for May 2018. He proudly represents Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, located in the Piedmont region of the state to the west of its capital city of Richmond. Before entering the political sphere, Rep. Brat was a professor of economics for nearly two decades at Randolph-Macon College just outside of the district he now represents.

On Monday, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its semiannual report on federal spending. The report, The Budget and Economic Outlook: 2018 to 2028, looks at trends in federal spending, budget deficits, and the share of the national debt held by the public. If one is looking at the report through the lens of fiscal conservatism, the picture is ominous to say the least.

As the mandatory piece of federal expenditures consumes an ever-increasing percentage of the overall federal budget, Medicaid spending continues to rise within this mandatory piece. Many factors have contributed to skyrocketing Medicaid expenditures by the federal government, but much of this has not been to the benefit of those that Medicaid was enacted to help.

Republicans’ consistent platform in elections is an adherence to the Constitution, rule of law, and fiscal responsibility. Two weeks ago, those same Republicans in the Senate allowed both of these to more than fall by the wayside. One might point initially at hearing this to the passage of the omnibus spending bill, which -- make no mistake -- did throw these principles under the bus.

FreedomWorks is proud to announce that our bill of the month for February 2018 is the Review Every Act Diligently In Total (READ IT) Resolution, H.Res. 801, sponsored by Rep. Tom Garrett (R-Va.). The resolution would amend the House rules to provide members of Congress with a minimum of number of minutes to read introduced legislation before being required to vote on it, equal to twice that of the number of pages of an bill, joint resolution, resolution, or conference report.

Retroactive application of the Fair Sentencing Act (FSA) which became law in 2010 and reduced the sentencing disparity for crack and powder cocaine from 100-to-1 to 18-to-1 has been a hotly contested issue in the criminal justice space. The primary concern from those opposed to retroactivity, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions, is that allowing offenders to petition the court for a review and reduction in their sentence could result in violent criminals being released to the streets, putting public safety at risk.

Arguments from Republicans in favor of the omnibus spending package passed by Congress last week are almost all tied together by a common theme: “our military needs this.” The $700 billion appropriated in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, H.R. 1625, for defense spending is argued to be crucial for the security of our country. This mantra resonated loudly among the 145 Republican representatives and 25 Republican senators who cast a “yea” vote for the omnibus last Thursday.

While the Republican House Rules Committee moratorium on earmarks implemented in 2010 is still in place (despite the potential for bringing back earmarks rearing its ugly head not more than a few months ago), $900 million for one special project -- the Gateway Project -- was included in a House appropriations bill, H.R. 3354, just last year. Gateway is a $29.5 billion project for an Amtrak bridge and tunnel upgrade between Newark and New York City, that both states want federal dollars to pay for.