Business as Usual: House GOP Picks “Proud” Earmarker Over Jeff Flake
February 15th, 2008 by Chris KinnanIn a very disappointing turn, yesterday House Republicans selected Rep. Jo Bonner of Alabama to the Appropriations Committee, instead of a reformer like Rep. Jeff Flake. It’s a clear signal that, despite recent rhetoric, House Republicans haven’t broken their spending addiction. Like too many members, Rep. Bonner has institutionalized pork requests. He even says on his web site that pork projects are “accomplishments” that he is “proud of”. Here’s the text, from his site, accessed last night:
“The other source of federal funding is the direct, or line-item, appropriation. The direct appropriation occurs when Congress bypasses the competitive review process and includes language in an appropriations bill that “directs” agencies to fund a specific project. There are significant restrictions on the use of direct appropriations, and most projects do not qualify. As a general rule, direct appropriations cannot be used for operating expenses. For example, if the state funding for a local museum is cut by 15%, then a request to make up the loss is not eligible.
“Direct appropriations must also have clearly defined accountability for the monies and a finite starting and ending point. The direct appropriation is very difficult to obtain as funding is extremely limited. However, it is not impossible, and I am proud of our accomplishments in steering funds through this method to many worthy south Alabama projects. [emphasis added] The deadline for FY08 appropration applications has passed.
“One of my many goals in Congress is to ensure the people of south Alabama get a significant return on their investment in the federal government (taxes). I am here to offer assistance in helping — where appropriate — to return to the people of the First District the tax dollars they send to Washington. Please feel free to contact my staff or me if we can be of assistance.”
February 15th, 2008 at 9:22 am
Please get the appropriate persons of influence to support:
-a 6-12 months business capital gains tax rollover if qualified re-investments with proceeds of the same are made within the first 6 months of the period of effectiveness.
THIS is the quickest way to create jobs and to sustain the recovery. Thank you.
February 15th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
Do this guy above a favor and delete his address & telephone number from Internet viewing…before every Internet wacko calls him…
February 15th, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Thanks for the heads up on that Mister Guy. Comment edited, and everyone is reminded to please NOT post personal contact info on public parts of the site.
February 22nd, 2008 at 12:59 pm
[...] a bunch of folks have been slowed down by the flu, we are back in the office. Unfortunately, Jeff Flake did not get the open seat on the House Appropriations Committee, but we put up a good fight! We are [...]