Since the Supreme Court ignored the Constitution by upholding Obamacare, we have no choice but to use every legislative and executive tool at our disposal to kill this socialist monstrosity. One opportunity we will have to disrupt and impede its implementation will be through the appropriations process. Last December, we incurred the ‘great spending betrayal’ under Republican leadership in the House. Sixty percent of House | Read More »
It is funny how those who believe Congress has unlimited power to regulate the private sector are abdicating their primary constitutional responsibility. Senate Democrats have not passed a budget in 1,169 days. Last year, despite their failure to comply with the Budget Act of 1974 and to pass a budget resolution, they made an effort to pass a couple of individual appropriations bills. Now Roll | Read More »
The most important legislative goal for conservatives is to fully repeal Obamacare. If we’ve learned anything from past experiences, it’s that no government entitlement program is ever repealed once the dependency takes root. Once Obamacare is implemented, any discussion of enacting entitlement reform will be moot. It will be too late. That’s why we must act before we run out of time. By now, we | Read More »
If Obamacare is the worst piece of legislation passed by Obama and the Democrats, Dodd-Frank is clearly close behind on the list. This pernicious bill, sponsored by the instigators of the financial and housing crises, will permanently alter our financial markets for the worst just as Obamacare will kill the healthcare sector if it’s not repealed. I’ve met many small business owners who are contemplating | Read More »
This week, the House debated and passed the FY13 Energy-Water appropriations bill, which primarily funds the Energy Department and agencies within the Department of Interior. While House leadership claims to support a balanced budget, they are not willing to eliminate the requisite number of programs needed to achieve that goal. As conservatives, we believe that the entire Department of Energy – except for the nuclear | Read More »
**Updated below** One would think that all Republicans would realize that not only do labor unions want to destroy the economy; they want to destroy the Republican Party. Last night, while Scott Walker was launching his counteroffensive against the onslaught of Big Labor during the debate against Barrett, dozens of Republicans voted to reinstate special handouts to the labor bosses. Late last night, the House | Read More »
As we’ve chronicled here in great detail over the past year, House Republicans are no pikers when it comes to conservative legislation. This is especially true when examining the records of House appropriators. Yet, even those big government types have [begrudgingly] agreed to abide by the spending and policy decisions of the House-passed budget when considering the 12 appropriations bills during committee markups. As mediocre | Read More »
Today, the House began debate on the first of the 12 annual appropriations bills; the Commerce, Justice, and Science bill (H.R. 5326). So far, Republican leaders have agreed to abide by their pledge to bring these bills to the floor under an open rule. This allows conservative members to offer amendments to cut more spending and eliminate wasteful and unconstitutional programs. It’s the votes on | Read More »
Every elected Republican came to Washington promising to slash spending and balance the budget. Yet, when it comes time for the most direct way to enact those spending cuts; namely, the annual appropriations bills, most of them are missing in action. In an ideal world, Republicans should hold the upper hand in negotiations over spending bills. They enjoy complete control over the House, while Harry | Read More »
Last April, House Republicans released the Ryan budget for FY 2012 with much fanfare and promise. The budget resolution was approved almost unanimously among the members of the conference, and they spent the subsequent spring months working on individual appropriations bills that reflected the goals and the spending levels established in that budget blueprint. Later that year, Republicans summarily jettisoned the Ryan budget for the | Read More »
Senator Kent Conrad has finally made it clear that he has no intentions of passing a budget resolution. He will offer the “Simpson-Bowles plan” without allowing any amendments or even a committee vote, much less a floor vote. That’s some budget resolution. Without a budget resolution to guide the topline spending numbers, the Senate Appropriations Committee has already begun markups on the 12 appropriations bills | Read More »
When Republicans caved on raising the debt limit last year, we referred to the final Boehner proposal as a ground ball into a double play. Not only did Boehner fail to secure any transformational change in exchange for raising the debt ceiling (except for cutting the military), he actually obviated our leverage in future budget battles. As part of the debt limit agreement, Congress passed | Read More »
As we forge ahead to the new legislative session, it is important that we internalize the lessons of the dismal failures from last session. Most of the dominant and sundry legislative battles last year can be explicated by the inane cycle of Republican capitulation. It goes something like this: Democrats propose some odious and profligate legislative idea or budget bill. Conservatives advocate that we uproot | Read More »
“Why are we bailing them out from their biggest debt with the voting public? Why are Republicans in a rush to move on from issues that embarrass Democrats?” It is still inexplicable to me why Republicans should violate their pledge against passing an Omnibus, in order to meet an artificial deadline set by those who never passed a budget. Democrats were too incompetent to pass | Read More »
Last year, the American people voted overwhelmingly for a Republican House of Representatives. Based upon their campaign pledges, the prevailing expectation of a “Republican House” was a body of revitalized Republicans who would not fund Obamacare and Dodd-Frank, downsize Freddie/Fannie, oppose appropriator-concocted omnibus bills, and fight for at least some of their priorities in the Ryan budget. A year later, the prevailing sentiment amongst the | Read More »
There is an old adage in Washington that describes the political system as consisting of three political parties; Democrats, Republicans, and Appropriators. The Appropriations Subcommittee chairmen, often referred to as the “College of Cardinals,” usually agree to concoct legislation that fuses the worst elements of the evil and stupid parties, resulting in something worse than a pure Democrat proposal. This is exactly what transpired with | Read More »
During last week’s foreign policy debate, Ron Paul won accolades from the crowd when he professed that there are no real pending cuts to the military, just reductions in baseline spending. Here is the full quote: “Believe me. They’re cutting — they’re nibbling away at baseline budgeting, and its automatic increases. There’s nothing cut against the military. And the people on the Hill are nearly | Read More »
Update: Roll call of members who stood strong is below the fold. This afternoon, the House passed Harry Reid’s first minibus appropriations bill (Agriculture, Commerce-Justice-Science, Transportation-HUD), which contains record levels of spending for Food Stamps, WIC, and international food aid. It also contains $2.3 billion for disaster spending, which is excluded from the budget caps. Appropriations Committee Chairman Harold Rogers promised today on the House | Read More »
By now, we are all intimately acquainted with the bromide that “Republican’s only control one-half of one-third of government.” Nonetheless, we must remember that, in the realm of appropriations, they control the most consequential body of government; the House of Representatives. Unfortunately, almost a year into their stewardship of that body, they have shown only a tepid inclination to defund Obamacare. Despite months of diligent | Read More »
After dithering for almost three years without a budget, Democrats are in a hellfire rush to finish all of the 12 annual appropriations bills. Unfortunately, Republicans leaders are in such a hurry to bury the hatchet on spending fights, they are willing to void all of the House-passed bills, in return for bipartisan conference reports. These conference committee versions – chock full of Senate Democrat amendments | Read More »
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