Senate GOP opens door to earmarks

[Judi Lynn]

This discussion thread was locked as off-topic by DonViejo (a host of the Latest Breaking News forum).

Source: The Hill


BY JORDAIN CARNEY - 04/12/21 09:37 PM EDT

Senate Republicans are opening the door to embracing earmarks, as Democrats prepare to plow forward with using the spending to funnel funds back to their home states.

GOP members of the Senate Appropriations Committee met on Monday evening to discuss what they should do about earmarks with Democrats, led by Appropriations Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who is expected to go resurrect them with or without GOP buy-in.

Top GOP senators said there wasn't a formal group decision. But they think Republicans will land on letting each member make a decision about if they want to request the congressionally directed spending, rather than enforcing a unified caucus-wide stance.

"I think the decision is headed toward letting every member decide if they want to participate in the earmark process," Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), a member of GOP leadership and the powerful Senate panel, told The Hill about the closed-door meeting.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/547837-senate-gop-opens-door-to-earmarks

[Xipe Totec]

1. Whatever fries your bacon. nt

[TheRealNorth]

2. It's not like the Republicans are going to vote for the legislation...

But they figure they can get get theirs, and then cry about wasteful spending.

[cstanleytech]

3. I wonder if the Democrats should turn the screws on the red state welfare Republicans by using the

rules that let them trim spending to gut spending in those states unless the legislatures for those states get on board with the infrastructure spending?

[Ford_Prefect]

4. I'll believe it when hell freezes over twice...They are only in it to get their own fix, to screw

everyone else, and to blame the Democrats and Biden. They have no plans or desire to make anything work better. They only want to own the Libs. Anything else they say is an outright lie.

I get it that some feel they have to have the opportunity offered to them for the sake of good form. I do not trust a single one of them. Not since Jan. 6th and beyond.

In my opinion they should consider themselves lucky to make it across the parking lot. I'm not offering revenge here, but I know a good few people who would not likely hesitate.

[Bayard]

5. I'm not sure I understand this statement,

"Democrats prepare to plow forward with using the spending to funnel funds back to their home states." Are they just saying Congress members will steer projects to their own states? I read somewhere else today that Dems were being accused as using this bill as a slush fund.

[DonViejo]

6. Locking.

The consensus of Forum Hosts believes this to be an analysis piece, not LBN material.