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| Obama Signs Spending Bill, Pushes for New Rules |
| 2009-03-11 |
| WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama said he agreed to sign an "imperfect" spending bill containing pet projects of congressmen because it is needed to keep the government running smoothly. Mr. Obama was speaking Wednesday about a $410 billion spending bill --passed by Congress earlier this week -- which has been heavily criticized because of many earmarks. He said not all earmarks are bad. But Mr. Obama also said that such special spending for projects in lawmakers' home districts will have to be justified in the future. Not All Earmarks are Bad?! Translation Only Republican earmarks are Bad. He said: "I also view this as a departure point for more far-reaching change." White House officials in recent weeks have dismissed criticism of the earmarks in the bill, saying the legislation was a remnant of last year and that the president planned to turn his attention to future spending instead of looking backward. Really. Then why is he looking into how Bush executed a number of executive orders? During his presidential campaign, Mr. Obama promised to force Congress to curb its pork-barrel-spending ways. Yet the bill sent from the Democratic-controlled Congress to the White House on Tuesday contained 7,991 earmarks totaling $5.5 billion, according to calculations by the Republican staff of the House Appropriations Committee. The 1,132-page bill has an extraordinary reach, wrapping together nine spending bills to fund the annual operating budgets of every Cabinet department except Defense, Homeland Security and Veterans Affairs. Among the many earmarks are $485,000 for a boarding school for at-risk native students in western Alaska and $1.2 million for Helen Keller International so the nonprofit can provide eyeglasses to students with poor vision. Most of the government has been running on a stopgap funding bill set to expire at midnight Wednesday. Refusing to sign the newly completed spending bill would force Congress to pass another bill to keep the lights on come Thursday or else shut down the massive federal government. That is an unlikely possibility for a president who has spent just seven weeks in office. Why? Refusing to sign a bill would be a lot easier than producing gargantuan pieces of legislation that no-one had time to read The $410 billion bill includes significant increases in food aid for the poor, energy research and other programs. It was supposed to have been completed last fall, but Democrats opted against election-year battles with Republicans and former President George W. Bush. The measure was a top priority for Democratic leaders, who praised it for numerous increases denied by Bush. It once enjoyed support from Republicans. Oh so it was last years work postponed to this year to shovel more pork into it. Doesn't that make it this years work? But the bill ran into an unexpected political hailstorm in Congress after Mr. Obama's spending-heavy economic stimulus bill and his 2010 budget plan, which forecast a $1.8 trillion deficit for the current budget year. The bill's big increases -- among them a 14% boost for a popular program that feeds infants and poor women and a 10% increase for housing vouchers for the poor -- represent a clear win for Democrats who spent most of the past decade battling with Bush over money for domestic programs. Generous above-inflation increases are spread throughout, including a $2.4 billion, 13% increase for the Agriculture Department and a 10% increase for the money-losing Amtrak passenger rail system. The measure also contains a provision denying lawmakers the automatic cost-of-living pay increase they are due next Jan. 1. I trust the signing was filmed. It would make an interesting ad to juxtapose the many campaign comments to the effect that all earmarks are bad and there won't be any in the new administration. Is there no shame? No principle? No dignity? Sorry I forgot. They are worn out tired old concepts which don't work. Slick Willie II. |
| Posted by:Omoter Speaking for Boskone7794 |
| #4 WASHINGTON – Calling it an "imperfect" bill, President Barack Obama signed a $410 billion spending package Wednesday that includes billions in earmarks like those he promised to curb in last year's campaign. He insisted the bill must signal an "end to the old way of doing business." The massive measure supporting federal agencies through the fall contains nearly 8,000 pet projects, earmarked by sponsors though denounced by critics. Obama defended earmarks when they're "done right," allowing lawmakers to direct money to worthy projects in their districts. But he said they've been abused, and he promised to work with Congress to curb them. "I am signing an imperfect omnibus bill because it's necessary for the ongoing functions of government," Obama declared. "But I also view this as a departure point for more far-reaching change." In a sign of his discomfort with the bill, Obama signed it in private. He declined to answer a shouted reporter's question about why. Why do you think, Scoops? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2009-03-11 17:23 |
| #3 All earmarks are bad, but some earmarks are worser than others. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2009-03-11 14:22 |
| #2 Whatever happens,he's not at fault cause he inherited it from Bush. (Moonbats Mantra, to be repeated as often as possible) |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2009-03-11 14:14 |
| #1 the president planned to turn his attention to future spending instead of looking backward. Of course he won't look backwards, all the destruction and damage he's caused just "Might" make him think, Can't have that, nosirree |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2009-03-11 14:12 |