Democrats’ decision to forgo earmarks this year is making for strange bedfellows:
Surprisingly, some Republican conservatives agree with the do-nothing approach, because Democrats have decided to rule out any ‘earmarks,’ otherwise known as ‘pork’ for local areas and special interests, while the continuing resolution is in effect.
These earmarks became a huge political issue in the midterm elections as Democrats pointed to expensive GOP-sponsored projects, such as a ‘bridge to nowhere’ in a remote area of Alaska, as a sign that pork had gotten out of control.
Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), one of the Senate’s most conservative members, said in a statement that ‘my hat is off to Reid and the Democrats for making this decision. By agreeing to do a yearlong spending resolution for 2007, we will effectively take a time-out on pork-barrel spending.’
Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas), chairman of the Republican Study Committee’s Budget and Spending Task Force, said that ‘it is somewhat refreshing’ that Democratic leaders have adopted a strategy that for weeks has been favored by conservative Republicans.
