Sen. Crotchety Routine Is Old

Some say he missed opportunity; others fault lack of specifics

(NEWSER) - President Obama announced moves to curb pork-barrel spending yesterday, but not as decisively as some hoped, Politico reports. Obama said he was signing the “imperfect omnibus because it’s necessary for the ongoing functions of government,” but in future he wants fewer earmarks in federal spending measures, and those destined for private companies opened to competition. But since he didn’t specify actual cuts, lawmakers may ignore him. More»

(NEWSER) - When the stimulus was in the works, President Obama went to great lengths to show he was sacrificing his top pet project—a clean-coal power plant to be built in Illinois—on the altar of fiscal responsibilities. “It shows that we’re serious,” a rep for Nancy Pelosi said at the time. “There will not be earmarks in this bill.” But the plant is getting stimulus cash after all—$1 billion of it, Politico reports. More»

Alaska guv fails the earmarks-per-day test she applies to Obama

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin called them "un-American" and John McCain denied again Friday that she requested them as governor of Alaska. But the Wall Street Journal, doing the math on earmarks, finds that Palin sought $453 million of them for her state since taking office, including $197 million in the current fiscal year. And using the same calculation she applies to Barack Obama—earmark dollars sought per day in office—her record is worse than his. More»

Congress passes budget plans to roll back tax cuts

(NEWSER) - The Senate soundly rejected a bid to ban pork barrel spending for a year last night, despite the support of all three presidential candidates who returned to DC for a day of heavy voting, CNN reports. Both the House and Senate also passed budget plans—largely symbolic moves in an election year—that would allow many of President Bush's tax cuts to expire in about three years. More»

Says GOP proposal goes too far

(NEWSER) - President Obama issued a formal statement yesterday threatening to veto any spending bill the House GOP devises that doesn’t meet his specifications. “If the president is presented with a bill that undermines critical priorities or national security … the president will veto the bill,” the statement read, according to the Hill . It argued that the GOP’s current proposals would “sharply undermine core government functions” and reduce defense spending below levels “needed to meet vital military requirements.” More»