A very interesting notion is coming from the Republicans, especially the new guard
House Republicans seem intent on blowing up the staid appropriations process when they take power in January — potentially upending the old bulls in both parties who have spent decades building their power over the federal budget.
The plans include slicing and dicing appropriations bills into dozens of smaller, bite-size pieces — making it easier to kill or slash unpopular agencies. Other proposals include statutory spending caps, weekly votes on spending cuts and other reforms to ensure spending bills aren’t sneakily passed under special rules.
And the old bulls, especially Democrats and the sheeple who vote Democrat, do not like this. It’s often said that the Appropriations committee is the most powerful in Congress, and that the chairperson is one of the most powerful people in the country. They have the power of the purse.
Furthermore, simply changing the process could significantly reduce expenditures, as well as make them more transparent, something many lawmakers will not like. Cutting bills down into small pieces would allow the American people to see what is going on, and understand in full any legislation. Those who want to obfuscate and hide spending (of other people’s money) in both parties will pitch conniption fits, yet, I suspect that this will be popular with all but the hard left
On some level, their plans may create a sense of organized chaos on the House floor — picture dozens of votes on dozens of federal program cuts and likely gridlock on spending bills. And don’t forget that a lot of these efforts will die with a Democratic Senate and a Democrat in the White House.
But the intent is to force debate as much as to actually legislate —and make Old Guard Republicans and Democrats uncomfortable with a new way of thinking regarding the size and scope of government.
Force debate? How rude! What’s more rude are the anonymous Republicans and Democrats cited. One, a Republican, worries about how much time this would take. And a Democrat says
“On the practical side, it has to be nuts. Given the difficulty in passing the current bills, adding these changes would be a dream world. … There could be a revolt by members, who will want to get home and campaign.â€
God forbid they spend actual time in Washington, forced to read and understand the spending legislation they vote on, rather than in perpetual campaign mode. Obviously, the less time Congress critters spend in Washington, the less they can frack up, yet, the business of government still needs to be done. And much of the difficulty in passing bills has to do with them being massive and unwieldy, with elected officials not reading them, then voting to spend massive amounts of money, then finding all sorts of problems.
“I believe that we must change the culture of spending that has prevailed for far too long,†Cantor said in unveiling his 4,200-word “governing document†of how he plans to lead the new regime.
There are a ton of ideas for this, shown in the article. Definitely read the whole thing.
More: Ed Morrissey
“Professional appropriators� Houston, we’ve found our first problem. We don’t need “professional appropriators,†nor do we need “12 Cardinals†directing all of the spending — and aggrandizing their own personal power. It seems Boehner has a better idea of what he needs to do to reform the system than some on his team.
Crossed at Right Wing News and Stop The ACLU. sit back and Relax. we’ll dRive!
