Congressman Screech Kennedy today introduced a constitutional amendment that would give the President the power of a line item veto and reduction power (His press release is below). This means that the President could strike out (or reduce) specific appropriations without vetoing the whole bill.

While I personally agree with giving the President this power, I want Kennedy to explain to me why there is a problem in the first place. He is a Republican, and his party controls the U.S. House, Senate and the Presidency. What I don't understand is why his party doesn't fix this problem instead of the drastic measure of amending the Constitution.

Republicans control everything, they set the agenda, so why can't they stop wasteful spending in-house? I could understand if Kennedy was an actual budget hawk and it was the Democrats that were in the majority and out of control with pet projects and pork spending. Guess what, they aren't. It's his own colleagues and party leadership that is the reason why the "rise in the number of appropriation earmarks from 958 in FY1996 to nearly 14,000 in FY2005." Wasn't Fiscal Year 1996 the first budget that the new Republican House majority oversaw? Haven't they been the majority since then? (Those were rhetorical questions, but if you are wondering, the answer is 'yes')

Also, how can Screech bitch about "passing along burdensome government debts to future generations" while cutting revenue (tax cuts for the ultra-rich) every chance he gets.

If Screech was actually serious about curbing wasteful spending, we'd be able to look back at his voting record and see a "nay" vote for every appropriations bill that had wasteful spending, pet projects and pork in them. Is that the case? Nope, Kennedy votes for them all the time.

The real problem is the Republican leadership in the House and Senate that allows this problem to fester. Don't pee on my leg and tell me it's raining.

12/09/2005
Press Release- Kennedy Urges Support to Eliminate Wasteful Spending

Support the Line Item and Reduction Veto Amendment

Washington, D.C. Congressman Mark Kennedy sent a Dear Colleague to Members of the House of Representatives today, to urge support for the Line Item and Reduction Veto Amendment that he introduced. Kennedy released the following statement:

"Increased spending has been a theme all too familiar with Congress in recent years. Take for instance, the rise in the number of appropriation earmarks from 958 in FY1996 to nearly 14,000 in FY2005. These earmarks have become a vehicle for wasteful spending and unnecessary federal pork projects.

"Particularly egregious examples of waste are easy to see: $2,000,000 to relocate a kitchen in Fairbanks, Alaska; $950,000 for the Please Touch Museum in Philadelphia; and $150,000 for the Therapeutic Horseback Riding Program at the Lady B Ranch in California. With earmarks such as these becoming commonplace, it should not be surprising that projections for FY2006 spending will reach an all-time high of $23,638 per U.S. household, of which $3,800 will be borrowed.

"While there are priority programs and projects that should receive strong consideration, clearly this excessive rate of increased spending cannot be sustained. That's why I have introduced H.J. Res. 63, the Line Item and Reduction Veto Amendment. This Constitutional Amendment would provide the president with a proven mechanism to eliminate egregious spending in appropriations bills.

"In addition, H.J. Res. 63, unlike the 1996 Line Item Veto Act, allows the president to reduce objectionable spending items contained in the non-legislative text of conference reports. This mechanism, currently used by 11 states, reduces the lump-sum accounts that contain hundreds of individual items that are often hidden in legislation and committee reports.

"Americans shouldn't tolerate passing along burdensome government debts to future generations, just so that Congressmen can claim credit for their individual pet projects."

Source: http://markkennedy.house.gov/cgi-data/press/files/532.shtml