Earmark 'Reform' Is Another Scam

You may have heard that the House overwhelmingly passed an ethics and lobbying bill yesterday (411-8) that included a so-called reduction in earmarks. Now the House is bragging that they've reduced the potential for corruption by banning lunches with lobbyists and flights on corporate jets. As the Wall Street Journal writes, "Only Congressfolk could take pride in claiming they can be corrupted by a free lunch."

The editorial goes on to describe just how big of a problem earmarks have become, costing taxpayers $27 billion in 2005 alone, and greasing the wheels (i.e. purchasing) on key votes. Voters loathe this way of doing business, and Democrats used that leverage to gain control of Congress in the last election. It also allowed conservative Republican Senators Jim DeMint and Tom Coburn to shame Majority Leader Harry Reid into agreeing to meaningful reform in January. But, when the final reform bill came to the floor, it had been stripped of most of its teeth. Using fast-track tactics again, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi have rammed the bill through in order to avoid public scrutiny and prevent amendments from being added to put the teeth back in.

Says the WSJ editorial:

What remains is a sham of a reform. A prohibition on allowing Members to trade earmarks for votes? Gone. A restriction on allowing Members and their staff from promoting earmarks from which they or their families would receive a direct financial benefit? All but gone. The original reform required earmarks to be listed on the Internet and searchable 48 hours before consideration of legislation; the new bill says this is only required if it is "technically feasible." Here's betting Congress finds other urgent uses for its tech staff during Appropriations season.

Our favorite switcheroo: Under the previous Senate reform, the Senate parliamentarian would have determined whether a bill complied with earmark disclosure rules. Under Mr. Reid's new version, the current Majority Leader, that is Mr. Reid himself, will decide if a bill is in compliance. When was the last time a Majority Party Leader declared one of his own bills out of order?

All of this would seem to be a political opportunity for Republicans to educate voters about this Democratic about-face and regain some of their credibility on spending. Instead, House Republicans behaved like a docile minority begging for a few spending favors of their own; many were afraid to oppose a bill that includes the word "ethics." In the Senate, Messrs. DeMint and Coburn are at least considering further blocking moves, but we hear the rest of the GOP is split about whether to support the reformers.

They also point out that members of Congress can accept all the free lunches they want from lobbyists -- so long as those meals are classified as "campaign" events. Expect a lot of fund raising over the noon hour.

So, here we go again - Congress is up to its eyeballs in politicking, doing something that the American voters have never wanted. It's too late to nag the House, but it's still pending in the Senate. Call your Senators and tell them that real earmark reform is needed, not this scam on the American public.

There's my two cents.