Obey surveys House GOP members on earmarks

In an unusual move, Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey (D-Wis.) is surveying Republican House members on whether they support a temporary moratorium on earmarks or whether they will continue to submit earmark requests for fiscal 2009.

The survey appears to be challenging GOP members who support an earmark moratorium to practice what they preach and not seek earmarks.

{mosads}In a March 5 “Dear Colleague” letter , Obey wrote, “In light of the continuing discussion in the Republican Conference, the Appropriations Committee needs to determine how it would proceed.”

The letter asks members to check one of two boxes indicating whether they will be submitting earmark requests in 2009.

The first box reads: “I believe the House should suspend earmarks for the year. Consistent with this position, I will therefore be submitting no earmark requests for fiscal year 2009.”
 
The second box states: “I believe the House should continue to provide responsible earmarks at a reasonable level and consistent with that position, I will be submitting appropriate requests for fiscal year 2009.”

Obey asks for the survey to be returned to his staff by March 19.

The “Dear Colleague” adds, “Because it is important for the committee to move ahead in a timely fashion, I will assume any member not returning this form wishes to see congressional earmarks discontinued and therefore will be submitting no requests for fiscal year 2009.”

House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) said Republicans would hold firm to a plan introduced by Reps. Frank Wolf (R-Va.), Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) and Zach Wamp (R-Tenn.) that calls for a moratorium on earmarks and the establishment of a bipartisan, bicameral panel to review the earmarking system.

“In a clear sign that Republican pressure for real bipartisan earmark reform is working, Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey this morning circulated a form asking members whether they would be willing to support comprehensive earmark reform," said Michael Steel, a spokesman for Boehner. "The response from House Republicans will be clear: we support the Wolf-Kingston-Wamp earmark moratorium, and call on the Democratic leadership to bring it up for a vote immediately.

Steel added, "It is now more clear than ever that the only thing standing between the American people and real earmark reform is the House Democratic leadership.”

Kirstin Brost, a spokeswoman for Obey, said, “The Democratic position on earmarks is pretty clear. We’ve enacted it. We put into place unprecedented disclosure, made members certify that they don’t have a financial stake in their request, and cut back significantly on the amount earmarked."

She said that while Boehner may be speaking for the Republican Conference, many of his members are not listening.

"Boehner claims to speak for the Republican Conference when he calls for an earmark moratorium … But most of the Republican [Conference] is claiming to support an earmark moratorium at the same time as they are submitting their earmark requests."