The 362,000-member National Taxpayers Union (NTU), the nation's oldest taxpayer advocacy organization, today applauded the House Republican Conference for voting to enact an immediate earmark moratorium on their members. NTU has long described the earmark process as a cesspool of wasteful spending and corruption, and House Republicans deserve congratulations for voting to remove themselves from the sordid bidding game and committing to responsible reform moving forward.
"For years, earmarks have contributed to the unsustainable growth of our federal budget by greasing the skids for passage of massive legislation, like a cap-and-trade national energy tax," said NTU Director of Government Affairs Andrew Moylan. "By enacting an earmark moratorium on their Members, House Republicans can now truly claim to be 'walking the walk' of fiscal discipline when it comes to targeted spending projects."
For nearly a decade, NTU has fought alongside like-minded reformers both on and off Capitol Hill to advance positive reforms. Earmarking thrived during much of that time, even as several Members of Congress were convicted on corruption charges directly related to wheeling and dealing over such projects. But the millions of Americans who packed townhall meetings and Tea Party demonstrations in recent months can now take heart that at least some of their elected officials have heard their outrage and decided to do something about it.
However, this historic vote would never have occurred if not for the efforts of one Member of Congress in particular. "Taxpayers owe a special debt of gratitude to Representative Jeff Flake," Moylan added. "His leadership in opposition to wasteful spending is no mystery to NTU members, who have seen him earn first place in our annual Rating of Congress for seven straight years. Without his tireless efforts to highlight the scourge of earmarking, even in the face of criticism from within his party, this terrific first step would never have been possible."
"The time has now come for the rest of Congress to follow the lead of House Republicans," Moylan concluded. "House Democrats and Members of both parties in the Senate should immediately follow suit by enacting their own moratoria, with a goal of ending the shady practice not just this year but once and for all."
NTU is a nonpartisan, nonprofit citizen organization founded in 1969 to work for lower taxes, smaller government, and economic freedom at all levels. Note: For more information on NTU, visit www.ntu.org or text the word "FIGHT" to 67292.
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