This website couldn’t be more enthusiastic about any member of Congress from California than 
we are about Representative John Campbell (pictured to the right). No, not just because he writes for our website. We’re big Campbell fans because he has proven in his short time on Capitol Hill to be one of the top leaders in the House on matters of fiscal restraint and common sense. It isn’t just where he stands on the issues, but that he is an activist, willing to exert time and energy to promote the issues in which he believes — the most paramount of which, as a Congressman, is reducing the size and scope of the federal government.
So it is no surprise that Congressman Campbell has been leading the charge to rally Congressmen to sign a letter to the President letting him know that they will vote to sustain his veto when he rejects overspending by House Democrats.
In his latest update on his Green Eyeshade Blog, Campbell says:
Since Friday, we have gained 50 additional signers, putting the current total at 128.
The Administration has already threatened to veto spending bills that would contribute toward a level higher than his request.
We only need 18 more signatures to get to 146, which is enough to sustain any veto if there are 435 Members present and voting.
If House Republicans stick together, we can save $23 billion for American taxpayers, which is the difference between the Democrat budget resolution (passed without the votes of any House Republicans) and the President’s discretionary spending request.
First and foremost, besides Congressman Campbell, we would like to praise the following GOP House Members from California, for signing onto the letter to sustain spending vetoes: BRIAN BILBRAY, MARY BONO, KEN CALVERT, JOHN DOOLITTLE, DAVID DREIER, ELTON GALLEGLY, WALLY HERGER, DUNCAN HUNTER, DARRELL ISSA, DAN LUNGREN, KEVIN MCCARTHY, BUCK MCKEON, GARY MILLER, DEVON NUNEZ, GEORGE RADANOVICH, DANA ROHRABACHER, and ED ROYCE. All of these California Republicans should be commended for signing the letter to the President.
That said, there is one Republican from the Golden State who (predictably) has NOT signed the letter – care to guess? That’s right, it is the big-spending Congressman Jerry Lewis of the Inland Empire.
FR readers will recall that for years, we have been taking Lewis (pictured to the left) to task over his bloated, big spending ways (most recently here). As Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee back when the GOP had the majority, he garnered a reputation as the "King of Pork" for his deft skill at stuffing pork and egregious earmarks into legislation.
Perhaps worse is that Lewis is some sort of self-appointed champion of the "primacy of appropriators" in the Halls of Congress — that somehow all matters that pertain to spending must always be decided by a select group of people on a committee that probably should be eliminated. I wouldn’t be surprised if Lewis’ objections to signing the letter come from some deep-seeded belief that if Congressional "appropriators" want more spending, that the President of the United States should stand down. It is well known that Lewis has used his position as Chairman of the Appropriations Committee to pressure colleagues to vote against spending cuts.
A CALL TO ACTION – CONTACT JERRY LEWIS
We encourage FR readers to call Congressman Lewis’s Office (1-800-233-1700 California callers only) and let him know that you want him to sign that letter, or contact him via his website here. Of course feel free to contact your Congressman as well, if it isn’t Lewis. If they are Republican, thank them for signing, and urge them to put pressure on Lewis.
Oh yes, it probably is no shock to any FR readers that not one Democrat has signed onto this letter. They, along with liberal GOPer Jerry Lewis, seem to be just fine with the idea of not sustaining a Presidential veto on excess discretionary spending….
To those who feel that as the Vice Chairman, South, for the California Republican Party, that my fire should all be aimed at Democrats I would say that that if we as a political party aren’t willing to ‘police our own’ when they side with the liberals, then how can we credibly say that we will do a better job if we regain the majority? If Lewis were to change his tune, that would be another story. But he doesn’t seem to acknowledge that the largesse of the GOP Congress played a contributing role to our defeat last November…
Let me close by again praising Congressman Campbell and the entire GOP delegation to the House from California (sans Lewis) for standing up for fiscal responsibility, and for telling the President that if he uses his veto pen to reign in overspending by Democrats, they will sustain his veto!
If you want to thank Campbell for his leadership, just comment below. He checks out the FlashReport every day.
[H/T to Rob Bluey from the Heritage Foundation for his post on Lewis.]