The word "unbelievable" comes to mind as we look at the "cover story" on Politico.com’s website this morning. There is a reason why the Editorial Board of the Wall Street Journal has dubbed 
Rep. Jerry Lewis ("R"-CA) the "Minority Maker" — and is because when Republicans had the majority in Congress, Lewis rather prolifically used his roll as Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee NOT to shrink the size and scope of the federal government, but to lord over a pork barrel spending process that saw Republicans embrace and even increase the amount of egregious earmarks from what the Democrats did when they were in power. Even now, the "Minority Maker" continues to give his party bad press with his slipping in an egregious $3 million public subsidy for a well funded Goldmach Sachs venture mining project.
There are clearly a few reasons why Republicans do not enjoy a majority in Congress today. But there is little disagreement that one of them is the GOP’s failure to actually put the brakes on spending and keep its promise to reduce the size and scope of the federal government. As Senator McConnell and Congressman Boehner attempts to restore credibility with Republican donors and activists around the country, the fact that a porker like Lewis continues to be appointed as the top Republican on the House Appropriations Committee only leads to discussion about whether, if we do achieve a majority, things will be different than before.
I know that I am just one of many, many Republican leaders who believes that it is simply not enough to take away the majority hold that Democrats have on America. We must replace it with a Republican majority that is actually aware and concerned with the fact that since the rise of progressivism in America in the 19th Century, conservatives have done a dismal job at rolling back the slow (until this President) advance of the growth of government in America. We need leaders on Capitol Hill that are willing to do what porkers like Jerry Lewis apparently aren’t willing to do — which is actually spend LESS. not MORE.
Can’t Republican leaders just get in a room and acknowledge that egregious earmarks, and the whole back-room "you support my special project and I’ll support yours" mentality on Capitol Hill harms, not helps the cause of pursuing freedom and liberty for Americans?
This is very disappointing.
October 7th, 2009 at 12:00 am
And if someone dared to challenge Lewis in a Republican primary the first thing you’d hear would be the voices of those pleading for “unity” and quoting that tired, old 11th Commandment.