Posted on 07/12/2008 3:40:18 PM PDT by ATOMIC_PUNK
Democrats and Republicans joined together to strip a pet project of Rep. John Murtha’s (D-Pa.) from the 2009 intelligence authorization bill — the same project Democrats defended last year.
The Murtha earmark, $23 million for the National Drug Intelligence Center (NDIC), was one of a handful of pet projects eliminated from the bill in a lopsided 17-4 vote. Several Democrats on the House Intelligence Committee joined with Republicans to support the amendment, which was sponsored by Rep. Pete Hoekstra (Mich.), the panel’s ranking Republican.
Hoekstra said he did not recall who voted against his amendment, although he said it included Republicans as well as Democrats. He noted that Chairman Silvestre Reyes (D-Texas) voted against it.
Most Democrats supported the move to keep the bill earmark-free, an outcome that surprised and encouraged Hoekstra.
“I was a little surprised,” he said. “I had thought the majority was going to say, ‘No, we’re keeping our earmarks.’
“This bill should be about our national security priorities,” he continued. “The best way to give confidence to the American people in this bill, which is largely kept out of public view, is to focus on our national security priorities not something that’s being driven by member requests.”
Hoekstra said Democrats’ decision to join his amendment could be a sign that other appropriations and authorizations bills this year could be earmark-free as well.
The NDIC project has caused several headaches for Democrats. In 2007, Murtha attacked Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) on the House floor when Rogers tried to cut the NDIC from the 2008 intelligence authorization bill.
Murtha later apologized for threatening any future earmark request from Rogers.
The NDIC, located in Murtha’s district, was slated for closure in the president’s budget proposal for fiscal 2008 after an Office of Management and Budget review concluded it duplicated other federal efforts.
Despite the controversy, Democrats rejected Rogers’s efforts to strip it from the bill last year in committee and on the House floor.
This year’s vote occurred without fanfare Thursday afternoon, mainly because it took place in the Intelligence panel’s secure room in the Capitol, which is not open to reporters or the public.
While portions of the meeting were secret, the vote was held during a public time, so a transcript is expected to be available Wednesday, if not sooner.
Still, members of the panel were keeping the identities of the Democrats who joined Hoekstra’s effort close to the vest for now.
The committee’s Democratic spokesman could not provide a breakdown of the vote by press time.
Murtha spokesman Matthew Mazonkey declined to comment.
Kevin Smith, a spokesman for Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio), said it was curious that Democrats appear to be changing their stance on NDIC, at least at the committee level.
“Republicans have put tremendous pressure on Democrats to disavow Murtha over this earmark, and it seems that more and more of them are coming to the conclusion that it is indefensible,” he said.
Republicans have labeled the NDIC a “Clinton-era pork-barrel boondoggle” and said the additional $23 million slated for the project in the intelligence bill should be spent on hiring more intelligence officers. Government watchdog groups, which have criticized the NDIC earmark for months, applauded the decision to strip it and all other earmarks from the intelligence authorization bill this year.
“It just shows that the stakes are really high when you start talking about our intelligence authorization,” said Steve Ellis of Taxpayers for Common Sense. “We shouldn’t be making decisions on our intelligence-gathering priorities based on the pet project request of powerful lawmakers.”
But, but, how will we win the war on drugs?
Can’t we just strip Murtha, slather him in tar, coat him in feathers and ride him out of town on a rail? ;)
No, they are providing cover for themselves in November!
I don't care who you are you don't call the men and women of this GREAT country, who are willing to sacrifice their lives so we may enjoy freedom, murderers.
God bless each and everyone of them Past, Present, and Future. I personally can't even find the words to express my graditiude for all you do!
Thank you for protecting me my family and the wonderful U.S.A.!
Good article. But it would be more helpful if you informed us that this article was originally published by The Hill, but is linked by you to the liberal outfight CREW (Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington) which republished it.
Someone please tell me, do my eyes deceive me?
Good points.
This is nothing but a Public Relations move by the Obomb-us liberals
Nice to see Blurtha finally get his face slapped on something.
It came up in a search Besides from what i see they go after both in corruption not just Dems is their something wrong with that ?
Why is it when a website points out the wrong on both sides it’s a Liberal bastion of corruption but if it just sticks up for one side or the other it could be either good or bad Considering what side you are on or not ?
NDIC is such an insult to American taxpayers that Mutha could be the reatest guy on Earth and this would make me smile.
But, seeing as Murtha is one of the biggest turds in a town full of turds, I’ve got a big grin right now.
You know, Murtha first presented his Haditha slander with Chris Mathews. The video was posted to You Tube as thousands of “news” videos are. (In theory, news is public domain.) The video remained on You Tube as thousands of other news videos. One would assume that the original creators of these videos are proud of their work, and You Tube is more exposure -a good thing, right?
Well most all of videos of the drooler Chris Mathews interview with Jack Murtha on the matter of Haditha have been taken down from You Tube. The error message references copyright infringement. Note that hundreds of videos of Cris Mathews remain on You Tube.
The question. They were proud of that interview, then, it remained on You Tube for months.
Are they not proud of it now?
It could only have been them who asked for it’s removal.
Don't expect this to be the end of it. Murtha will fold this NDIC earmark into some other bill if he can.
As you know, Ma, Murtha has many snake-oil deals that he hustles and expects you and me to pay for.
Remember this one?
http://www.townhall.com/video/HamNation/1450_134986
Murtha is exactly what he appears to be, a crook and a traitor.
Not to worry; Murtha will receive his earmark restored next time around when no one is watching.
Who could forget that one, smooth. I totally missed this story. Could it be because the MSM ignored it?
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y23/drsanity/congressionalwithdrawal.jpg
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