Posted on 01/26/2010 12:05:08 PM PST by rabscuttle385
Sens. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) are jumping on the spending freeze bandwagon, calling on Congress to flatline discretionary spending—and they issued a challenge to the president the day after the White House proposed its own three-year budget freeze.
"If the president is serious—and I believe he is—he should also say tomorrow night he will veto the first appropriations bill that comes to his desk that has an earmark on it," McCain said.
The Fiscal Freeze Act of 2010, which Bayh and McCain hope to introduce to the Senate later this week, includes provisions to install a spending freeze and earmark moratorium until the deficit is eliminated, enforce the Congressional budget resolution as binding law and even create a constitutionally viable line-item veto to "give the President power to strike out wasteful earmarks and other extraneous spending items."
Both McCain and Bayh are up for re-election this year.
The senators’ announcement comes after a failed 53-46 roll call vote on creating a statutory deficit commission amendment and in advance of Wednesday's State of the Union address, when Obama plans to announce his spending freeze on non security spending.
When asked about his take on Obama's about-face on spending caps — and the president's accusation when he was a candidate that McCain was out-of-touch for suggesting just such a spending freeze — McCain commended the President's recent actions while gently chiding his rhetoric on the trail.
"I think the president understands now how serious this problem is, that it requires hatchets and scalpels. It requires a hatchet to get the budget under control and it requires a scalpel to eliminate wasteful and unnecessary spending," McCain said. "So I appreciate the fact that the president has changed his position since the campaign."
(Excerpt) Read more at politico.com ...
Call his bluff!
Hasn’t the line-item veto been ruled unconstitutional?
Awesome, you just KNOW zero won’t dare anger his lobbyist friends. Fine work, McCain. This will expose this “freeze” for what it is, pure appearance politics.
McCain! You friggin IDIOT!
He’ll only use it to punish conservatives!!!
When was that ever an obstacle to him?
i wonder how he is going to create a constitutional line item veto considering that the Supreme Court has already said that a line item veto is a violation of the separation of powers.
LOL. Except entitlements, defense, education, social services, new stimuluses, new tax credits....
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find only things evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelogus
“”I think the president understands now how serious this problem is, that it requires hatchets and scalpels. It requires a hatchet to get the budget under control and it requires a scalpel to eliminate wasteful and unnecessary spending,” McCain said.”
McAmnesty doesn’t care how much money is wasted...as long as it’s wasted on his PET projects. He’s just grandstanding..again!
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Bill to improve health care…in Mexico! McCain strikes again!
What would Americans think, then, of a member of Congress who introduced legislation, not to improve health care in the United States, but to improve health care in Mexico?
Insane? Drunk? Unworthy of public office?
What would Americans think, then, of a bill introduced in Congress that required federal agencies to come up with a plan, not to expand health coverage in the United States, but to expand health coverage in Mexico?
Impossible? Unthinkable? Wildly irresponsible?
What would Americans think, then, of the motives of a senator, who not only introduced a bill to improve Mexico’s health care system and extend coverage to a growing population of 120 million people, but gave health insurance companies the right to help devise the plan?
Blatantly corrupt? Grossly indifferent to the well-being of the American people? Downright treasonous?
Unbelievable as it may seem, the Secure America and Orderly Immigration Act of 2005 contained a provision giving insurance companies the right to help devise a plan for extending US health care to Mexico (Sec. 1004. BINATIONAL PUBLIC HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE AND HEALTH INSURANCE).
Even more unbelievable, the senator who sponsored the bill is not on the verge of being thrown out of office for this odious piece of legislation. No, the senator who introduced the bill, Senator John McCain of Arizona, is on the verge of locking up the Republican nomination to be our next president[snip]
http://towncriernews.blogspot.com/search?q=john+mccain+fred+thompson
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 12, 2005
Mr. MCCAIN (for himself, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. BROWNBACK, Mr. LIEBERMAN, Mr. GRAHAM, and Mr. SALAZAR) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
A BILL
TITLE X—PROMOTING ACCESS TO HEALTH CARE
Sec. 1001. Federal reimbursement of emergency health services furnished to undocumented aliens.
Sec. 1002. Prohibition against offset of certain Medicare and Medicaid payments.
Sec. 1003. Prohibition against discrimination against aliens on the basis of employment in hospital-based versus nonhospital-based sites.
Sec. 1004. Binational public health infrastructure and health insurance.
http://opensourceactivist.org/content/legislation/S1033/text.php#sec1004
Its time for him to GO!
This wouldn’t be a line-item veto on anything congress voted on in the original bill. It would just apply to earmarks stuffed in during committee, the culprit in 90% of the wasteful spending in Washington. If congress originally approved it, Obama couldn’t veto it. I’m sure it’s constitutionality would be questioned, too, but the constitution never even mentions earmarks so I doubt the supremes would come down on the side of the porkers.
On a side note, any potential legal challenge would run the risk of the SCOTUS declaring earmarks unconstitutional and illegal, as well.
I say the GOP should go for this, even offer the whole caucus in both houses to vote in support of such an amendment.
http://www.cato.org/testimony/ct-sm032300.html
Interesting commentary on LIV.
McCain involved in this one too.
Interesting how when Reagan wanted this, no one in congress was interested.
I think this might be brilliant. Offer up a Line Item Veto to Zero....That makes HIM totally responsible, not the Congress. And, its not like the Republicans are going to get anything passed into a bill anyway, so there’s not going to be too many pet projects taken away from Reps to start with. Then, when we get a conservative in there, bar the door Katy, lets start with some serious cuts!
Yes, it has been ruled unconstitutional. Mark Levin and his group looked into this extensively and concluded that that was a correct decision.
This is grandstanding.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.