Earmarks

Open Email Speaker Boehner:

Dear Speaker Boehner,

          I saw your recent statement on your opposition to earmarks. If we take this in the right context, I am all for it.

          However, we must avoid confusion.

          Wikipedia says an earmark is a provision that directs approved funds to be spent on specific projects, or that directs specific exemptions from taxes or mandated fees. Typically, a legislator seeks to insert earmarks that direct a specified amount of money to a particular organization or project in their home state or district.

          While we obviously will want to be as specific as possible on funding allocations for needed government operations, we want to avoid at all costs pork spending for home states or districts.

          Therefore, we will need earmarks for use in legitimate funding and avoid earmarks for pork projects. This will take some attention on the part of House members to differentiate between the two.