House Republicans Launch Earmark Reform Website

(CNSNews.com) - House Republicans have set up a new Web site to help them "change the way Washington spends taxpayer dollars."

EarmarkReform.House.Gov is focused solely on earmark reform, House Republican Leader John Boehner (Ohio) said on Tuesday. It will serve as a hub for news and information (news releases, opinion pieces, and news stories) regarding Republican efforts to overhaul the taxpayer-funded earmark system.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her Democratic colleagues have rejected House Republican calls for an immediate moratorium on all taxpayer-funded earmarks, but Boehner said he remains "hopeful" that Democrats will join Republicans in "committing to real, meaningful reform."

In the meantime, the new Web site "will shine a spotlight on their broken promises and empty rhetoric on earmarks," Boehner said.

"While families struggle with rising costs of living, politicians are wasting their money on pork-barrel projects we don't need," Boehner said on Tuesday.

"Washington cannot be fixed until the earmarks are stopped," he added. "And this website will be a valuable tool in House Republicans' fight to bring real change to a process that has undermined the public's trust in their leaders in Congress.

Republican Reps. Jack Kingston of Georgia, Frank Wolf of Virginia and Zach Wamp of Tennessee have sponsored legislation that would bring the earmark process to a halt and establish a panel to identify ways to permanently change the spending process.

The measure has been co-sponsored by 150 House Republicans, including the entire House Republican leadership team.

Speaker Pelosi, who as leader of the Democrat-controlled House has the power to shut down the chamber's earmarking process immediately, declined to support the legislation or the proposed moratorium.

See Earlier Story:
Republicans Say They'll Press for a Vote on Earmark Reform (Feb. 7, 2008)