Do You Want Pork With That?

Or, The Uncontrollable Spending of Congress.

Congress has passed and President Bush has just signed a new highway bill of $286 billion. Although initially promising to veto any highway bill that exceeded a certain amount, Bush acquiesced and called the bill, “fiscally responsible.” The bill passed overwhelmingly with only eight members of the House of Representatives voting against it. The bill includes a myriad of pork barrel spending, or spending on frivolous and unconstitutional items, such as bike paths. For example, Sen. Lieberman has succeeding in bringing $14.4 million to Connecticut to extend a highway and build a trail for bikes. When has the “general welfare” clause been so misunderstood or ignored as today? The preamble to the Constitution includes,” …establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general welfare,..” Contrary to some people’s belief, providing for the general welfare does not include pooling tax money from all of the states for a purpose that affects a limited area. Let us turn to President James Madison, the “Father of the Constitution.” When once confronted by a bill that would have appropriated money for roads and canals, he vetoed it. He stated,

“The legislative powers vested in Congress are specified and enumerated in the eighth section of the first article of the Constitution, and it does not appear that the power proposed to be exercised by the bill is among the enumerated powers….To refer the power in question to the clause ‘to provide for the common defense and general welfare’ would be contrary to the established and consistent rules of interpretation, as rendering the special and careful enumeration of powers which follow the clause as nugatory and improper. Such a view of the Constitution would have the effect of giving to Congress a general power of legislation instead of the defined and limited one hitherto understood to belong to them…”

President James Monroe when faced with a similar bill, also used his veto power and declared,

“Have Congress a right to raise and appropriate the money to any and to every purpose according to their will and pleasure? They certainly have not. The Government of the United States is a limited Government, instituted for great national purposes, and for those only.”

Some who voted for the bill may think they made their constituents happy and therefore will probably be re-elected. However, is that the price to pay? Shunning the provisions of the Constitution and fiscally responsible measures to get re-elected? It is time for Congress to vote, “NO!” and reign in their uncontrollable spending.