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At a meeting on Tuesday, President Donald Trump suggested a return to the "pork barrel spending" of the 1990s and 2000s, as a way of mending fences between Republicans and Democrats. (Photo: Kevin Chang/Flickr/cc)
In Latest Betrayal of 'Drain the Swamp' Mantra, Trump Calls for Return of Pork Barrel Politics
Despite frequent derision of Washington as a corrupt "swamp," the president reminisced about the days of earmarks in a bipartisan meeting
Jan 09, 2018
In a televised bipartisan meeting with lawmakers on Tuesday, President Donald Trump suggested that Congress should return to a system of earmarking legislation, a much-maligned practice common in the 1990s and 2000s that became synonymous with government waste and corruption.
"I hear so much about earmarks and how there was a great friendliness when you had earmarks," Trump told the gathered lawmakers. "Of course they had other problems, but maybe all of you should start thinking about going back to a form of earmarks."
Watch:
\u201cPresident Trump: \u201cMaybe all of you should starting thinking about going back to a form of earmarks,\u201d says the current system \u201creally lends itself to not getting along.\u201d\u201d— NBC Politics (@NBC Politics) 1515522232
Also known as "pork barrel spending," earmarks are language added to legislation by lawmakers to obtain funds for their home states and districts for special projects, often to appease donors or corporate interests.
Trump's remarks came as Republicans on the House Rules Committee are preparing to hold hearings later this month on earmarks, with Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) telling Politico, "There's really an interest in both parties to reclaim these powers back to Congress."
The president and Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders both said that "controls" should be used to prevent misuse of a new earmarks system, but critics were not convinced of this on Tuesday, with many journalists pointing out that Trump's advocacy for earmarks is another betrayal of his campaign promise to "drain the swamp" and rid Washington of corruption.
\u201cTrump just issued a full-throated endorsement of earmarks. \nJust wild.\u201d— Erica Werner (@Erica Werner) 1515521673
\u201cCandidate Trump: I\u2019m going to drain the swamp. \n\nPresident Trump: Maybe we should bring back earmarks.\u201d— Victor Blackwell CNN (@Victor Blackwell CNN) 1515524283
\u201c@NBCPolitics You mean the earmarks that are the hallmark of corrupt governance?\u201d— NBC Politics (@NBC Politics) 1515522232
\u201cDonald Trump is a hand grenade.\n\nHe is going to go to Washington and [checks notes] sign a corporate tax cut and endorse comprehensive immigration reform as well as bringing back earmarks??\u201d— Matt Fuller (@Matt Fuller) 1515522101
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In a televised bipartisan meeting with lawmakers on Tuesday, President Donald Trump suggested that Congress should return to a system of earmarking legislation, a much-maligned practice common in the 1990s and 2000s that became synonymous with government waste and corruption.
"I hear so much about earmarks and how there was a great friendliness when you had earmarks," Trump told the gathered lawmakers. "Of course they had other problems, but maybe all of you should start thinking about going back to a form of earmarks."
Watch:
\u201cPresident Trump: \u201cMaybe all of you should starting thinking about going back to a form of earmarks,\u201d says the current system \u201creally lends itself to not getting along.\u201d\u201d— NBC Politics (@NBC Politics) 1515522232
Also known as "pork barrel spending," earmarks are language added to legislation by lawmakers to obtain funds for their home states and districts for special projects, often to appease donors or corporate interests.
Trump's remarks came as Republicans on the House Rules Committee are preparing to hold hearings later this month on earmarks, with Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) telling Politico, "There's really an interest in both parties to reclaim these powers back to Congress."
The president and Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders both said that "controls" should be used to prevent misuse of a new earmarks system, but critics were not convinced of this on Tuesday, with many journalists pointing out that Trump's advocacy for earmarks is another betrayal of his campaign promise to "drain the swamp" and rid Washington of corruption.
\u201cTrump just issued a full-throated endorsement of earmarks. \nJust wild.\u201d— Erica Werner (@Erica Werner) 1515521673
\u201cCandidate Trump: I\u2019m going to drain the swamp. \n\nPresident Trump: Maybe we should bring back earmarks.\u201d— Victor Blackwell CNN (@Victor Blackwell CNN) 1515524283
\u201c@NBCPolitics You mean the earmarks that are the hallmark of corrupt governance?\u201d— NBC Politics (@NBC Politics) 1515522232
\u201cDonald Trump is a hand grenade.\n\nHe is going to go to Washington and [checks notes] sign a corporate tax cut and endorse comprehensive immigration reform as well as bringing back earmarks??\u201d— Matt Fuller (@Matt Fuller) 1515522101
In a televised bipartisan meeting with lawmakers on Tuesday, President Donald Trump suggested that Congress should return to a system of earmarking legislation, a much-maligned practice common in the 1990s and 2000s that became synonymous with government waste and corruption.
"I hear so much about earmarks and how there was a great friendliness when you had earmarks," Trump told the gathered lawmakers. "Of course they had other problems, but maybe all of you should start thinking about going back to a form of earmarks."
Watch:
\u201cPresident Trump: \u201cMaybe all of you should starting thinking about going back to a form of earmarks,\u201d says the current system \u201creally lends itself to not getting along.\u201d\u201d— NBC Politics (@NBC Politics) 1515522232
Also known as "pork barrel spending," earmarks are language added to legislation by lawmakers to obtain funds for their home states and districts for special projects, often to appease donors or corporate interests.
Trump's remarks came as Republicans on the House Rules Committee are preparing to hold hearings later this month on earmarks, with Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) telling Politico, "There's really an interest in both parties to reclaim these powers back to Congress."
The president and Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders both said that "controls" should be used to prevent misuse of a new earmarks system, but critics were not convinced of this on Tuesday, with many journalists pointing out that Trump's advocacy for earmarks is another betrayal of his campaign promise to "drain the swamp" and rid Washington of corruption.
\u201cTrump just issued a full-throated endorsement of earmarks. \nJust wild.\u201d— Erica Werner (@Erica Werner) 1515521673
\u201cCandidate Trump: I\u2019m going to drain the swamp. \n\nPresident Trump: Maybe we should bring back earmarks.\u201d— Victor Blackwell CNN (@Victor Blackwell CNN) 1515524283
\u201c@NBCPolitics You mean the earmarks that are the hallmark of corrupt governance?\u201d— NBC Politics (@NBC Politics) 1515522232
\u201cDonald Trump is a hand grenade.\n\nHe is going to go to Washington and [checks notes] sign a corporate tax cut and endorse comprehensive immigration reform as well as bringing back earmarks??\u201d— Matt Fuller (@Matt Fuller) 1515522101
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