The chairman of the
Republican Study Committee (RSC), the caucus of conservative Republicans in the US House of Representatives, has decided against trying to get the RSC to formally back a moratorium on earmark requests by its members.
“The votes aren’t there,” said RSC chairman
Jeb Hensarling of Texas, according to
Roll Call (subscription required).
“There is some sense that we would lose and that would set the cause back,” said
Rep. John Campbell of California, chairman of the RSC’s Budget and Spending Task Force.
Earmark opponents had earlier failed to get all House Republicans to adopt a unilateral one-year moratorium on requests for earmarks at their annual retreat in January.
Instead of a unilateral moratorium, House Republicans have called on Democrats to join them in a moratorium on earmarks and in establishing a bipartisan panel on reforming the process.
We can expect to continue to hear more about earmarks in the months ahead. However, the clear lack of enthusiasm for abolishing them, even among House conservatives, means that earmarks will remain part of the landscape.