Obey’s retirement and the for profit earmark ban

The decision by David Obey (D-WI) not to seek reelection definitely raises questions about the future of the House’s for profit earmark ban.

It was Obey, along with Norm Dicks (D-WA), the new chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, who announced in March that the Committee would not accept earmark requests for for-profit entities.  Although the impetus for the move seemed to come mostly from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, it is doubtful that it would have come about without the active support of Obey.

While House Republicans have adopted an across the board earmark ban to one up the Democrats and attempt to make it an issue in the upcoming Congressional elections, the Senate, Democrats and Republicans alike, have refused to go along with any ban on earmarks.  Although Obey said he would fight the Senate “tooth and nail” on earmarks, he also indicated in the press conference announcing his retirement today that he was “bone-tired.” 

The most likely outcome at this point is that most of the spending bills will be delayed until after the November election.  The current impasse between the House and Senate on earmarks probabaly won’t be dealt with until then, with the most likely outcome being bills that have Senate, but not House, earmarks for for profit entities. 

What Obey’s retirement means for the future of the for profit earmark ban beyond this year is unclear.  If Republicans win back the House in November, the House-Senate impasse over earmarks may continue.  If Democrats retain their majority, Obey’s likely successor would be Norm Dicks, current chairman of the defense subcommittee.  Although Dicks supported the for profit ban, I doubt that his support for it runs very deep.  As a long-time senior member of the defense subcommittee, Dicks has been a long-time supporter of earmarks for for profit entities in the past, and understands the important role they can play in accelerating the development of new technologies.  Whether Pelosi will have as much enthusiasm for the for profit earmark ban after the elections, assuming the Democrats retain their majority, remains to be seen.  In any case, most rank and file members of the House are not supportive of banning earmarks.