Corker Votes Against Massive Omnibus Spending Bill

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Corker Votes Against Massive Omnibus Spending Bill

U.S. Senator Bob Corker, R-Tenn., voted against a $446.8 billion federal spending bill (the conference report to accompany H.R. 3288), noting the massive bill's 12 percent increase in spending over last year's level. The "omnibus," as it is called, combines six uncompleted fiscal year 2010 appropriations bills.

"Rather than making some tough decisions to bring down the $1.4 trillion federal deficit, Congress once again sees fit to actually RAISE spending levels for the fiscal year, this time by 12 percent. It's egregious," Corker said. "There are some very worthwhile measures in the individual bills, but the flawed appropriations process that produced this bloated spending package is in desperate need of reform.

"In March I was joined by every Republican senator in a letter to Senator Reid urging him to allow time to consider each appropriation bill independently and pass at least eight of the 12 appropriations bills before August in order to avoid this kind of massive, last minute omnibus spending bill.

"There's no magic bullet solution to our nation's fiscal problems, but I believe examining, debating, amending and passing each of our spending bills in regular order rather than lumping them together into a last minute, massive spending bill would go a long way to improving our appropriations process and restoring the public's confidence in the way we're spending their tax dollars."

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