Cooper Supports Presidential Efforts to Curb Earmarks and Spending

Statement

"When it comes to earmarks and excessive spending, members of Congress need some parental supervision"

Congressman Jim Cooper (TN-05) issued the following statement after President Obama announced that he would be requesting the power of expedited rescission by sending the "Reduce Unnecessary Spending Act of 2010" to Congress.

"When it comes to earmarks and excessive spending, members of Congress need some parental supervision. We have seen the success of strong budget enforcement tools like statutory PAYGO in the late 90's. We reinstated PAYGO to get the government back on a sound fiscal path. Expedited rescission can help keep us on that track."

Cooper long championed re-instatement of PAYGO policies which passed into law earlier this year, and has been a strong supporter of expedited rescission. He is a cosponsor of an expedited rescission proposal introduced by Rep. Walt Minnick (ID-1) earlier this year and has supported Rep. Paul Ryan's (WI-1) similar legislation in past Congresses.

For the 3rd consecutive year, Cooper refused to request earmarks and has praised the President for creating the Executive Deficit Commission, a proposal similar to the SAFE Commission sponsored by Cooper in the House.

Source