The Scorched Earth Congress

Curtis Coleman

Curtis Coleman, Contributing Author: Possibly the most disliked and disrespected Congress in history, the 111^th Congress simply may not end soon enough.

With 15 million Americans out of work and millions more struggling just to make ends meet, Senate Democrats released a 1,924-page spending monstrosity on Tuesday. The $1.2 trillion omnibus spending bill, which includes more than 6,000 earmarks totaling $8 billion, was crafted privately by a group of bipartisan senators, according to The Washington Post.  A dozen or more spending bills were cobbled together into one single measure that would fund the government for a year.

By the numbers:

• 6,600: Total number of earmarks in the pork-laden bill. (The Hill)
• 1,924: Number of pages in the pork-laden omnibus spending bill.  (The Washington Post)
• $575.13 million: Amount of spending per page in the bill. (The Washington Times)
• $1 billion: Funding included in the omnibus bill for the implementation of the job-killing health care law, including $176 million to implement Medicare Advantage cuts.  (The Hill)

According to a new Gallup poll released today, “Americans’ assessment of Congress has hit a new low, with 13% saying they approve of the way Congress is handling its job. The 83% disapproval rating is also the worst Gallup has measured in more than 30 years of tracking congressional job performance.”

This Congress didn’t listen to the people while in office and they’re not listening on their way out.

This Congress exercised no fiscal responsibility while in office and they appear to be exercising none on their way out.

This Congress did not have the consent of the governed while in office and they certainly do not have it on their way out – except to get out.

Like a defeated army burning and looting on its retreat, this Congress seems to be prepared to leave one more indelible exclamation mark on its garish, meretricious reputation, while Americans attempt to deflect its attacks on their hopes for a better 112^th Congress.
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Curtis Coleman is the President of The Curtis Coleman Institute for Constitutional Policy and contributing author to the ARRA News Service.

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