Political Ruminations

More “I’m a fiscal Conservative” Hypocrisy From Alabama Sen. Richard Shelby

From 1987 through the current year, Sen. Shelby has introduced a Constitutional amendment which would require Congress to adhere to a balanced budget

On February 1, 2011, I introduced a Constitutional amendment requiring Congress to balance our nation’s budget.  I have introduced this legislation in every Congress since 1987 and will continue to fight for its enactment.  A balanced budget amendment to the Constitution is the only certain mechanism that will break the cycle of deficit spending and finally put our nation on a path to paying off our national debt.

Recently, Sen. Shelby published a statement in which he states that “Washington must put its fiscal house in order.”

Rand Paul Already Breaking Campaign Promises as He Flip-Flops on Earmarks

Predictable. From HuffPost:

Less than a week after his election, Kentucky's Senator-elect Rand Paul already appears to be making a rapid departure away from one of his campaign promises: an earmark ban that stood as an conservative cornerstone, a position Paul touted to indicate he was serious about tackling the reckless spending practices of Washington.

Here's what Paul told the Wall Street Journal over the weekend:

In a bigger shift from his campaign pledge to end earmarks, he tells me that they are a bad "symbol" of easy spending but that he will fight for Kentucky's share of earmarks and federal pork, as long as it's doled out transparently at the committee level and not parachuted in in the dead of night. "I will advocate for Kentucky's interests," he says.

Such statements would have seemed impossible back in March. Here's Paul's clear-cut pledge to tackle the "corrupting" carve-outs of federal money:

Rand Paul has made a ban on wasteful earmark spending in Washington D.C. one of the key points of his campaign. He has supported Sen. Jim DeMint's vocal support for an earmark ban and he supports news that House Democrats are even coming around on the idea of a partial ban.

I think it’s safe to say that we’re going to be seeing a lot of flip-flopping from the Tea Party Republicans as reality hits home over the next two years.