Rep. Tom Rooney, R-Fla., argued Wednesday that his plan to change House rules to let lawmakers pick and choose which Army Corps of Engineers projects take priority is not a plan to allow the return of earmarks, which let members direct money to pet projects in their districts.
“It has nothing to do with money,” Rooney told reporters as lawmakers went into a closed-door session to determine their rules for the 115th Congress and vote on each proposal by secret ballot. “It has to do with who gets to say what projects get done and when and where.”
Rooney said his proposal is limited to Army Corps of Engineers projects and something he previously introduced as a bill. It would allow lawmakers to direct and prioritize which water projects, such as building dams and approving wetlands development, the Corps undertakes across the country.
“When I go home and I see my county commissioners and they say, ‘can you shore up the dike around Lake Okeechobee,’ I’m like ‘no. I can write a letter and hope that they listen to me,” which you know over at the Army Corps they probably take that letter and put it into the shredder,” a visibly riled up Rooney said. “They don’t give a rat’s ass what I think.”
Rooney said ceding such “power of the purse” authority to the executive branch flies in the face of what voters want.
Members of Congress “were elected,” he said. “We’re accountable … and how this election was about letting the executive branch or unaccountable bureaucrats dictate how that money is spent, I think is exactly the opposite of what this election is about.”
Rooney said outside groups are misleading supporters to their own advantage. He didn’t name any, but the Heritage Foundation in particular opposes any changes to the earmark ban.
Emails encouraging conservatives to call their lawmakers to reject his proposal “are wrong,” he said. “And oh, by the way, remember right after they email you and say that ‘this is bad; donate now,’ this is a good way for them to raise money — to scare people into thinking we’re going back to the days of Duke Cunningham or something like that,” he said, referring to the disgraced former Republican congressman from California who was convicted of corruption after pushing through earmarks for kickbacks from defense contractors and lobbyists.
“We’re talking about Army Corps projects here and our ability to deliver for our constituents,” he said.
Asked if his proposal would open the door to wasteful infrastructure projects such as the infamous “bridge to nowhere” supported by Alaskan lawmakers, Rooney said he wasn’t sure.
“If the appropriators let that happen again, then they should be accountable,” he said about colleagues who sit on the Appropriations Committee, which must approve all government spending.
