Earmarks Are Definitely Back

Stan Collender: “No one used the word while this bill was put together, but there should be no doubt that ‘earmarks‘ — money set aside for a specific purpose — were used extensively to buy votes. Some were the traditional small amounts for a particular state, district, industry or company; others were the inclusion of whole programs. Either way, they were almost precisely what congressional Republicans, led by former Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), swore to stop doing. “