Rep. Tom Cole seeks to limit earmark-driven political headaches – By Aidan Quigley (Roll Call) / April 15, 2024
Republicans opposed Democratic-backed projects in recent bills related to the LGBTQ community and abortion access
House Republican appropriators are weighing changes to the chamber’s earmarking process in order to limit the number of “political” project requests, new House Appropriations Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla., said Monday.
Cole told reporters Monday that while major changes to the earmark guidelines are unlikely as appropriators rush to get their fiscal 2025 bills underway, GOP appropriators want to block projects that could cause them headaches back home.
“Some of these are unobjectionable, some of them create political problems for people,” Cole said. “That’s just the reality of it. I shouldn’t have to have a political problem in my district because I voted for a bill that had your earmark in it.”
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