Dems Angry over Obama Anti-Earmark Stance

Senate Democrats aren’t too happy with the stance President Barack Obama took over earmarks in his State of the Union address Tuesday. He surprised them by threatening to veto all bills with earmarks, Politico reports.

“Democrats in the Senate grew visibly frustrated, denouncing the president’s call as a power grab that’ll have little-to-no impact on the federal budget deficit,” the news service states. “But the reality is that Democrats face a political climate that makes it virtually impossible to get any earmarks through this Congress if Obama and Republicans in Congress maintain their opposition.”

Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu, one of the Senate’s biggest earmarkers, says, “With Republican opposition and the president opposed to it, it’s very unlikely that it will happen. But I think it’s very short-sighted policy, and it’s going to be very hurtful to Louisiana and a lot of states.”