Source: Huffington Post
Date: 30 December, 2011
Rick Santorum has been rising in the polls, reaching 3rd in the Iowa Caucus. Rick Perry has attacked Santorum by calling him a "prolific earmarker" and a weak conservative fiscally. Santorum brushed off Perry's remark with an attitude something along the lines of "haters gonna hate". His defense for earmarking was that Congress holds the power to appropriate funds, which is guaranteed by the Constitution.
So, what is earmarking? It is a tactic used by politicians to direct funding to projects that benefit the area that the politician represents. It adds onto a bill, which if passed, the thing that is being earmarked must be passed as well. It can also exempt taxes and mandates. A good example would be the Keystone Pipeline that was earmarked onto the payroll tax cut extension that Obama was pushing for. This mentality of a good offense is a good defense is working out in Santorum's favor. He welcomes the attack and has been gaining support. This is one of the few articles that I have perused that does not talk about the candidates that are out there, such as Romney, Perry, or Paul and is a welcome experience for learning about the lesser known candidates. Foley's article is unbiased and shows quotes from both sides as well as no criticism of either side. His popularity is rising, but I doubt it will make a difference against the more prominent candidates such as Romney and Paul.
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