One Congressman Who Passes on Earmarks

Congressman John Campbell (R-CA)


In one of my past postings, I urged that Republican politicians campaign on a pledge not to bring pork back to their districts in the form of earmarks-which tax-payers all over the country have to pay for. Today in the Orange County Register, I read an article about one congressman who has turned his back on earmarks. Coincidentally, he is the congressman for my district in Orange County-John Campbell (R-CA).

According to the tone of the article, Campbell has incurred the wrath of many in Orange County who feel that Campbell has failed to bring in needed projects. One big example is a projected $46 million dredging project of upper Newport Bay which has stalled due to the lack of federal funding. Campbell is taking no action to get the funding released because of his pledge to not engage in earmarks until the process is reformed to permit more transparency.

I applaud the congressman's stance, whether or not the project would help my region. The whole earmark system has been corrupted and is in need of reform. It's a small step, but if more people in Congress would follow Campbell's example, perhaps we could start cleaning up our political system.