Watch CAGW’s February Porker of the Month Video
Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has named Rep. Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) Porker of the Month for spreading wild inaccuracies about the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Restoring Internet Freedom Order (RIFO), which overturned Depression-era regulations intended for rotary-dial telephones that were imposed on the internet by the Obama Administration. Leading up to a February 7 hearing, Rep. Doyle, who is chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, quipped that “the FCC’s repeal of these essential protections – known as net neutrality – has been a disaster for consumers.†In fact, the Obama-era regulations significantly hampered broadband investment during the two years they were in effect. After RIFO was enacted in 2017, internet speeds increasedby nearly 40 percent, and the U.S. rose from 12th to sixth worldwide in broadband internet speed in just one year. For arguing to reinstate ineffective, unnecessary, and harmful “net neutrality†regulations, Rep. Doyle is the February Porker of the Month. Read more about the Porker of the Month.
CAGW Releases Waste-Cutting Plan for the 116th Congress
In response to an annual deficit of $779 billion for fiscal year 2018 and a national debt of $22 trillion, CAGW released Critical Waste Issues for the 116th Congress on February 13. The report provides detailed proposals for creating a smaller and more efficient government. From civil service and regulatory reform to healthcare and defense spending, Critical Waste Issues details 18 policy areas that lawmakers should focus on to cut waste and improve management and transparency. In announcing the report’s release, CAGW President Tom Schatz commented, “[Critical Waste Issues] should be required reading for every member of Congress and serve as a blueprint for reining in out-of-control federal spending. The start of a new Congress is the perfect time to act on proposals that will begin to relieve America’s fiscal distress.†Read or download CAGW’s new report.
CCAGW Launches Campaign to Save Earmark Moratorium
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) spearheaded a grassroots drive to stop the return of pork-barrel earmarks this month. The push came in response to many House Democrats and even some Republicans who are clamoring to lift the moratorium on wasteful, self-serving earmarks that has been in place since 2011. Lifting the moratorium would lead to an avalanche of earmarks that would waste taxpayer dollars on pet special interest projects and cause federal spending to explode. To date, the campaign has delivered more than 7,000 constituent e-mails to House members demanding that the earmark moratorium remain in place. Tell your U.S. Representative to vote against any effort to restore wasteful and corruptive earmarks.
From “The WasteWatcherâ€
On February 7, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortes (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) released a 14-page resolution for their Green New Deal. “Saying that the plan is overly ambitious is an understatement,†opines CAGW Government Affairs Director Allen Johnson on CAGW’s blog, “The WasteWatcher.†The proposal calls for “a sustainable, pollution and greenhouse gas free food system,†as well as a “zero emissions†society in just 10 years. Under the plan, the federal government would pay to “build charging stations everywhere, build out highspeed rail at a scale where air travel stops becoming necessary, create affordable public transit available to all, with [a] goal to replace every combustion-engine vehicle.†Regarding payment for these endeavors, the authors of the Green New Deal write: “The Federal Reserve can extend credit to power these projects and investments and new public banks can be created to extend credit.†Ultimately, the Green New Deal is not a realistic proposal, but it shows how much control Democratic Socialists want over Americans and the economy, concludes Johnson. Read more on “The WasteWatcher,†CAGW’s staff blog.
