Congressional Appropriations Quotes

We know the Constitution gives the purse strings to the House.

We need earmark reform, and when I'm President, I will go line by line to make sure that we are not spending money unwisely.

I think I'm the last Democrat left in the Senate after Russ Feingold was defeated that won't take earmarks.

Elijah Cummings and his colleagues in the House are hung up on giving more money to Puerto Rico when we have our own farmers who are fixing to lose their farm.

Congress is always willing to appropriate money for more and bigger paved roads, anywhere -- particularly if they form loops.

We're not even supposed to have a break in August if we have not passed the appropriations bills. It's in the House rules.

[Discussing specific weapons systems:] I voted for them when I was in Congress. Now that I'm secretary [of defense] I have to figure out a way to pay for them.

The military always asks for more [appropriations] than it gets.

Politicians like to confuse congressional spending with earmarks. There is a difference.

I'm not an expert on the ways of Washington [but] it makes no sense to me that we're not funding control of our border.

55 percent of the national budget consists of entitlements. These are established by law but do not get funds appropriated annually—not part of the usual give and take of the Congress and the administration. If you meet the criteria of the law, you get the money.

The takeover of the U.S. House by Republicans could prompt a revival of the fight for additional funding for the Marietta-built F-22 stealth fighter. This isn't just for the sake of home-cooking, but also for the sake of the country.

I'm ashamed that Congress finds billions for pork-barrel subsidies but fails to find money for veterans' health care.

Many of the earmark request forms are actually filled out by lobbyists and then just turned in by the member's staff to the appropriations committee.

I actually did vote for the $87 billion before I voted against it.

The president is under no obligation to sign the spending bills that Congress gives to him. And once that happens, once he says no, then you're supposed to negotiate.

The Budget Act of 1974 established a timetable for the annual budget process. Under Title III of the Act, Congress is to complete action on the concurrent resolution on the budget by April 15.

Deficits, as I've often said, aren't caused by too little taxing, they're caused by too much spending. Presidents can't appropriate a dollar of tax payers money, only Congressmen can; and Congress is susceptible to all sorts of influences that have nothing to do with good government.

I'm not a big fan of a lot of government dollars going into research and development for private enterprises... and you're not going to see the House of Representatives, I'm certain, provide a lot of money for research and development for electric vehicles.

There are only two powers that matter in the bureaucracy of Washington: The power to say ‘Here’s your money,” and the power to say “You’re fired!”

Pentagon dollars are essentially seen as a different kind of funding that doesn't have to stand for itself and make an argument for itself in the house of Congress.

Completing annual appropriations bills would be an important step in responsible federal budgeting.

We do all the appropriating. They do not do any of it down at the White House. They send a budget up here, and we don't have to pay any attention it to at all. We do what we want to do.

Well, it's taken a long time to get the Department of Homeland Security established. It's taken a long time for the Congress to decide how much it wanted to fund.

Earmarks are supposed to be bad. But they don't increase spending.