Political Quotes

“the authors of our Constitution purposefully built checks and balances into the foundation of our democracy, and the power of the purse is a critical part of those checks and balances. Article 1, section 9 of the Constitution states ``No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.'' That means Congress, not the executive branch, is charged with making decisions about how to invest and spend Federal revenue. As the vice chairman of the Appropriations Committee, I take this responsibility very seriously. When Congress appropriates Federal dollars, we expect those dollars to be used as directed. We expect appropriations laws to be upheld, and we expect the administration to be transparent in its actions. But for too many years, Presidents of both parties have encroached on the power of the purse as they have tried to expand their budgetary powers and, in some cases, substitute their judgement for that of Congress. This has been acutely true under this administration. No President has pushed the boundaries of and contorted appropriations law more than President Trump. When Congress refused to give President Trump the money he requested for a wall on the southern border, he directed his administration to sidestep Congress and take it from funding for our military and their families. He continues to do so to this day.…”