When the Roman Senate gave away its power over the purse to the dictators and to the emperors, it gave away its power to check the executive. Therefore, we should be instructed by these histories-the history of the Romans and the history of the English peoples-that the power of the purse is the central strand in the whole cloth of Anglo-American liberty.
Speaking on the history of legislative control of the purse during the balanced budget amendment debate.
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Doesn't this send a signal to the Iraqi people and to the American people that the United States intends to have a large permanent presence there?
Why should Congress not have some limitations on this? It is the taxpayers' money.
My top priority will be to learn what challenges the DOD IG office needs to address and to ensure the adequacy of resources required to accomplish its mission.
Promoting efficiency and preventing fraud in defense acquisitions will obviously be a high priority.
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