Washington, D.C. – The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) today endorsed a constitutional amendment that would give the president the power to cancel or reduce funding for specific projects in congressional spending bills.  S.J. Res. 25 was proposed by Sens. George Allen (R-Va.), Norm Coleman (R-Minn.), and Jim Talent (R-Mo.) and was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. 

CCAGW President Tom Schatz sent the following letter to Sen. Talent:

Dear Senator Talent,

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste supports the measure, S. J. Res. 25, which proposes an amendment to the Constitution that would give the President of the United States the authority to reduce or disapprove any appropriation in any bill presented by Congress.  Giving the president this authority would help reduce spending and create a well-managed government that is accountable to the taxpayers.

Furthermore, with this power, the president could help ensure that taxpayer monies are not wasted on costly earmarks that get secretly inserted into appropriations bills at the last minute.  This measure would go a long way to curb excess pork-barrel spending.

We urge your colleagues to vote on this resolution as soon as possible, either as a stand alone vote or attached to an appropriate vehicle, such as a spending bill.  Again, thank you for your efforts.

The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.