Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid is stepping into the ring with President Obama. He has some harsh words for Obama after the 2011 State of the Union address, in which Obama called for the elimination of earmarks. In his address, the president stated he would veto any legislation that included earmarks. During an appearance on NBC Nightly News Wednesday night, Reid was pretty clear about his position that the White House should "butt out" and leave the constitutionally delegated task of spending allocation to Congress.
Emi Kolawale of the Washington Post reports that Reid said, "This is an applause line," about Obama's statement during the speech that he would veto any legislation that was sent to him with earmarks included. "It's an effort by the White House to get more power. They've got enough power as it is." Ouch. Reid insisted that the president should back off and let them do what they do, and that he has no hard feelings toward Obama.
Um, OK. Democrats don't always have to agree with one another, but they also don't have to take public jabs at each other, either, like refusing to attend the Hu state dinner and criticizing Obama for his earmark comments on national television. If you can shake hands with a "dictator" in public, you can dine with him in private. We're just saying.
Read more at the Washington Post.
In other news: CBO Study: Social Security Drained by 2037.