Boehner: ‘Not One Dollar More — Period’

Three cheers for House Majority Leader John Boehner (R.-Ohio), who today vowed to stand up for fiscal discipline as the Senate passed a $109 billion “emergency” supplemental bill—more than $14 billion above the President’s stated limit.

Boehner won’t be a popular man in some circles (especially among appropriators), but he deserves credit for having the courage to make sure the House won’t travel down the same road as the Senate.

Here’s the exchange between a reporter and Boehner (available in both .MP3 and Windows Media formats):

Q: "Despite the President's veto threat, the Senate has added over $14 billion to the emergency supplemental bill..."

Majority Leader Boehner: "The House will not take up an emergency supplemental spending bill for Katrina and the War in Iraq that spends one dollar more than what the President asked for. Period."

With President Bush already vowing to veto any bill that comes in above his request of $94.5 billion, now is the time for conservatives to hold their elected representatives accountable. With Boehner promising to keep the House in order, a monumental showdown with the Senate appears to be on the horizon.

UPDATE - 4:38 p.m.: Criticism of the Senate’s version of the emergency supplemental is pouring in this afternoon. Here are three statements from important power players in the House.

Speaker Dennis Hastert (R.-Ill.):

“As it’s currently drafted, the Senate’s $109 billion emergency spending bill is dead on arrival in the House. President Bush requested $92 billion for the War on Terror and some hurricane spending. The House used fiscal restraint, but now the Senate wants to come to the table with a tab that’s $17 billion over budget. The House has no intention of joining in a spending spree at the expense of American taxpayers.”

Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R.-Tex.), chairman of the Republican Study Committee Budget and Spending Taskforce:

“By exceeding the President’s request by $14 billion, this bill shows that the all-you-can-eat pork buffet is still open for business in the Senate.

“From the $700 million to relocate a Railroad to Nowhere in Mississippi, to the $200 million to replace fishing gear and deploy turtle exclusion devices, the Senate has demonstrated their willingness to pass the buck to the next generation.  As far as emergencies go, America should be far more concerned about wiping out Al Qaeda terrorists than the welfare of turtles.

“I hope the President can refill his veto pen before this bill plunges the nation into an even deeper sea of red ink.”

Rep. Jeff Flake (R.-Ariz.):

“Despite a valiant attempt by conservatives to trim the fat, the Senate has passed a bloated bill.

“Given that the House Leadership has signaled their unwillingness to compromise with the Senate on this and President Bush has signaled his willingness to veto the Senate bill, the Senate has acted with complete disregard for fiscal responsibility.”