Blue Dog Democrats praised for fiscal responsibility

Citizens Against Government Waste has praised a list of reforms offered by the House Blue Dog (conservative) Democrats to restore fiscal responsibility to the federal government. "I am pleased that there is a mounting recognization on Capitol Hill that spending is out of control and something must be done,” said CAGW President Tom Schatz. “The Blue Dogs have provided 12 ideas to bring more order to the budget process. Most are proposals that CAGW has supported in the past and continues to support today.”
The Blue Dog’s 12-point Reform Plan for Restoring Fiscal Sanity includes the following commonsense ideas: a balanced budget amendment; holding increases in spending for the next three fiscal years to 2.1 percent; requiring all federal agencies to audit their books; requiring a roll call vote on all bills that cost more than $50 million and whenever Congress raises the debt ceiling; setting money aside for clearly defined emergencies; allowing three-day deliberation periods before voting on a bill, giving members time to analyze its contents; honest CBO estimates; and improved Congressional oversight.
“It is our hope that the Blue Dog’s proposal to improve the budget process is a change for the better on Capitol Hill. If it is accompanied by a genuine commitment to vote for serious reforms, we welcome it,” concluded Schatz.
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste, the nation's largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.