BUSINESS AS USUAL?

Members of the Congressional Tea Party Caucus may tout their commitment to cutting government spending now, but they used the 111th Congress to request hundreds of earmarks that, taken cumulatively, added more than $1 billion to the federal budget.

I’m inclined to grant a wee bit of leniency here, for two reasons. First, since the federal government’s powers are so vast and overreaching, there is something to be said for having “local” control of at least some of the government largess.

And second, since the Tea Party Caucus was founded in the Democrat-controlled 111th Congress, past performance isn’t necessarily indicative of future performance (Ed. - does the warning label sound familiar? It’s on every investment prospectus - and for good reason.).

But ... starting January 3rd, I intend to watch the Caucus very carefully - and vote based on future performance. I’d suggest you do the same.

The Tea Party Caucus membership list can be found here.