Sir, if you have time, what is your position on ‘earmarks’ and other projects - especially non-defense items? This ties in with your views on federalism (as espoused by the ANTI-federalists Mason, Henry, Lee, and Ronald W. Reagan)
Let me give a few examples of Hunter “earmarks”:
1) The double fence between Tijuana and San Diego that reduced smuggling of people and narcotics by more than 90%.
2) 10,000 jammers for troops in Iraq to protect against roadside bombs.
3) Filtration ponds on the most polluted river in North America (New River at the Mexican border) which have been credited with providing a 90% cleanup of the tainted water which is diverted through them.
My point is: Representatives of congressional districts are supposed to put together the budget of the United States. There is no Constitutional basis for the new thinking that the President’s budget is sacrosanct and that any changes by the very Representatives of the areas affected are somehow “illegitimate”. Spending or participating in the budget process is not, in and of itself, illegitimate, but is rather the very obligation of Congress. That said, wasteful projects should be eliminated, and their authors held politically accountable. You may notice that I post all my Congressional initiatives on the internet so that Americans can judge my record.