Tom Coburn on "Earmarxists"

Shame this WSJ piece by Senator Coburn hasn't hit the free Opinonjournal site yet. It's a good read, with lots of insider detail on both House and Senate activities, even though the issue itself is pretty dry:

Sen. Reid and top Senate Democrats have had two other opportunities to enact Ms. Pelosi's earmark reform language. They blocked both attempts, arguing that ethics reform must be done comprehensively, not in a piecemeal fashion -- conveniently making the perfect the enemy of the good and doable. Some members of Congress seem to be hoping the public will lose interest in earmark reform. That isn't likely. Voters and taxpayers continue to be enraged -- Congress's approval rating is an abysmal 27%, in part because reform hasn't happened. Presidential politics will keep the issue front and center, and the army of bloggers who have long led on this issue are ratcheting up their criticism of the status quo.

One blogger at the Web site Redstate.com coined the term "Earmarxists" to describe members who believe it is their right to usurp mayors and local government in order to redistribute wealth for projects like roads, bridges and museums. The arbitrary and unenforceable "trust-us-to-police-ourselves" approach to earmark reform that is prevailing in Congress does have more in common with one-party regimes than the transparent and accountable style of government American taxpayers rightly expect.