Blue Dogs Cave to Pelosi on Spending

Before Republicans lost majorities in both houses of Congress last year, many had shown little will to advance or apply fiscally conservative principles to issues of budgeting, spending, and taxation. Democrats who describe themselves as fiscal conservatives and compose the Blue Dog Coalition in Congress played a major role in giving Democrats control of Congress. The blue dogs largely come from conservative districts and ran campaigns whose focus on fiscal conservatism helped deliver their victories by capitalizing on disenchantment with the GOP. As Opinion Journal writes today, blue dog voting records show they have not supported fiscal conservatism, but have consistently supported tax increases and Speaker Pelosi's wishes.

So far this year the blue dogs have been almost all bark when it comes to fiscal restraint and debt reduction. Thirty of the 48 have voted for every one of the non-defense spending bills their committee chairman have sent them. Speaker Nancy Pelosi is enforcing party discipline, and as a result 28 of the 48 blue dogs voted "no" on each of the 27 amendments that Republicans proposed to cut the costs of these bills.