Hawkeye Reporter

Republican leaders remain divided about a practice of seeking earmarks after House Republicans voted to lift its internal, decade-long ban on the practice on March 17, according to a press report. The change comes after a revamped version of earmarks that include new transparency measures were re-instituted by Democrats last month. 

In 2018, former President Trump had suggested that Congress should "think about going back to a form of earmarks." Some Republican leaders, including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), defended the change by maintaining it would allow Republicans more direct access to project funding in their districts.

"There's a real concern about the administration directing where the money goes. This doesn't add one more dollar. I think members here know what's most important about what's going on in their district, not Biden," McCarthy said. "I think members want to have a say in their own district."

However, other Republican leaders do not share this sentiment, with many Conservatives among the House including Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas), who argued earmarks are “little more than legislative bribery.”

"Make no mistake, these will be used as currency for votes as Democrat leadership buys off moderates who do not support their party’s radical policy agenda," Roy said. "This chamber has already made it clear that it is no longer the people’s House in any true sense, but consolidating even more power in party leadership would be another institutional embarrassment on a list that’s already too long.”

The division internally among Republican leadership is also reflected in the party's disagreements regarding reforming anti-trust laws for big tech. Currently, Pro-Trump Republican groups such as The Center for American Restoration are pressuring Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Minority Leader McCarthy to pursue legislative reform against big tech social media platforms including Facebook and Twitter.

"America's foundational values of diverse speech, market access, and the free flow of information are imperiled by concentrated corporate power wielded at an unprecedented scale and in many cases, aided and abetted by federal policies. Inaction in this forum is no longer an acceptable response," the Center for American Restoration wrote in a letter to congressional leaders, "We look forward to reviewing the various bills and proposals that emerge as Congress refines its approach to this increasing and  existential threat to our nation."

While Republicans have historically argued against intervening in the market, The Center for American Restoration argues that the corporate power generated by tech companies represents a threat to free speech and democratic ideals that supersedes government overreach.

Complaints of conservative censorship among social medial sites grew increasingly prevalent among former President Trump and his allies nearing the end of his presidency as Trump himself was banned from Twitter following the Capitol Riot on January 6. Big tech and social media companies maintain the position that the bans were a result of breaking policy rules and meant to keep users safe from hate speech and misinformation.
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The Center for American Restoration is headed by former President Trump's administration official Russ Voughtis. The organization is also joined by Jim DeMint's Conservative Partnership Institute, Mike Davis' Internet Accountability Project and L. Brent Bozell III's Media Research Center.