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Blue Dogs get spending-freeze-fever

With the political tides seeming to turn against their party and President Obama’s first State of the Union looming, some moderate Democrats from the Keystone State are quickly becoming enamored with the concept of a spending freeze.

Shortly before word surfaced of Obama’s own proposed spending freeze, Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper (D-3) and Congressman Patrick Murphy (D-8) joined other members of the Blue Dog caucus—a group of Democrats claiming fiscally conservative credentials—in writing to the president to ask for a halt in non-discretionary spending.

Republicans are lining up to take on Dahlkemper, and Murphy just got a top-tier opponent in former Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick. In an interview with The Bucks County Courier Times, Murphy praised the emergency spending measures that had pulled the economy back from the brink, but signaled that it was time to shut off the spigot.

“Governing is like being a parent,” he said. “You have to learn to say no.”

Dahlkemper chimed in with a statement Tuesday.

“American families have made hard choices to make ends meet, and it is time that the federal government takes the same responsible approach to budgeting,” she said. “We need to work together in earnest to develop solutions to our fiscal problems.”

One of her opponents, businessman Paul Huber, wasn’t buying it.

“For Dahlkemper to now call for spending restraint is blatant hypocrisy and shows an arrogance that voters will forget her freshman spending spree,” Huber said in a statement. “Congresswoman Dahlkemper should apologize for her reckless spending ways and admit that she was wrong to support the liberal tax and spend crowd in Congress.”

January 26, 2010 at 6:42 pm

--pa2010.com Staff

Tags: Kathy Dalhkemper, Mike Fitzpatrick, PA-3, PA-8, Patrick Murphy, Paul Huber

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