WASHINGTON — Joe Ricketts wants to bring down at least one Capitol Hill lawmaker who seeks earmarks so he can get the rest of Congress’ attention.
The founder and former CEO of what is now TD Ameritrade has started a new organization called Taxpayers Against Earmarks, which will seek to highlight what he describes as the evils of legislators setting aside money for pet projects back home.
His plans include a map on the group’s website that will show pending earmarks from each member of the House and Senate. A number of watchdog groups already engage in similar efforts, but Ricketts said he’s going a step further by actually getting involved in elections.
He plans to run ads ahead of the Nov. 2 contests attacking those who seek earmarks.
“They have to know there’s going to be a price to pay, and if they do continue to operate the budget the way they have, they’re going to lose their jobs,” he said.
Ricketts said he plans to devote an amount in the “seven figures” to the cause, and he hopes that over time the organization will attract outside donations.
He said he hasn’t yet determined which lawmakers to target in this election cycle but said he plans to go after Democrats and Republicans who have secured earmarks. The only Midlands lawmaker up for election this fall who currently seeks earmarks is Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa.
Ricketts said he’s never sought or received an earmark for himself or his companies.
Defenders of earmarks say they simply represent Congress exercising its constitutional authority to direct spending. They also say the practice guards against unaccountable bureaucrats unfairly handing federal research money to only a few elite institutions — and to projects only in more populous states.
Nebraska’s earmarks in recent years have supported research in areas such as improving battlefield treatments of wounded soldiers, developing cybersecurity software and mitigating stable flies.
Ricketts said that while some earmarks support worthy projects, he is against them all because the process is flawed. He compared those who support earmarks to addicts and criminals.
“I’m sure that all over the country there are people that like earmarks and people come to defend earmarks, and those are the people that are on the dope,” he said.
Ricketts said those who seek earmarks are asking legislators to spend other people’s money for their purposes.
“That’s theft,” he said. “As Tom Coburn says, that’s intergenerational theft. So those people that like earmarks, you can consider thieves.”
Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla, is an outspoken opponent of earmarks.
Although earmarks have gotten a lot of attention in recent years, in part because of several high-profile scandals, they actually make up a small portion of annual federal spending — less than 1 percent.
Ricketts said they cost a lot more, however, because the process encourages lawmakers to throw their support behind other spending bills to gain other lawmakers’ support for their earmarks.
“A lot of elected officials like the earmarks, but they’ve never had anybody like me or anybody else push back. … So now the scales are going to balance a little bit,” he said. “I’m going to spend as many years and as many dollars as it takes to be successful.”
Contact the writer:
202-662-7270, joe.morton@owh.com
