Jonathan Bernstein, Columnist

Restoring Earmarks Is Probably a Good Thing

Even a small step toward reasserting congressional power is progress.

February 16, 2021 at 12:30 PM UTC

Jonathan Bernstein is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering politics. A former professor of political science at the University of Texas at San Antonio, he wrote A Plain Blog About Politics.

Moving in the right direction.
Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

Get Jonathan Bernstein’s newsletter every morning in your inbox. Click here to subscribe.

Earmarks are back! Democrats, with majorities in both chambers, have decided that Congress will once again specify how certain funds will be used, rather than allowing the executive branch to do so. This is … well, it’s marginally good news.