At the end of a week when House Republicans agreed to suspend all forms of earmark carve-outs on next year's spending bills, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said the Senate needs to go even further.
McCain on Friday announced plans to propose an amendment to extend this suspension until the difficult tasks of balancing the budget and eliminating the deficit are completed -- and that could take a while.
"I applaud my Republican colleagues in the House and Senate who have called for a year-long moratorium on all earmarks and I fully support and join them in those efforts. But I also think we need to do more," McCain said in a statement. "We need a complete ban on earmarks until our budget is balanced and we've eliminated our massive deficit."
On Thursday, the House GOP accepted a proposal to place a one-year moratorium on all forms of earmarks in spending bills for next year.
"House Republicans took an important step toward showing the American people we're serious about reform by adopting an immediate, unilateral ban on all earmarks," House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) said last week. "But the more difficult battle lies ahead, and that's stopping the spending spree in Washington that is saddling our children and grandchildren with trillions of dollars in debt."
The Republicans' move followed Wednesday's House Democratic ban on corporate earmarks as both parties appear to be seeking to prove to voters that they are attempting to cut back on excessive spending habits.