Republicans had an incredible opportunity to begin rebranding themselves as the party of small ethical government by giving Jeff Flake an open seat on the Appropriations Committee. Flake, as readers of this blog know, has been a stalwart opponent of earmarks and increased government spending.

Instead of seizing this opportunity to appoint a reformer to a committee that is home to some of the biggest spenders in either party, the House Republicans balked and appointed Jo Bonner.

Now, I don't know Congressman Bonner, I'm sure he's a good man. But when it comes to protecting taxpayer dollars, Bonner is one of the worst Republicans in the House.

Bonner has been in Congress since 2003. During that time, NTU ranked Bonner 126, 116, 90, and 146 in Congress. His best score since he's been in Congress is a disappointing 61 percent. According to NTU's BillTally, he proposed $18.6 billion in net new spending in the 110th Congress . The average Republican meanwhile proposed $2.7 billion.

In contrast, since he has been in Congress, Jeff Flake has been ranked 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, and 2. That's right, the low point of Flake's Congressional career was being ranked the second best friend of the American taxpayer. Moreover, while Bonner proposed $18.6 billion in extra spending, Jeff Flake proposed $38 billion in net spending cuts!

I can't help but think that Republicans executed this pick about as well as Brian Meeker executed his jump on the pummel horse. If you don't know what that means, watch this and you'll understand:



UPDATE: Andy Roth at the Club for Growth notes that Bonner's RePork Card score was a 2%. Other members who scored a 2% include: Steny Hoyer, "Dollar" Bill Jefferson, and James Moran.