GOP Opposition To Omnibus Is Hypocritical, Says Reid Spokesman

Jim Manley, a top aide to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), released a statement on Tuesday evening attacking Republicans for voicing displeasure with a Senate bill that would fund the government through the end of the 2011 fiscal year.

In his statement, Manley raised objections to the way in which Republicans have taken issue with various earmarks embedded within the roughly $1 trillion legislation.

“Supposedly outraged Senate Republicans must have forgotten that spending requests have been online for six months, that this bill was put together in bipartisan fashion, and that government-directed spending has decreased by 75 percent since Democrats took control of the Senate,” Manley said.

“They also must have forgotten that it was Democrats who put a stop to the earmark abuse that festered while Republicans controlled the White House and Congress for six years. But I’m sure they won’t hesitate to claim credit for earmarks in their own states, attending as many ground-breaking and ribbon-cutting ceremonies as they can. Their hypocrisy knows no bounds.”