WASHINGTON -- U.S. Rep. Tom Graves will chair the Appropriations subcommittee on the Legislative Branch in the next Congress, becoming a "cardinal" in just his third full term in office.
Graves, a Republican from Ranger, is the most junior cardinal, and his rapid rise on the money-disbursing committee is a sign of how much turnover there has been in the House lately -- and a side benefit to beating the 2010 wave by a few months. Graves won a 2010 special election to fill Gov. Nathan Deal's vacated seat.
Graves sent along the following statement:
"I joined this committee because of the unique opportunity to fight for taxpayers and reform the federal government. I want the Appropriations Committee to be known as a place where taxpayer dollars are saved, not spent. As the Legislative Branch Subcommittee chairman, I'll have a prime opportunity to walk the conservative talk. It's an honor to have Chairman Rogers and the House Majority entrust me with this major responsibility."
Graves takes his place as a subcommittee chairman as Georgia loses Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Savannah, who now leads the subcommittee overseeing the departments of Labor and Health and Human Services -- a lightning rod for partisan disputes over Obamacare, abortion and unions.
Legislative branch is not the big time, but having sway over lawmakers' budgets can be useful for internal influence. In addition to the House of Representatives budgets, the subcommittee has jurisdiction over the Capitol Police, Government Accountability Office, Government Printing Office and the Library of Congress, among other areas.
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