Rep. Wayne Owens, D-Utah, is bucking the House Democratic leadership by asking it to bring to the House floor the proposed balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution.
Owens also signed a petition last week to bring the amendment out of the Judiciary Committee - where the bill is bottled up by Chairman Jack Brooks, D-Texas - directly to the floor for a vote.Owens, who is an original co-sponsor of the balanced-budget amendment, said forcing Congress to balance its budget each year is the first step toward reducing the federal deficit.
Meanwhile, Rep. Chuck Douglas, R-N.H., is threatening to expose House members he says are hypocrites because they publicly co-sponsor the amendment but refuse to sign the secret petition list needed to bring the amendment to the floor.
Such revelation would violate House rules because names on the list can be viewed by members only if they promise not to reveal anything about it publicly.