House Appropriation Committee votes to cut State Department's budget

 I wrote two days ago the House Appropriation Committee was prepared to cut the State Department budget if it did not comply with subpoenas issued by Trey Gowdy's Select Committee on Benghazi. Today, by a voice vote, it did just that and to make sure the point was well taken included language the forbids State from spending any money for an embassy in Havana. The bill also states that the Palestinian Authority will not receive economic aid if it continues to pursue unilateral efforts at the United Nations and other international organization outside of a negotiated peace agreement with Israel. Overall State is looking at a 15% cut in its operating budget.
The principle of "power of the purse" has gained considerable currency on the campaign trail but up until now has been mysteriously absent in legislation. With control of both houses of Congress it should not take a testosterone drip in the arms of Speaker Boehner and Senator McConnell to make the EPA think twice about its proposed regulatory expansion into everyone's personal life and to persuade the FCC that regulating the Internet is beyond its capacity in the event it should have a budget next year.