Chuck Schumer isn’t having any of this a la carte crap that governors like Bobby Jindhal is trying. He has released a letter sent to the White House urging them to send either all funds or none at all to state. The money quote (no pun intended – ok maybe a little one):

As you know, Section 1607(a) of the economic recovery legislation provides that the Governor of each state must certify a request for stimulus funds before any money can flow. No language in this provision, however, permits the governor to selectively adopt some components of the bill while rejecting others. To allow such picking and choosing would, in effect, empower the governors with a line-item veto authority that President Obama himself did not possess at the time he signed the legislation. It would also undermine the overall success of the bill, as the components most singled out for criticism by these governors are among the most productive measures in terms of stimulating the economy.

I like the coining of the phrase “line item veto” in this part of Schumer’s letter. That’s exactly what Jindhal is trying to do. Hopefully the White House will heed the words of Schumer and deny any more money to Louisiana by simply stating their governor isn’t accepting the stimulus package.{[}]lt;/p>