What is earmarks in Political terms?

An earmark in public finance is a provision inserted into a discretionary government spending appropriations bill that directs funds to a specific recipient. This circumvents the merit-based or competitive funds allocation process.

In the United States, the term earmark is used in relation to the congressional allocation process. Discretionary spending, which is set by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and their various subcommittees, usually through appropriation acts, is an optional part of fiscal policy which differs from mandatory spending for entitlement programs in the federal budget.

(Adapted from Wikipedia.)