About 7 Years Too Late...
 

He should have done this from the get-go, IMO.

Yes, I understand that with his own party in control of both houses of Congress, it made it difficult to do this and still get everything done that he wanted.

Now that he has gotten everything he wanted, extreme gridlock doesn't seem so bad...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/bloomberg/20080128/pl_bloomberg/arjoxb3meak

Well, he hasn't gotten everything he wanted during the past 7 years (remember Social Security reform, and immigration reform, and other major Bush initiatives that got nowhere).

So if he's been buying the cooperation of his own party for $50BN/year (approximate magnitude of earmarks in 2004), not sure he's gotten a good deal.

But now that Congress is under Democratic leadership, Bush's chances of getting much from Congress is even lower, and he doesn't even have any major domestic policy agenda left for his last year.

So after 7 years of ignoring the growing problem of earmarks, "now" he suddenly realizes they are a problem. Pure partisan politics.

That said, earmarks should be eliminated, so I guess better now than never.

Background on earmarks - http://www.sunlightfoundation.com/earmarksFAQ

Bush's biggest pet project is Iraq--start trimming there. The big stuff before the peanuts.

I guess having low poll numbers and being a lame duck have their upside too. Bush has nothing to lose by doing this. I doubt he has any realistic hopes of getting anything through Congress other than the rebates in his final year. Of course, directing agencies to not fund earmarks is begging for a SCOTUS challenge and that could be a good thing too.

Yeah, I'd love to see this before the SCOTUS.

"But we have the right to add things to bills that no one else ever sees." :rolleyes:

No, I think the earmarks are part of the Congressional record, if not the Federal Register. But no one reads that stuff. Besides, there are thousands of them. No one could sift through them all or make much of a story about them, other than the true outrages like the bridge to nowhere.

from last August.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/362468-republican-strategy.html

Bush is clearly the worst President in history.

Shall we throw 'Presidential Signing Statements' into this mix as well?

Both ends of Pennsylvania Ave. have rather scummy practices....

With his legacy on its deathbed, Bush is trying to become a born-again conservative. IMO, he's too late. RIP to his pitiful legacy.

Ahhh yes. "I'm signing this bill into law but my Administration will ignore it".

you make it sound like ignoring laws that Congress passes is a bad thing.

Bush knows better. Just look at his track record.