"*Harry Hope" <rivrvu@ix.netcom.com> wrote in message
news:mr3dg1ldl8dcc362hh0f4h422agnp3030q@4ax.com...

From The Sun News, 8/19/05:
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/sunnews/news/opinion/12421873.htm

Spending by GOP out of Control

When President Bush issued his proposed budget for 2006, he made it
clear that he was going to get tough on runaway federal spending.

Congress passed a $286 billion transportation bill that exceeded the
White House request, qualifying as the most expensive public works
bill ever.

From The Sun News, 8/19/05:
http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/mld/sunnews/news/opinion/12421873.htm

Spending by GOP out of Control

When President Bush issued his proposed budget for 2006, he made it
clear that he was going to get tough on runaway federal spending.

That came as welcome news to deficit hawks and advocates of smaller
government when the president unveiled what he called "a lean budget"
that "sets priorities."

His firm words sent a message to Congress that business as usual was a
thing of the past.

But the message didn't convince most people on Capitol Hill.

Congress passed a $286 billion transportation bill that exceeded the
White House request, qualifying as the most expensive public works
bill ever.

At that point, Bush had the chance to prove his resolve.

He could have shocked lawmakers back to their senses by exercising his
prerogative to veto the measure - a step that would have been all the
more attention-getting because he has yet to veto any legislation
since taking office.

Well, dream on.

Instead of standing up for budget discipline, the president traveled
to Illinois last week to brag that the bill is not only vital to
economic progress but "fiscally responsible."

This, remember, is a package costing some $30 billion more than he
once set as his limit - and whose actual price tag likely will end up
being higher than the official number.

This is hardly the only place where spendthrifts are getting their
way.

The appropriations bills passed by the House so far this year - most
of which await Senate action - surpass the agreed-upon spending limits
by a total of $58 billion.

It's easier to ignore such profligacy when the deficit is shrinking -
as it has been lately, thanks to rising tax receipts spawned by a
growing economy.

The Congressional Budget Office on Monday said the deficit for the
year ending Sept. 30 would hit $331 billion, which is better than
earlier projections.

But the Concord Coalition, which lobbies for fiscal discipline, says
deficits may still amount to $5.7 trillion in the next decade.

There are plenty of conservatives who still like to think the
Republican Party represents budget restraint and limited government.
But the evidence for that perception is getting scarce.

Since Bill Clinton left office, federal outlays, under a
GOP-controlled Congress, have risen from 18.5 percent of gross
domestic output to 20.3 percent.

The Cato Institute, a free-market think tank, labels Bush the
biggest-spending president since Lyndon Johnson.

Nor can this all be blamed on the Iraq war and homeland security.

When Cato excluded defense and homeland security spending from the
calculations for both presidents, it found that Bush was worse than
LBJ.

A few Republicans in Congress have the decency and courage to admit
their party colleagues have gone wrong.

"If you look at fiscal conservatism today, it's in a sorry state,"
Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., told The Washington Post.

"Republicans don't even pretend anymore."

Regrettably, that criticism applies to House Speaker Dennis Hastert of
Illinois, who was at Bush's side on his visit last week - and who
brought home $277 million in highway money for his district.

It's not too late for the president and his party allies on Capitol
Hill to reclaim the mantle of fiscal conservatism.

All it will take is for Bush to start using the veto and for GOP
lawmakers to apply their campaign rhetoric to governing.

But there is no time - or money - to waste.

_______________________________________________

Those Repugs sure love to borrow and spend and spend and spend, don't
they.

Harry