Day 51: Obama (Reluctantly) Signs Spending Bill

(CBS)

On his fifty-first day in office, President Obama signed the $410 omnibus spending bill that came under fire because it came with potentially-unnecessary earmarks.

Despite ordering a review of his predecessor's use of signing statements, the president issued a signing statement with the bill saying certain provisions "raise constitutional concerns" and may not be followed.

He also discussed earmarks, noting that they can be useful but also "have been used as a vehicle for waste, fraud, and abuse." He vowed to reform the earmarking process and said the administration will eliminate earmarks determined to have "no legitimate public purpose."

(AP)

The president also created a council on women and girls. He noted lingering inequality between men and women and said that ""when any of our citizens cannot fulfill their potential because of factors that have nothing to do with their talent, their character, their work ethic, that says something about the state of our democracy."

Below, check out Chip Reid's CBS Evening News report on the president's signing of the bill and comments on earmarks.

Brian Montopoli

Brian Montopoli is the national reporter and political analyst for CBSNews.com.

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