Bush Fighting Lame Duck Status

President Turns To Executive Action To Get Some Of His Agenda Done Without Congress

(AP)  The door is closing on President Bush's opportunity to shape domestic policy.

His strength is sapped by an unpopular war, Democrats are running Congress, and the 2008 presidential election is in full roar, distracting attention from the president's priorities. With dwindling options, Mr. Bush has decided he might get more done in his final months by going it alone.

Outgoing presidents often unleash a flurry of executive orders and regulations in a last-minute attempt to leave their mark on U.S. policy. Frustrated by Congress' inability or unwillingness to pass the president's agenda, the administration already is taking steps to do it through executive action.

With his immigration bill dead, the administration rolled out a proposed rule to address some of the major issues in the failed legislation. It will tighten border security, streamline guest-worker programs and pressure employers to fire illegal immigrant workers.

Mr. Bush said it was an example of acting within the boundaries of existing law when Congress failed to act.

Energy is another area where Mr. Bush is ready to go solo.

In his State of the Union address in January, Mr. Bush urged Congress to expand the use of alternative fuels to cut U.S. dependence on foreign oil. The president's energy proposal — dubbed 20 in 10 — aims to cut gasoline use by 20 percent in 10 years.

With the House and Senate struggling to compromise on their own energy measures, the president asked the head of the Environmental Protection Agency and Cabinet secretaries to see how much of his energy proposal could be accomplished through regulation — without congressional action.

"The president hopes Congress will return to Washington in September ready to work," said Joel Kaplan, Mr. Bush's deputy chief of staff for policy. "Now with that said, of course we're considering things that the president can do through his executive and administrative authorities. But, again, there's a long way to go in the legislative calendar."

Congress is on its August break, and the president is spending a working vacation at his Texas ranch.

With 17 months left in office, Mr. Bush has veto power and an arsenal of other executive powers to change policy. But his critics say he moved across a symbolic line toward lame duck status on Monday when his longtime political adviser, Karl Rove, announced he was leaving — the latest in a growing line of senior officials to head for the door in the closing months of the administration.

Rove said there was unfinished business on energy, education and health care that the president would continue to pursue — with or without Congress' help. Rove said the administration might end up doing things by executive action.

"We have No Child Left Behind, which we can either do by law or regulation; we want to do it by law," Rove said. "The energy, 20-in-10 we can do both by legislation and regulation."

The Democratic Congress is going to be challenging Mr. Bush every step of the way — on his agenda, the budget and particularly the war in Iraq — as he runs out of time and influence and 2008 elections overshadow him.

[vincan-2009]

Bush must work with congress to get things done from now on. He went it alone since taking office until the Democrats finally put a stop to it in 2006. He may still have his rubber stamping republicans but they know that Bush is very unpopular and they can''t stand behind him and win their elections. They may have to start thinking for themselves and not blindly going along with there losing leader.

[starleo146]

"A right-wing foundation with links to Cheney has called for Bush to be made lifetime president, ruler of the world, and for Iraq to be ethnically cleansed of Arabs by means of a nuclear holocaust. The Family Security Matters organization masquerades as an independent ''''think tank'''' yet was highly influential in President Bush''''s re-election in 2004 and has links to top Neo-Con ideologue

You know t-barr I was thinking today and it has crossed my mind before but honestly I tried to block it out and I will not be surprised this guy will not leave when his time is up this power he has built has consumed his reasoning and I will not be surprised at all. I do not think the American people will stand for it but look what happened in 2000 and 2004.

[killtheliars]

I cannot remember a president who was hated by so many in the American Public, including myself. There have been presidents I disagreed with in the past, but I still respected them as individuals and believed they had the good of the country in mind. This guy is the enemy, and the amazing thing is if he died tomorrow a large majority in this country would be happy. an even larger majority in the world would be happy. Man, I wish it would happen.

[lostcountry1]

who cares about this piece of shi-? he will continue to lie, steal, and murder, until his final minutes in the white house.he will continue to try to pack the courts with his faithful "bootlicker" judges so his friends and himself can get away with all the money.why not impeach him? they say the dems. dont want to because then they will have no one to pick on. any news is better than no news. who''s betraying who? the sad thing is the next president will be the one with the most MONEY. they dont have to care about real change in america, they just need the most money. so far its hillary, or romney. were screwed for life if it always comes down to who has the most money.

[starleo146]

Posted by sjc_1 at 10:18 PM : Aug 16, 2007

LOL great!!!! I heard other presidents wrote executive orders at the end of their presidency, but I wonder to the extent this Pres. uses executive orders. How many do suppose he has already written compared to other Pres.that would interest me.

[drinuk]

LAME DUCK ! he is a F---ing Dead Duck

[sjc_1]

This guy is just LAME. Let''s leave the ducks out of this, it is an insult to them.

[likeitis5050]

Fun and games in Washington...business as usual. No one wants to share the toys. It''s not Dems. It''s not Repubs. They all play like spoiled 3rd graders on a playground after school using majority rules in all the games. If anyone objects...majority takes the ball and goes home. No one is really working to solve issues or even come close with a compromise. Egos have become the norm. Because Bush was so successful pitting one against the other for the last 6 years in the ''either with us or a terrorist/anti-American'' mentality, they don''t have the ability to slide from far right or left to something more manageable in the middle to get anything done. He can''t exit soon enough. This country, if it''s going to recover, is going to have to do it without benefit of the politician. They are damaged goods.

[starleo146]

Posted by t_barr at 02:35 PM : Aug 16, 2007

I did exactly that I signed a petition and it went to all my rep. Lucky me they are all republicans which doesn''t help. I got a reply from my rep. and so help me he said,"He hasn''t been charged with a crime." There are check and balances etc. etc.I wrote back pardon me , how can we charge when he holds all documents and refuses to acknowledge he is part of the Executive Branch. The CIA leak which his chief of staff took the fall. It is time we do not use Party over what is right and seeing you belong to the Republican party maybe you can get these documents for the American people of which you represent. MR. Cheney thumbed his nose at the American people when he ignored Congress of which they represent us which I realize some Representatives think they are running this congress but they are there representing each and every American and better listen to them or they will be sitting in a rocking chair with the rest of us.

[kansas1946]

Ohh..poor baby. Now he needs congress. He needs to just go into his office, shut the door, and shut up until Jan. 20, 2009.

[nggr]

he''s goin nowhere without turdblossem on the job!

[nggr]

It weren''''t no: "What am I gonna look like?" It weren''''t no: "Well, thats going to **** these people off, and **** off de oter." It was actually leadership.. A guy telling us how to stop terror.
Posted by donnie900 at 03:53 PM : Aug 16, 2007

the thing is, all studies on his strategy point to the fact that dude has created more terror.
and thats not leadership, a monkey could do that.
if someone killed your family, would you be their enemy the rest of your life?
yes you would, don''t lie.
i can fight terror better than bush. i am 100 percent positive.

[mudrose-2009]

This is democrat political strategy: Get elected, and when you''''re elected, work on getting re-elected. And they have the nerve to call Bush a "lame duck"?
Posted by donnie900

Do lame ducks use crutches?

[sgtrds]

The one I really feel sorry for is Barney. There must be a way to report Bush to the ASCPA just for the pure cruelty of having to be his dog? That''s abuse of some kind!

[rwassel]

Thank you, mudbutt and donnie, for proving my point on not responding to posts...I never thought I would get you two right-wing whackjobs to see the light and agree, but I did.

I think my work here is finished...

[rwassel]

Posted by mudrose at 03:43 PM : Aug 16, 2007

Nice comeback - "ta"...ya think as hard about that one as you do on your other posts, there, chief? Cause it sure shows - and your refusal to rebutt any of the points I brought up leads me to believe that you in fact have nothing of substance to say, and you in fact know you are wrong...

Ta.

[donnie900]

For the first time in this country''s history, a president has actually led.

It weren''t no: "What am I gonna look like?" It weren''t no: "Well, thats going to **** these people off, and **** off de oter." It was actually leadership.. A guy telling us how to stop terror.

Next democrat gets elected? They ain''t gonna do a damned thing about no national security issue. National security to them is some Dungeons and Dragons geek. They''re the worst thing possible for this country in these times of crisis.

[donnie900]

This is democrat political strategy: Get elected, and when you''re elected, work on getting re-elected. And they have the nerve to call Bush a "lame duck"?

[mudrose-2009]

I love when the nutjobs donnie and mudrose make no reply to any posts, and just keep spouting the same sh** over and over again...seriously mudbutt, no reply to my post? You''''re getting soft...
Posted by rwassel

That''s because there''s nothing intelligent to respond to. Count yourself very fortunate I said this much. Ta.

[tibu987]

Hey, if it quacks like a lame duck and walks like a lame duck, it is a lame duck.
''Nuff said.