A Signature Isn't A Vote

It's one thing to sign a letter to protest excessive spending. It's quite another to cast a vote.

At least 15 Republicans who signed the pledge to sustain a presidential veto of the annual spending bills voted to approve legislation Friday to fund the Department of Homeland Security for 2008, despite the administration’s misgivings about that bill.

Reps. John Campbell (R-Calif.) and Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) have secured 147 signatures on a letter to President Bush promising to sustain his veto of any spending measure that exceeds his initial budget request by a wide margin.

The House approved the Homeland Security bill, 268-150, giving conservatives a narrow cushion to maintain their threat.