State of the Union

The last State of the Union address from GW.

Finally.

But this one made me laugh a little more than the usual address. Yes, it was loaded with the empty promises he makes every year on Iraq and “spreading freedom”, immigration reform, and addressing the economy and how strong the union is. There was one subject he brought up that raised an eyebrow – Congressional pork barrel spending and earmarks. He’s promising to veto these spending measures. However in his first 5 years of office he never vetoed a single bill? In 2005 he passed the Transportation Equity Act that was loaded with earmarked projects including the infamous “Bridge to Nowhere” in Alaska. Why the sudden change of heart? The answer is simple.. he’s just playing politics. He would like you to believe that Democrats are out of control in Congress and he’s just the man to reign in their frivolous spending practices. When the facts are that since 1996 the number of annual pork barrel projects has increased by nearly 1200%. This has been done entirely under the 12 year reign of Republicans in Congress. In fact the fiscal year of 2008 has $20 billion worth of pork.. half of which are Republican sponsored and White House approved. So it seems that Bush has had an epiphany. Because my question to him is “where the hell have you been for the last 7 years?!”