Bush Signs $555 Billion Spending Bill
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

CRAWFORD, Texas — President Bush, voicing concern about special-project spending by Congress, signed a $555 billion bill yesterday that funds the Iraq war well into 2008 and keeps government agencies running through next September.
Mr. Bush signed the massive spending bill as he flew on Air Force One to his Texas ranch here to see in the new year. His signature on the legislation caps a long-running fight with the Democratic-run Congress.
“I am disappointed in the way the Congress compiled this legislation, including abandoning the goal I set early this year to reduce the number and cost of earmarks by half,” the president said in a statement. “Instead, the Congress dropped into the bill nearly 9,800 earmarks that total more than $10 billion. These projects are not funded through a merit-based process and provide a vehicle for wasteful government spending.” “There is still more to be done to rein in government spending,” Mr. Bush said. “In February, I will submit my budget proposal for fiscal year 2009, which will once again restrain spending, keep taxes low, and continue us on a path towards a balanced budget. I look forward to working with the Congress in the coming year to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent wisely.”
A Bush spokesman, Scott Stanzel, had told reporters en route to Texas earlier that the president remained concerned about “Congress’s addiction to earmarks.”
Mr. Bush also signed into law a bill that Congress passed just before the holiday recess, placing a one-year freeze on the alternative minimum tax. Without such legislation, more than 20 million taxpayers would have faced this tax for the first time this year, and it would have cost each an additional estimated $2,000 at tax time. Last year 4 million paid the AMT; this year, it was expected to hit 25 million.
Mr. Bush had agreed to sign the spending measure, which includes $70 billion for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, after winning concessions on Iraq and other budget items.