[Cold Heat]

alot of spending could have been cut,

Agree that some of it would not be there, but the New York and Airline bailouts alone account for the loss of any surplus.

I suppose Bush could have prevented 9/11 and the resulting economic recession that required the tax cuts, but that would be difficult to understand.[sarc]

[FITZ]

I think Bush handled 9-11 very well --- but I think government social program spending should have been getting cut from the start --- at least half the federal budget is on throw-away spending programs --- less than half goes to Defense.