I can't concur as to the signing statement being official. There is a process by which the Executive Branch's directives to its units to execute a law becomes part of administrative law. The issuance and recording of those directions is part of law.
The signing statements are not.
However, the idea that a president would say what his intention is is a good idea. Where I am drawing the line is over the question of whether the president can override the intent of the legislature through a signing statement.
Obviously, the Executive can, and always has, overriden the intent of the legislature through how it executes laws. The line I am drawing, therefore, is a narrow one, but it goes to the legal status of a signing statement.
The signing statements are not.
Thats traditonally how the signing statements have been used, as part of the procedure where the executive states what he is going to do and how he is going to direct the agencies to administer the law.
Grants signing statements were as bland as they could get, simply putting in for the record, what he was going to do, how he was going to do it, and whom he would notify and how he wanted it carried out.
Obviously, the Executive can, and always has, overriden the intent of the legislature through how it executes laws. The line I am drawing, therefore, is a narrow one, but it goes to the legal status of a signing statement.
The signing statement, to me, needs to just be clarified, but there is no doubt that judges can take it into consideration, it can also be the clarification of what the President intends to do, and your right about the executive over riding the intent of the legislature, one thing I like about the signing statements, is that if thats the case, the legislature knows how the executive intends to do it, and what they will do, and can craft appropriate legislation narrowing the wiggle room that alot of these bills that are sent have.
The old saying is that the devil is in the details, if congress got more specific, and didn't leave the details to the executive, the signing statements would have no purpose.