See I think everyone is forgetting something here. Bush isn't playing the same old inside the beltway game. We all know he would be hammered if he veto's this bill, so by sending out the word he will sign it....he is telling the House and Senate GOP he won't do there dirty work..
Remember this Admin. plays chess.......not checkers!
I am sorry to see that you won't vote for him again....oh well.
Fine, if he manages to keep the bill from hitting his desk, I will mark one up to his brave and brilliant leadership and vote for him in 2004.
I am sorry to see that you won't vote for him again
If he signs the bill I will not vote for him.
....oh well.
Presidents who win by 500 vote margains don't have the luxury to say 'oh well'.
Could not have summarized it better. Niether the liberals or the ultra-conservative-won't-be-happy-till-Pat-Buchanan-is-President types have not let it sink in that Bush, like Reagan, has brought a team of serious, professional, experts into this administration. They know where they are going and how to get there without shooting themselves in the foot. As evidenced many times in the past year, they will hold their cards close to their chest, bluff if needed, and if necessary even appear to make tactical retreats in order to achieve the larger goal. This is high stakes poker and you don't win by holding every hand.
Personally, I don't think GW will let this bill get to him. If it does, he will not sign it. And if he did, he knows the USSC will void it. So I won't lose sleep over this.
This reform bill stinks to high heaven, and the longer it is seen as being "in play" (under serious consideration and likely to happen), the more people will realize this.
If Bush says he will veto it, then (some liberal) people will stop considering this bill for what it is, and start thinking of it as a "dead man walking -- a good bill on death row, condemned by Bush, he of the big money interests."
If Bush leaves this bill in play, then some of those folks will begin to see, in various ways, how the bill ain't so hot, and become more ambivalent about it. Heck they might even learn a thing or two.
I sometimes do the same thing when training people at work, or when raising kids. Let them play the hand out, as far as possible, with no reassurance that there is any safety net. That makes the lesson more real. And sometimes, the net isn't needed anyway, and they get the additional reinforcement of having done the right thing, completed the tough task, on their own.
As soon as you even hint that "it's ok -- Daddy will cover for you", the whole dynamics change.
Thank you for considering the realities of politics!!! Something that seems VERY rare on this board.
If that's the case, the better move would be to neither sign nor veto.