Business as Usual
I'm back, I had a nice vacation, and all that stuff. And wouldn't you know that not much has changed in the intervening two weeks.
BushCo is still BushCo-- as witnessed by a recent signing statement. In just one stroke of the pen, the White House has managed to defy the unanimous will of Congress, demonstrate that they couldn't care less about 'federalism,' and also don't think much of free market capitalism.
The bill, which passed both houses of Congress unanimously, makes it easier for mutual funds and private pension fund managers to sell their investments and allows states to prohibit debt financing for companies that do business in Sudan. It also requires companies seeking contracts with the federal government to certify that they are not doing business in Sudan. . .
But the administration has expressed reservations about the bill, and Mr. Bush’s signature was accompanied by a proviso known as a signing statement, in which he said he was reserving the authority to overrule state and local divestment decisions if they conflicted with foreign policy. The statement said the measure “risks being interpreted as insulating” state and local divestment actions from federal oversight.
The NYT article also makes a baffling claim: "Mr. Bush has long sought an effective way to press Sudan to end the violence in Darfur." Technically true, since it only claims he's seeking a way to get Sudan to do something, but it suggests that he's actually doing something. Aside from pay lip service to some ideal he actually couldn't care less about (like federalism, free market capitalism, etc.).
BushCo is still BushCo-- as witnessed by a recent signing statement. In just one stroke of the pen, the White House has managed to defy the unanimous will of Congress, demonstrate that they couldn't care less about 'federalism,' and also don't think much of free market capitalism.
The bill, which passed both houses of Congress unanimously, makes it easier for mutual funds and private pension fund managers to sell their investments and allows states to prohibit debt financing for companies that do business in Sudan. It also requires companies seeking contracts with the federal government to certify that they are not doing business in Sudan. . .
But the administration has expressed reservations about the bill, and Mr. Bush’s signature was accompanied by a proviso known as a signing statement, in which he said he was reserving the authority to overrule state and local divestment decisions if they conflicted with foreign policy. The statement said the measure “risks being interpreted as insulating” state and local divestment actions from federal oversight.
The NYT article also makes a baffling claim: "Mr. Bush has long sought an effective way to press Sudan to end the violence in Darfur." Technically true, since it only claims he's seeking a way to get Sudan to do something, but it suggests that he's actually doing something. Aside from pay lip service to some ideal he actually couldn't care less about (like federalism, free market capitalism, etc.).
posted by Matt Sandwich | 2:21 PM
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