Republican spendthrifts

The Washington Post has taken notice.Now The Chicago Tribune can hardly look the other way:

Congress passed a $286 billion transportation bill that exceeded the White House request, qualifying as the most expensive public works bill ever. At that point, Bush had the chance to prove his resolve. He could have shocked lawmakers back to their senses by exercising his prerogative to veto the measure--a step that would have been all the more attention-getting because he has yet to veto any legislation since taking office.

Well, dream on. Instead of standing up for budget discipline, the president traveled to Illinois last week to brag that the bill is not only vital to economic progress but "fiscally responsible." This, remember, is a package costing some $30 billion more than he once set as his limit--and whose actual price tag will likely end up being higher than the official number. If that's responsible, what would irresponsibility look like?

This is hardly the only place where spendthrifts are getting their way. The appropriations bills passed by the House so far this year (most of which await Senate action) surpass the agreed-upon spending limits by a total of $58 billion.

The Trib is good enough to remind its' readers that George W.Bush is a bigger spender than Lyndon Johnson.