He’s so out of touch with reality with spending that he actually thinks the American people will applaud his new Executive Order ignoring any future earmarks that weren’t voted on by Congress. I say too little too late Mr. President. Earmarks are the scourge of Washington. These politicians slide in these earmarks at the last minute for their districts without even being voted and debated on the floor of Congress.

President Bush was set to act Tuesday on his State of the Union promise to sign an executive order directing federal agencies to ignore any future earmarks not voted on by Congress.

Bush warned lawmakers he would flourish his veto pen if Congress does not rein in the number of congressional earmarks — money set aside for pet projects — that make it into law without a vote.

As many as 95 percent of earmarks are inserted after Congress has voted on appropriations measures, and the pork is never seen by most lawmakers. Bush called on Congress during last year’s State of the Union to cut the number of earmarks in half, but Monday night he chided lawmakers for failing to do so.

“So this time, if you send me an appropriations bill that does not cut the number and cost of earmarks in half, I will send it back to you with my veto,” Bush promised. “If these items are truly worth funding, the Congress should debate them in the open and hold a public vote.”

To that end, Bush was scheduled in the afternoon to sign an executive order called “Protecting American Taxpayers From Government Spending on Wasteful Earmarks.”

As Stop the ACLU points out: Where was this executive order years ago?

So where was this Executive Order threat in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007? Too little, too late. Earmarks, which two-thirds of Americans oppose and are an absolute betrayal of the American people, should have been OUTLAWED long ago, but under Bush the number of earmarks grew to 11,900 in 2007. In 1996, there were 3055. There were 499 in 1992. Seven…7…in 1980.

I say too little too late Mr. President. You have let Congress go wild with spending over your entire administration. We have a war going on. During a time of war, we’re supposed to be tightening the purse strings…not writing blank checks for $45,000 hammers!

And people wonder why the economy is in the state that it is in. It all starts at the top. Poor leadership on spending for so many years.