KeithHennessey.com

I began this blog at the end of March after the stimulus bill had become law.  I had been struck by how much the stimulus debate had focused on whether the bill was efficient.  (It clearly was not.)  There was much less discussion of whether the stimulus would be effective, and of the timing of [...]

Today the Administration released more detail for the President’s budget.  The President tried to emphasize his fiscal responsibility by highlighting some of the programs he proposes to terminate or reduce.  Budget Director Orszag released the Terminations, Reductions, and Savings volume.
This morning the President said,
But one of the pillars of this foundation is fiscal responsibility.  We [...]

Each year Congress enacts 12 annual appropriations (spending) bills.  Those bills are the subject of vigorous and legitimate fights about spending priorities.
Included in these annual appropriations bills are spending for defense, veterans, military construction, highways, housing, education (except student loans), foreign aid and the foreign service, the FBI, CIA, and Department of Justice, most of [...]

Here is the “Leaders Declaration” for the Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy (aka the G-20 Summit) hosted by President Bush last Friday and Saturday in Washington, DC.
This is the second of a two-part note.  Here’s the first part.
A fair amount of the press coverage followed a ready-made storyline:  “Lame duck President … [...]

Each year Congress considers the “defense authorization bill”.  This bill gives the U.S. military its legal authorities.
The House passed this bill last Thursday.  One provision in the bill would attempt to limit the President’s ability to ignore certain earmarks in the report language that accompanied the bill.  This is an important moment in the debate [...]

Here’s what the President said last night in the State of the Union about earmarks:
The people’s trust in their government is undermined by congressional earmarks — special interest projects that are often snuck in at the last minute, without discussion or debate. Last year, I asked you to voluntarily cut the number and cost of [...]