To insist on integrity in American business we passed tough reforms, and we are holding corporate criminals to account. Some might call this a good record. I call it a good start.
— President George W. Bush, State of the Union 2003
President Bush cautioned against overregulation of corporate behavior, likely fueling efforts by business to scale back post-Enron rules.
— Wall Street Journal’s Washington Wire, 1/31/07
Surprise, surprise, when the public attention has shifted elsewhere, Dubya goes back on his word.
But how can he change the laws to favor irresponsible corporations, now that conservatives no longer control Congress?
Laws, shmaws! Bush said today: “We don’t need to change the law. We need to change the way the law is implemented.”
And conveniently, as noted here yesterday, he just issued an executive order giving political hacks more control over our civil servants who implement the laws.
Again, this is conservative government in action.
Not just putting the special interest over the public interest, but putting the special interest over our constitutional system of checks and balances, designed to protect the public interest.
