Pass the Buck President

There is little argument these days (even from staunch conservatives) that Bush is the least personally accountable presidents in the last 100 years. Now, he is also turning into "pass the buck Bush." Many of Bush's policy provisions balloon in cost shortly after he leaves office, leaving the next president (whoever that may be) with huge budget problems.

After Bush Leaves Office, His Budget's Costs Balloon

By Jonathan Weisman and Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writers
Monday, February 14, 2005; Page A01

For President Bush, the budget sent to Congress last week outlines a painful path to meeting his promise to bring down the federal budget deficit by the time he leaves office in 2009. But for the senators and governors already jockeying to succeed him, the numbers released in recent days add up to a budgetary landmine that could blow up just as the next president moves into the Oval Office.

Congress and the White House have become adept at passing legislation with hidden long-term price tags, but those huge costs began coming into view in Bush's latest spending plan. Even if Bush succeeds in slashing the deficit in half in four years, as he has pledged, his major policy prescriptions would leave his successor with massive financial commitments that begin rising dramatically the year he relinquishes the White House, according to an analysis of new budget figures.

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