by GEF @ 6:49 PM MST
Signing statement is president’s first since 2006
Had used tactic often before power shift in Congress
By Charlie Savage Globe Staff / December 1, 2007
WASHINGTON – President Bush this month issued his first signing statement since the Democratic takeover of Congress, reserving the right to bypass 11 provisions in a military appropriations bill under his executive powers.
In the statement, which the White House filed in the Federal Register on Nov. 13 but which initially attracted little attention, Bush challenged several requirements to provide information to Congress.
For example, one law Bush targeted requires him to give oversight committees notice before transferring US military equipment to United Nations peacekeepers.