King George pushes agenda — without Congress

From Yahoo News:

CRAWFORD, Texas - The door is closing rapidly on President Bush's opportunity to shape domestic policy.

His strength is sapped by an unpopular war, Democrats are running Congress and the 2008 presidential election is in full roar, distracting attention from the president's priorities. With dwindling options, Bush has decided he might get more done in his final months by going it alone.

Outgoing presidents often unleash a flurry of executive orders and regulations in last-minute attempts to leave their mark on U.S. policy. Frustrated by Congress' inability or unwillingness to pass the president's agenda, the administration already is taking steps to do it through executive action.

With his immigration bill dead, the administration rolled out a proposed rule to address some of the major issues in the failed legislation. It will tighten border security, streamline guest-worker programs and pressure employers to fire illegal immigrant workers.

Bush said it was an example of acting within the boundaries of existing law when Congress failed to act.
Energy is another area where Bush is ready to go solo.

In his State of the Union address in January, Bush urged Congress to expand the use of alternative fuels to cut U.S. dependence on foreign oil. The president's energy proposal — dubbed 20 in 10 — aims to cut gasoline use by 20 percent in 10 years.

With the House and Senate struggling to compromise on their own energy measures, the president asked the head of the Environmental Protection Agency and Cabinet secretaries to see how much of his energy proposal could be done through regulation — without congressional action.

"The president hopes Congress will return to Washington in September ready to work," said Joel Kaplan,

Bush's deputy chief of staff for policy. "Now with that said, of course we're considering things that the president can do through his executive and administrative authorities. But, again, there's a long way to go in the legislative calendar."