Bush: 'Talk'...now we await the 'Walk'

...I've also made it clear we must do so in a fiscally responsible way. Congress needs to pay for as much of the hurricane relief as possible by cutting spending. I'll work with members of Congress to identify offsets and to free up money for the reconstruction efforts.

I will ask them to make even deeper reductions in the mandatory spending programs than are already planned.

As Congress completes action on the 2006 appropriations bills, I call on members to make real cuts in nonsecurity spending.

The heart of America is big enough to be generous and responsible at the same time...

From: Transcript of October 4, 2005 Press Conference

Time for Bush to 'put up' or 'shut up' and use the veto pen that's been gathering dust in the Oval Office.

Quick run down of the numbers:

• $7,970,524,003,272.50 ($7.9 trillion) National Debt as of 10/03/2005
• $335,528,344,667.72 ($335 billion) Interest on the National Debt, Jan 2005 to Oct 2005

Who wants to argue that we can't find at least $500 billion in cuts (about 6%; $350 billion to close of the deficit; $150 billion to start paying down the debt) in an almost $8 trillion budget?

More from: FederalBudget.com: