    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book II)]
    [December 16, 2006]
    [Pages 2192-2193]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    December 16, 2006

        Good morning. Christmas is fast approaching, and I know many of you
    are busy trying to finish up your holiday shopping. This week, we
    received good news about the economy that should brighten the season and
    keep us optimistic about the year ahead.
        First, the Commerce Department released figures showing that sales
    for America's retailers were up in November and that the increase is
    much larger than expected. These figures are important because for many
    American businesses November and December are their highest sales months
    for the year. So the healthy increase in retail sales is a good sign for
    American employers and workers.
        America's working families also received another bit of holiday
    cheer this week: We learned that real hourly wages rose by 2.3 percent
    over the past year. That may not sound like a lot, but for the typical
    family of four with both parents working, it means an extra $1,350 for
    this year. At the same time, our growing economy continues to create
    jobs and that has brought unemployment down to just 4.5 percent. These
    numbers give all Americans a reason to celebrate. More people are
    working than ever before, and paychecks are going further than they used
    to.
        When you decide how to spend your paycheck, you have to set
    priorities and live within your means. Congress needs to do the same
    thing with the money you send to Washington. That was one of the clear
    messages American voters sent in the midterm elections. And one of the
    best ways we can impose more discipline on Federal spending is by
    addressing the problem of earmarks.
        Earmarks are spending provisions that are often slipped into bills
    at the last minute, so they never get debated or discussed. It is not
    surprising that this often leads to unnecessary Federal spending, such
    as a swimming pool or a teapot museum tucked into a big spending bill.
    And over the last decade, the Congressional Research Service reports
    that the number of earmarks has exploded, increasing from about 3,000 in
    1996 to 13,000 in 2006. I respect Congress's authority over the public
    purse, but the time has come to reform the earmark process and
    dramatically reduce the number of earmarks.
        Reforming earmarks is the responsibility of both political parties.
    Over the past year, the Republican Congress succeeded in eliminating
    virtually all earmarks for three major Cabinet Departments. And I'm
    pleased that Democratic leaders in Congress recently committed
    themselves to support reforms that would restore transparency and
    accountability to earmarks. For this year's budget, they pledged to
    maintain current levels of spending and not include any earmarks, and
    they agreed to a temporary moratorium on earmarks. This is a good start,
    but Congress needs to do much more. My administration will soon lay out
    a series of reforms that will help make earmarks more transparent, that
    will hold the Members who propose earmarks more accountable, and that
    will help reduce the

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    number of earmarks inserted into large spending bills.
        Republicans and Democrats alike have an opportunity to demonstrate
    our commitment to spending restraint and good government by making
    earmark reform a top priority for the next Congress. When it comes to
    spending your money, you expect us to rise above party labels. By
    working together to cut down on earmarks, we can show the American
    people that we can be fiscally responsible with their money and that we
    can come together in Washington to get results.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 9:40 a.m. on December 15 in the
    Cabinet Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on December
    16. The transcript was made available by the Office of the Press
    Secretary on December 15 but was embargoed for release until the
    broadcast. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish
    language transcript of this address.