Use of Signing Statements Curtailed

Today's New York Times features an article by Charlie Savage on President Obama's ordering "executive officials to consult with Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. before relying on [any of President Bush's signing statements] to bypass a statute." Savage is well known for his columns on signing statements, for which he won the 2007 Pulitzer Prize. President Bush issued an unprecedented number of signing statements, more than any other modern President. President Obama did not indicate that he would never issue a signing statement; rather, he "signaled that he intends to use signing statements himself if Congress sends him legislation that has provisions he decides are unconstitutional." The memo to administration officials is here.