Barbara Milkulski, answered my letter on signing statements

[MissWaverly]

Thank you for getting in touch with me. It's good to hear from you.

I share your concerns about President Bush's frequent use of "signing statements" to revise, interpret or disregard provisions in bills he signs into law. Through signing statements, the President has challenged hundreds of statues passed by Congress, including a ban on torture of detainees as well as provisions in the Patriot Act that granted Congress necessary oversight.

You may be interested to know that the Senate Judiciary Committee recently held a hearing on signing statements. The American Bar Association has also formed a Task Force on Presidential Signing Statements and the Separation of Powers Doctrine to examine this topic further. Knowing of your views will be very helpful to me as I continue to closely monitor these issues.

Again, thanks for contacting me. Please let me know if I can be of assistance to you in the future.


Sincerely,
Barbara A. Mikulski
United States Senator