U.S. President George W. Bush summed up his administration's work in 2007 Thursday morning, while talking about his priorities for the remaining year in office.
In a year-end news conference at the White House, Bush thanked the Congress for its work, including the approval of an energy bill and a modification of the alternative minimum tax.
Passage of the energy bill "demonstrates America's leadership" in dealing with climate change, he said.
The president also talked about the omnibus spending bill that Congress approved, saying it eliminated "many of the worst policy riders that never would have been approved through the normal budgeting process."
However, he said he is disappointed that Congress used an omnibus bill rather than approving a series of appropriations bills.
"The bill they just passed includes about 9,800 earmarks," he said.
Reducing such earmarks, which fund largely local projects that have not gone through the normal appropriations process, was a key goal of Democrats who were elected to Congress, Bush noted.
Bush said Congress' first goal should be to pass a new intelligence bill -- and he is promptly asked in the first question about the now-infamous destroyed CIA interrogation tapes.
"I'm just going to prepare you -- until the inquiries are complete, until the oversight is finished, I will be offering no opinion from the podium," he said.
Asked for his response to Russian President Vladimir Putin being named Time magazine's Man of the Year, Bush said there are "reasons to be concerned" about Russia's direction on a number of fronts.
On Iraq, Bush said he is not satisfied with the political progress there, though there is evidence that the security situation has improved significantly.
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