WHY REPUBLICANS CAN´T CUT SPENDING

"In September, shortly before an indictment cost him his job as House majority leader, Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) outraged conservative Republicans by saying that (as the Washington Times paraphrased him) there was "no fat left to cut in the federal budget."

Within hours, conservatives erupted, and on Capitol Hill they vowed to prove DeLay wrong. With the fiscal 2006 budget completed except for the last formality (the House is expected to make the budget official as soon as it returns from recess), conservatives have declared victory. In a press release last month, Rep. Mike Pence (R-Ind.) announced, "With the passage of this Deficit Reduction Act, including an across-the-board cut in federal spending, the 'Republican Revolution' is back."