But Mr Bush's Democratic opponents will have a field day with the budget numbers and they have been greatly helped by the administration's attempts to pretend that the surpluses are not falling as rapidly as they obviously are.
James Tobin--the New England chairman for President Bush's 2004 campaign and the Northeast field representative for the National Republican Senatorial Committee in 2002's congressional elections--was sentenced to ten months' jail time and two years' probation for supposedly being part of a conspiracy that for about two hours on Election Day 2002 blocked some incoming calls to Democratic phone banks arranging transportation for voters.
President Ronald Reagan began saying "we'll listen to the military", and George W Bush made a political mantra of "we'll listen to the commanders in the field", he says.