U.S. President Bush touched down in Alabama yesterday to visit his third park in less than a month and draw attention to what he said were record spending requests for conservation. In particular, Bush has asked that Congress allocate $900 million for the Land and Water Conservation Fund — a figure that his administration says would fully fund the program for the first time since it was created in 1965. But the increases proposed by Bush would come at the expense of other conservation programs, causing them to be greatly cut back or eliminated. White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer found reporters skeptical yesterday when he tried to spin Bush’s approach, saying it would lead to more money for conservation at the state level.
