Introduction: In President Bush's first press conference after the bitter 2004 election, he remarked:"With the campaign over,Americans are expecting a bipartisan effort and results." l He also commented that," [O]ne of the disappointments of being here in Washington is how bitter this town can become and how divisive. I'm not blaming one party or the other. It's just the reality of Washington, D.C ... It also makes it difficult to govern at times."2 The President actually took a first step to promoting bipartisanship and reducing bitterness in Washington a few days before the election on October 30, 2004, by signing into law Public Law 108-401, the Federal Regulatory Improvement Act of 2004, a bill to reauthorize the Administrative Conference of the U.S. (ACUS).3