WASHINGTON—For an unpopular guy on his way out of his office, President George Bush still has some juice.

When Bush signed a law Thursday to broaden the government’s eavesdropping power, he served notice of how much sway he still holds on matters of national security. Yes, he is relevant in the twilight of his second term, even with anemic public approval ratings and much of the country tuning him out.

Bush got the anti-terrorism spying legislation largely on his terms. He also has won fight after fight to keep the Iraq war going without a timeline for withdrawal of U.S. troops. He vetoed a bill that would have banned waterboarding for terror suspects, then watched as Democrats failed to override him.

Contrast this to Bush’s domestic agenda, which is all but ignored by the Democratic-controlled Congress. He keeps pushing for items that seem to be going nowhere, from offshore drilling to tax cuts to a trade deal with Colombia. Lawmakers blew right by him in approving a massive farm bill.

Why the difference on security? Because protecting the country is, in fact, a different matter. The president commands the military in a time of war. He leads a nation that was infamously attacked—and no one has forgotten 9/11.

So going against him can mean being labeled as soft on terrorism or unsupportive of the troops. In an election year, try going to the voters with that around your neck.

Sen. Barack Obama, the Democrats’ presidential contender, backed the eavesdropping bill on grounds that it was imperfect but better than losing a tool against terrorism.

The measure targets terrorists, though it has raised alarms about sweeping in innocent Americans. But opponents in Congress were hemmed in by time. Wiretapping orders approved last year would start expiring in August without congressional action.

Plus, there was Bush, offering a credible veto threat. So Congress agreed on new surveillance rules. Including a provision Bush demanded: immunity for telecommunications companies that helped the U.S. spy on Americans.

“You’d have to say it’s a clear win for President Bush, but I don’t think it happened just because of President Bush,” said Norman Ornstein, a scholar on the presidency and Congress at the American Enterprise Institute. “An awful lot of Democrats just did not want this issue to drag into the summer and beyond with the possibility that something could happen out there, and this could have been put out there against them as a contributing factor.”



Democrats, historically, have a tougher job of winning over voters when it comes to protecting the country. It seems true again this year: Republican Sen. John McCain has better than a two-to-one edge over Obama on handling terrorism, according to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll conducted last month.

Bush, often a forgotten man this year, clearly reveled in his latest victory.

Right after returning from Japan on Wednesday, Bush held a Rose Garden event to praise the passage of the eavesdropping legislation. The good news was essentially there waiting for him, as the Senate had passed the bill earlier in the day. “Good timing,” White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.

Then Bush went back to the Rose Garden on Thursday to sign the bill, this time flanked by members of Congress. He thanked his own administration. He thanked lawmakers of both parties. He even thanked congressional staffers.

Bush evoked the memory of Sept. 11, 2001, one of the worst times in the country’s history. It was also a time when the nation was united behind Bush.

“I vowed to do everything in my power to prevent another attack on our nation,” Bush said. “I believe this legislation is going to help keep that promise.”

To be sure, Bush has had a second term of big setbacks, even on security.

The White House is grappling with how to do respond to a rebuff from the Supreme Court, which ruled that foreign terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, can challenge their detention in U.S. civilian courts.

Bush’s own former spokesman, in a stunning book, said Bush favored propaganda over honesty in leading the nation into war in Iraq.

Bush’s approach to Congress, though, does not change.

Nine times he has vetoed bills. Congress has had the muscle to override him only twice, and never on a matter of war or terrorism.

Bush bashes Congress for inaction, then glosses over all the bitter words if a compromise with lawmakers emerges.

He makes big promises. Sometimes he delivers, like staring down Congress on mandatory troop withdrawals from Iraq. Sometimes he doesn’t, like overhauling immigration or Social Security.

And sometimes, he just keeps talking of what he plans to get done, no matter how unlikely. Like a Middle East peace deal before he leaves office.

The message: I’m still in charge here.

“Being a lame duck means you have less clout,” Ornstein said. “But you’re still the president of the United States.”