The Washington Post has a story this morning about a new Bush administration plan to help homeowners who are "underwater," that is, whose home is worth less than their mortgage and can't sell or refinance it because they don't have the cash they would need at closing.  Contrary to the president's often-repeated assertions that he wouldn't do it, the plan apparently will require taxpayer dollars.

Anyone who has watched the mortgage situation deteriorate over the the past year could see this coming.  The early "over my dead body" statements by the administration were slowly, incrementally, and sometimes imperceptively replaced with positions that tilted increasingly toward "not yet."  In other words, it was only a matter of time.

If you think the fiscal 2008 budget debate has been (pick as many as apply) infuriating, deflating, annoying, irritating, or disappointing, wait until you see what I predict in my column for NationalJournal.com for next year.

The quick answer: even more stalemates and lower federal spending by accident.