Reclaiming Conservatism

So, I am reading this book, Reclaiming Conservatism, by Mickey Edwards. I am barely a third through it and I have found that I have a lot to learn about the roots of the conservative movement in the US. I also have been angered further by the current trend of our so-called conservative presidential administration of which Edwards writes. This is specifically around the signing statements that President Bush has been wont to use to exclude the president from being held accountable by the laws that have been signed by our own Congress. Above the law and all that. I am not only disappointed that our president has been operating in this highly anti-Constitutional way, but am also concerned about the president's precedent (that's fun!) for future presidents, particularly, if a liberal president were to be elected.