By a printer's definition, it wasn't that big of a job. Four different manuals (case and soft bound), 4,750 copies each, with an option to provide fulfillment and distribution. It was this particular job, the print order from the U.S Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for President Bush's 2004 budget, which raised the stakes in a rapidly escalating battle over the role of the Government Printing Office (GPO). It was this job that catalyzed the beginning of the end for the GPO as we know it today.

At the risk of sounding like a history lesson, it is important to understand that the role of the GPO has been constantly evolving and it’s authority is being challenged. Early attempts in the mid-1840's to create a contract printing system were abandoned by 1860. The GPO was created as a more expeditious and less partisan solution with the powers to "contract for the necessary buildings, machinery and materials" and to hire all "hands necessary to execute the orders of Congress and of the executive and judicial departments at the city of Washington." The GPO subordinated to the Joint Committee on Printing
(JCP) following a 1919 bill from Congress.

To manage the GPO, Congress created the "office of public printer" and established a job position for someone who was a “practical printer; versed in the art of bookbinding." Initially appointed by Congress, the President is now responsible for naming the person for the job. Bruce James, from Nevada, is the new Bush appointee in charge of the GPO.