Bush expands his battle fronts

Associated Press And The Washington Post

WASHINGTON – President Bush warned Congress and the nation Tuesday night that the country will long remain vulnerable to terrorism, as he pledged to devote the second year of his presidency to the twin goals of combating the recession at home and enemies abroad.

“We will prevail in war, and we will defeat this recession,” the commander in chief said, standing before Congress and the public with heroically high approval ratings.

Nearly five months after the Sept. 11 attacks that shocked the world, Bush pledged to push the war on terrorism beyond Afghanistan to a dozen countries that he said harbor terrorist camps. He also warned of “an axis of evil” of nations including North Korea, Iran and Iraq, and said the United States would not allow them to threaten the world with weapons of mass destruction.

Offering chilling evidence of terrorist plotting, Bush said U.S. forces in Afghanistan found diagrams of American nuclear power plants hidden in terrorist hide-outs.

Bush entered the packed House chamber to boisterous applause from Republicans and Democrats alike. Seconds into his speech, he made a fist, and tapped it lightly against the podium as he declared that despite terrorism and recession, “the state of our union has never been stronger.”

The speech, delivered under extraordinary security in the ornate House chamber, essentially marked the opening of a third chapter in Bush’s young presidency – a chapter in which he will seek to leverage the surge of public support for his performance since the Sept. 11 attacks into an enlarged war on terrorism and a string of domestic accomplishments.

Bush listed an array of domestic objectives the White House hopes to attain this year. They include expanded unemployment benefits, improved preschool and teacher training programs, greater protection of pensions and a list of health care proposals ranging from patients’ rights to prescription drug benefits to tax credits for people without insurance or jobs.

Democrats, responding to Bush, sought to show unity on the war while reinforcing differences on domestic policy.

Speech highlights

Highlights of President Bush’s State of the Union address:

War: Bush touted what the nation has accomplished since Sept. 11, including: the creation of a global coalition against terrorism; the capture of terrorists in Afghanistan; and the vanquishing of the Taliban and the creation of a government for the war-torn nation. Bush said his budget proposal includes the largest increase in defense spending in a decade, and added that the nation will spend whatever it takes to defend itself.

Fighting terrorism at home: Bush said his budget nearly doubles funding for homeland security focused on four key areas: bioterrorism, emergency response, airport and border security, and improved intelligence. He also said America will develop and deploy effective missile defenses to protect the nation from sudden attack.

Economy: Bush supported extended unemployment benefits and direct assistance for health care coverage. He summed up his economic policy in one word: “jobs.” Bush said Congress must pass his economic stimulus package to ensure a quick end to the recession.

Domestic policy: Bush urged Americans to spend two years in the service of others. He suggested joining USA Freedom Corps, a new umbrella organization that will bolster the existing volunteer corps and help with homeland security.

Education: Teacher colleges and teacher training must be upgraded, and the nation should launch a major recruiting drive for educators. He said teachers deserve further pay raises.

Health: Congress must work to pass a patients’ bill of rights to give uninsured workers credits to help buy health coverage, Bush said.

Retirement security: Bush asked Congress to enact new safeguards for 401(k) and pension plans. He did not mention the collapse of energy trader Enron, which left hundreds of workers with depleted retirement accounts. He said corporate America must be held accountable for how it treats its workers.

House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt’s words for terrorists were similar to Bush’s: “Make no mistake about it: We are going to hunt you down and make you pay.” But he also challenged GOP positions on Social Security, taxes and health care.

The president also asked ordinary people to adopt the same kind of cooperativeness in their own lives and their neighborhoods. Praising what he called the “culture of responsibility” that has grown since the attacks, Bush said he wants to double the size of the 7,000-strong Peace Corps, and he challenged all Americans to commit at least two years, or 4,000 hours, to public service over their lifetimes.

To coordinate such individual generosity, he said, the government will create a new “USA Freedom Corps” as an umbrella organization that will focus on responding to “crises at home, rebuilding our communities and extending American compassion throughout the world.”

It would essentially add a homeland security component to the Peace Corps that began under the Democratic Kennedy administration of the 1960s and to the Corporation for National and Community Service, which was created under President Bill Clinton.

Tuesday night marked the first time the president returned to the House chamber since the week after 19 hijackers commandeered four commercial airliners, killing more than 3,000 people. Unlike on that September evening, Vice President Dick Cheney, who has spent much of the past four months working in a secure, undisclosed location outside Washington, D.C., took his customary seat in the chamber over the president’s shoulder.

In the gallery, first lady Laura Bush was joined by several guests in her VIP box high above the well of the House, including interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai and firefighters, soldiers and other citizen-heroes whose stories helped buoy a weary nation.

“The men and women of our armed forces have delivered a message to every enemy of the United States,” Bush said. “You will not escape the justice of this nation.”

Also in the audience as guests of Bush: Shannon Spann, the widow of CIA officer Johnny “Mike” Spann, who was killed in Afghanistan, and Christina Jones and Hermis Moutardier, flight attendants credited with thwarting the alleged shoe bomber.

Outlining his post-Afghanistan battle plans, the president vowed to unearth “a terrorist underworld” of training camps in at least a dozen countries, including the Philippines, Bosnia and Somalia. He said nations will be given a chance to wipe out terrorists themselves, and the United States is willing to assist their efforts.

But, he warned: “If they do not act, America will.”

In his strongest terms yet, Bush called North Korea, Iraq and Iran part of an “axis of evil,” warning that their pursuit of weapons of mass destruction pose a “grave and growing danger” and will not be tolerated.

“I will not wait on events, while dangers gather. I will not stand by, as peril draws closer and closer,” Bush said.

The U.S. military is spending $30 million a day to fight terrorism, and more is needed, Bush said. He asked Congress to increase Pentagon spending by nearly $50 billion.

He also proposed a doubling – to $38 billion – of spending on intelligence, military, border security, local emergency response programs and other homeland security activities.

Using the theme of “security” to link his agenda domestically and abroad, Bush devoted the second half of his address to his plans for protecting Americans at home and bolstering the nation’s economy.

He conceded the federal budget will run a deficit for the first time in four years, but said it will be “small and short term” if Congress holds down spending.

He asked lawmakers to back his education, trade and tax policies to promote jobs, and embrace his welfare, health care, farm and environmental initiatives. With the address dominated by talk of war and recession, he offered no details on the policies.

In describing his domestic agenda, Bush called on Congress to make permanent the tax cuts that were one of the main achievements of his first year in office. The idea drew a noticeably partisan reaction, with Republicans standing to cheer and virtually all Democrats remaining in their seats.

Most Democrats have opposed Bush’s stimulus proposal for generous tax cuts, especially the significant cuts for businesses. Gephardt said the focus should be on the jobless.

On other issues, Gephardt called for an increase in the minimum wage, a tax deduction for up to $10,000 in college or worker training expenses and passage of a Medicare prescription drug benefit for the elderly. He pledged Democratic cooperation on beefing up the U.S. military and increasing spending for homeland security, both Bush priorities.