In a tempered speech that attempted to define his legacy as much as to persuade an increasingly uncooperative Congress, Bush advocated limited government intervention on economic and social issues while repeating his vow to spread democracy worldwide.
Repeating past warnings, Bush stepped up his criticism of congressional earmarks and pledged to veto the latest budget proposal unless Congress eliminated 151 “wasteful or bloated” allocations from the bill.
Though he avoided mentioning specific economic issues during a time of increasing domestic uncertainty, Bush began by acknowledging Americans’ worries about home foreclosures, falling stocks and rising fuel prices.
In response to these fears, Bush touted a $150 billion economic stimulus package his administration hammered out with House leaders last week and warned Congress against modifying it.
“That would delay it or derail it, and neither option is acceptable,” he said.
Bush added, however, that the stimulus package was only a temporary fix for an economy that would eventually return to normalcy by leaving economic choices to individuals. Over the course of his speech, he used the word “empower” 12 times to drive home his point.
The president also defended the No Child Left Behind Act he signed in 2001 while alluding to the need for charter schools and advocating Pell Grants to help underprivileged high school students.
Internationally, Bush toned down the confrontational rhetoric that marked earlier speeches. Unlike the 2002 address in which he grouped opposing nations into an “Axis of Evil,” this year’s address singled out only
“Wherever democracy advances in the Middle East, it seems
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