WASHINGTON — With his State of the Union address Tuesday night, George W. Bush will continue to define himself as a president who is as willing to go to war at home as abroad.
Aides say Bush will recommit himself to a series of ambitious goals certain to incite intense political conflict: passing a massive new tax cut when the federal budget already has fallen into deficit, imposing the most fundamental structural changes on Medicare since its inception in 1965, and rallying opinion in America and around the world for a possible invasion of Iraq.
"When he gets done with this speech, people will say he is willing to take on big issues and big challenges and to use his political capital to achieve great ends," one senior White House aide said.
That tendency to swing for the fences is becoming a signature of Bush's presidency. Although he took office after the closest presidential election since the late 19th century, and is governing with only a slim Republican majority in Congress, Bush has shown repeatedly he is willing, even eager, to advance ideas that sharply divide the parties in Washington and opinion around the country -- and often the world.
As he prepares for a State of the Union speech that will continue that pattern, the key political question is whether Bush is being bold or reckless -- whether he is shrewdly pressing his advantages or overreaching in a way that will crystallize opposition and weaken him.
Bush and his aides "believe that when they lead, other countries will fall into line, and that the same dynamic applies to Congress," said Will Marshall, president of the Progressive Policy Institute, a centrist Democratic think tank. "We'll see if that's true."
Bush's approach has brought him great successes. In 2001, he won a tax cut much larger than almost any analyst believed possible, $1.35 trillion over 10 years. He has solidified unwavering support from Republican and conservative voters, and demonstrated in November's election that he could translate that enthusiasm into votes for GOP candidates.
His relentless insistence that Iraq must surrender any weapons of mass destruction drove the United Nations to demand, and Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to accept, a resumption of the international weapons inspection process.
But this success has come at a cost. Abroad, Bush faces rising discontent over his determination to steer his course, especially on Iraq, with or without support from allies.
