Bush Sets Sights Lower This Time
WASHINGTON — One year ago, fresh from his 2004 reelection, President Bush challenged Congress with an ambitious domestic agenda of sweeping changes in Social Security, the federal income tax and immigration law.
None of those changes came to be. The president's top priority -- remaking the Social Security system -- sputtered and stalled. Tax reform fell by the wayside. Guest-worker proposals drew fire from conservatives.
Bush, meanwhile, struggled against public doubts about the war in Iraq, a disastrous hurricane in New Orleans, rising gasoline prices and his sinking standing in the polls.
This week, Bush hopes to get a second chance to launch his second term with a State of the Union address that, White House aides say, will offer proposals on healthcare, education and energy -- but nothing as ambitious as overhauling Social Security.
Tuesday's speech will include a renewed defense of Bush's conduct of the war in Iraq and his decision to order electronic surveillance of communications between people in the United States and other countries without seeking court warrants.
But the president, mindful that Republican members of Congress are heading into a difficult campaign season, hopes to deliver a message that the administration also is working on healthcare, education and jobs -- issues voters consistently rank as their main concerns.
"We've been having an ongoing conversation with the public" about national security issues, said White House communications director Nicolle Wallace. "There's this whole other basket of issues that people care about, like my mom at her kitchen table: gas prices, healthcare premiums, education and jobs
Kenneth M. Duberstein, a former chief of staff to President Reagan, termed Bush's speech "his opportunity, having had a run of bad months, to at least start a recalibration. You're going to hear a lot about the economy and security. That would make the most sense because that's what America wants to hear."
Presidents normally try to keep the contents of the State of the Union address a secret, in hopes of heightening suspense and attracting a larger audience. But White House officials, Republicans who have been briefed and Bush have disclosed many of the themes in this year's speech. They include:
Education
Aides say Bush will renew his argument that the economy is in good shape, despite public concern that growth has slowed. He also is expected to propose increased federal funding for scientific research and education in mathematics, science and engineering.
