Bush Messages: America Addicted to Oil
Bush Messages: Defeat Terror and 'Keep America Competitive' - New York Times
January 31, 2006
Bush Messages: Defeat Terror and 'Keep America Competitive'
By DAVID STOUT
WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 – President Bush said tonight that the United States must remain a leader on the world stage and not retreat from challenges at home and abroad, but that Americans must break a national "addiction" to oil to preserve their country's prosperity and security.
"In a complex and challenging time, the road of isolationism and protectionism may seem broad and inviting, yet it ends in danger and decline," Mr. Bush told members of the House and Senate, other high officials and a television audience of millions watching his fifth State of the Union address. "The only way to protect our people, the only way to secure the peace, the only way to control our destiny is by our leadership – so the United States of America will continue to lead."
Mr. Bush, who has said he wants to be remembered as the "education president," proposed a program to train 70,000 high school teachers to lead advanced-placement courses in math and science and bring 30,000 math and science professionals to teach in the classrooms. The education proposals stood out in a speech otherwise marked by reiteration of the goals and ideas that Mr. Bush has embraced throughout his presidency.
"We must continue to lead the world in human talent and creativity," he said. "Our greatest advantage in the world has always been our educated, hard-working, ambitious people — and we are going to keep that edge."
Mr. Bush welcomed Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., along with other members of the Supreme Court. The 58-42 Senate vote earlier in the day confirming the Alito nomination was, for the White House, a refreshing triumph for the president, whose support has been sagging in public-opinion polls and whose Republican Party has been hobbled by a lobbying scandal.
Mr. Bush offered a muscular defense of his administration's domestic and foreign policies and sought to dispel any suggestion that he was slipping toward "lame duck" status as members of Congress look to their own political futures in this fall's off-year elections and, in the case of at least a few, to the 2008 presidential contest.
The president said again that the United States would stay the course in Iraq, decreasing troop levels as field commanders see appropriate, and in Afghanistan, where he said a vibrant democracy was taking hold. He vowed to maintain pressure on Iran, "a nation now held hostage by a small clerical elite," and said he envisioned a free and democratic Iran one day. And he called on leaders of the radical group Hamas, fresh from their victory in the Palestinian parliamentary elections, to reject terrorism and recognize Israel.
As presidents before him have, Mr. Bush addressed the United States' reliance on foreign oil. "America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world," Mr. Bush said. "The best way to break this addiction is through technology."
As expected, he proposed more use of alternative fuels for automobiles, like corn-based ethanol, and suggested a revival of nuclear-powered projects.
Mr. Bush said the United States' goal should be to replace more than 75 percent of its oil imports from the Middle East by 2025. The United States gets less than 20 percent of the oil it consumes from the region, and altogether, about 60 percent of the oil Americans consume comes from abroad.
The president prodded Congress again to make the "temporary" tax cuts of his first term permanent, asserting that the cuts would be a collective engine of prosperity.
Democrats seized on the tax-cut issue, as well as other aspects of the president's speech. In comments before the president spoke, Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia, chosen by his party as the point man for tonight, said the Bush administration had failed to manage "our staggering national debt," and indeed had helped to cause it. "Why should we allow this administration to pass down the bill for its reckless spending to our children and grandchildren?" Mr. Kaine asked.
Democrats also pounced on the Iraq issue. Governor Kaine asserted that "the American people were given inaccurate information about the reasons for invading Iraq," and that the administration's whole approach to that country has made America less secure.
The president's emphasis on oil was no surprise. Oil consumption and availability have implications for the nation's security and economic well-being, and have personal relevance for virtually all American citizens, whose gasoline and home-heating costs have risen drastically in recent months.
The president called again for the United States to stay on the offensive in fighting terrorism, and to do so not just by military means but by "encouraging economic progress, fighting disease and spreading hope in hopeless lands."
Mr. Bush also reiterated his defense of the administration's program to monitor telephone calls and e-mail between the United States and abroad. He said Congress should re-enact the USA Patriot Act, which broadened government surveillance powers and is to expire in early February.
In warning against isolationist tendencies, Mr. Bush said: "In a time of testing, we cannot find security by abandoning our commitments and retreating within our borders. If we were to leave these vicious attacks alone, they would not leave us alone. They would simply move the battlefield to our own shores."
Mr. Bush took care to describe his White House and his party as fonts of compassion. "Our government has a responsibility to help provide health care for the poor and the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility," he said. "For all Americans, we must confront the rising cost of care, strengthen the doctor-patient relationship, and help people afford the insurance coverage they need." The president has often blamed "frivolous lawsuits" by greedy malpractice lawyers for driving up the cost of health care.
The president, who is known to have gone through dozens of drafts of the speech with its writers, dwelled on one of his favorite themes, what he has called the character and compassion of the American people.
"Our greatness is not measured in power or luxuries, but by who we are and how we treat one another," he said. "So we strive to be a compassionate, decent, hopeful society."
January 31, 2006
Bush Messages: Defeat Terror and 'Keep America Competitive'
By DAVID STOUT
WASHINGTON, Jan. 31 – President Bush said tonight that the United States must remain a leader on the world stage and not retreat from challenges at home and abroad, but that Americans must break a national "addiction" to oil to preserve their country's prosperity and security.
"In a complex and challenging time, the road of isolationism and protectionism may seem broad and inviting, yet it ends in danger and decline," Mr. Bush told members of the House and Senate, other high officials and a television audience of millions watching his fifth State of the Union address. "The only way to protect our people, the only way to secure the peace, the only way to control our destiny is by our leadership – so the United States of America will continue to lead."
Mr. Bush, who has said he wants to be remembered as the "education president," proposed a program to train 70,000 high school teachers to lead advanced-placement courses in math and science and bring 30,000 math and science professionals to teach in the classrooms. The education proposals stood out in a speech otherwise marked by reiteration of the goals and ideas that Mr. Bush has embraced throughout his presidency.
"We must continue to lead the world in human talent and creativity," he said. "Our greatest advantage in the world has always been our educated, hard-working, ambitious people — and we are going to keep that edge."
Mr. Bush welcomed Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., along with other members of the Supreme Court. The 58-42 Senate vote earlier in the day confirming the Alito nomination was, for the White House, a refreshing triumph for the president, whose support has been sagging in public-opinion polls and whose Republican Party has been hobbled by a lobbying scandal.
Mr. Bush offered a muscular defense of his administration's domestic and foreign policies and sought to dispel any suggestion that he was slipping toward "lame duck" status as members of Congress look to their own political futures in this fall's off-year elections and, in the case of at least a few, to the 2008 presidential contest.
The president said again that the United States would stay the course in Iraq, decreasing troop levels as field commanders see appropriate, and in Afghanistan, where he said a vibrant democracy was taking hold. He vowed to maintain pressure on Iran, "a nation now held hostage by a small clerical elite," and said he envisioned a free and democratic Iran one day. And he called on leaders of the radical group Hamas, fresh from their victory in the Palestinian parliamentary elections, to reject terrorism and recognize Israel.
As presidents before him have, Mr. Bush addressed the United States' reliance on foreign oil. "America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world," Mr. Bush said. "The best way to break this addiction is through technology."
As expected, he proposed more use of alternative fuels for automobiles, like corn-based ethanol, and suggested a revival of nuclear-powered projects.
Mr. Bush said the United States' goal should be to replace more than 75 percent of its oil imports from the Middle East by 2025. The United States gets less than 20 percent of the oil it consumes from the region, and altogether, about 60 percent of the oil Americans consume comes from abroad.
The president prodded Congress again to make the "temporary" tax cuts of his first term permanent, asserting that the cuts would be a collective engine of prosperity.
Democrats seized on the tax-cut issue, as well as other aspects of the president's speech. In comments before the president spoke, Gov. Tim Kaine of Virginia, chosen by his party as the point man for tonight, said the Bush administration had failed to manage "our staggering national debt," and indeed had helped to cause it. "Why should we allow this administration to pass down the bill for its reckless spending to our children and grandchildren?" Mr. Kaine asked.
Democrats also pounced on the Iraq issue. Governor Kaine asserted that "the American people were given inaccurate information about the reasons for invading Iraq," and that the administration's whole approach to that country has made America less secure.
The president's emphasis on oil was no surprise. Oil consumption and availability have implications for the nation's security and economic well-being, and have personal relevance for virtually all American citizens, whose gasoline and home-heating costs have risen drastically in recent months.
The president called again for the United States to stay on the offensive in fighting terrorism, and to do so not just by military means but by "encouraging economic progress, fighting disease and spreading hope in hopeless lands."
Mr. Bush also reiterated his defense of the administration's program to monitor telephone calls and e-mail between the United States and abroad. He said Congress should re-enact the USA Patriot Act, which broadened government surveillance powers and is to expire in early February.
In warning against isolationist tendencies, Mr. Bush said: "In a time of testing, we cannot find security by abandoning our commitments and retreating within our borders. If we were to leave these vicious attacks alone, they would not leave us alone. They would simply move the battlefield to our own shores."
Mr. Bush took care to describe his White House and his party as fonts of compassion. "Our government has a responsibility to help provide health care for the poor and the elderly, and we are meeting that responsibility," he said. "For all Americans, we must confront the rising cost of care, strengthen the doctor-patient relationship, and help people afford the insurance coverage they need." The president has often blamed "frivolous lawsuits" by greedy malpractice lawyers for driving up the cost of health care.
The president, who is known to have gone through dozens of drafts of the speech with its writers, dwelled on one of his favorite themes, what he has called the character and compassion of the American people.
"Our greatness is not measured in power or luxuries, but by who we are and how we treat one another," he said. "So we strive to be a compassionate, decent, hopeful society."
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