Posted on: Wednesday, January 30, 2002

ANALYSIS
President addresses 'true scope of the task ahead'

By Chuck Raasch
Gannett News Service

WASHINGTON — When he was nominated for president 18 months ago in Philadelphia, George W. Bush praised the achievements of the World War II generation, then said: "What is asked of us?"

Yesterday, a wartime president answered, in circumstances he and the country never saw coming until Sept. 11.

Bush's first State of the Union speech described a nation facing "unprecedented dangers," a country awakened to the threats of "thousands of dangerous killers" and the "ticking time bombs" of terrorism. He laid out the discovery of blueprints for further disaster and the threat of "tens of thousands of trained terrorists" still at large around the world.

It was not a speech for the fainthearted.

The wounds of Sept. 11 were still evident in the roster of heroes and widows in the House of Representatives gallery above him.

But, in a point that cannot be underestimated, Bush also was able to frame the threat — and the coming response — from a position of strength. The United States' successes so far — in routing the Taliban and apprehending terrorists around the globe — allow him that. So do the 84 percent presidential approval ratings that have come from it.

"Even 7,000 miles away, across oceans and continents, on mountaintops and in caves, you will not escape the justice of this nation," Bush said, referring to terrorists.

Afghanistan's interim leader, Hamid Karzai, joined in the applause from the gallery.

For 47 minutes, a resolute and often grim-looking Bush offered a striking rhetorical concoction: Of foreboding and bravado, of hope and warning.

The economy is on a lot of Americans' minds these days, and Bush offered the expected talk of tax cuts and jobs. He must be careful not to slight those concerns or risk repeating his father's loss in the recession election of 1992.

He also faces a political landscape of deficit spending, a swirling Enron scandal, and a persistent recession.

But it was clear yesterday what was first on this Bush's mind: The "grave and growing danger" of terrorism, including that sponsored by states.

Terrorist blueprints discovered in the caves of Afghanistan, the president said, "confirmed our worst fears and show us the true scope of the task ahead."

Bush focused on three objectives: "We will win this war, we will protect our homeland, and we will revive the economy."

But in reality, he leads a four-front war: The one against terrorism overseas. The one to protect Americans at home. The one to ensure a stable enough economy to fight it.

And the one to maintain public interest and support long enough to fight the first three. Much of his State of the Union message lingered on this last point.

Bush said more explicitly than ever that the war on terrorism would likely go on after he is out of office. It will "cost a lot," he warned, but the "price of freedom and security ... is never too high."