Bush offers inroads on home front
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In his first State of the Union address before a Democratic Congress, President Bush again, and at length, defended his Iraq policy, but also directed the spotlight toward his domestic wish list. The home front provides the most fertile ground for cultivating a modest legacy for the years he has left in the White House.
The constraints are evident. The war, which lies at the heart of Bush's sinking popularity, burdens the budget and hinders pursuit of an aggressive domestic agenda.
So the president, also bound to whittle the deficit, is attempting to do it on the cheap.
That said, it's encouraging to hear a few policy shifts that may be viable because they require no massive outlay of funds.
Specifically, Bush has reinforced support for alternative fuels, pressing to increase ethanol use and cut gasoline usage by 20 percent over the next decade.
Such idealism, however, seems to run at cross purposes with what followed: a call to increase domestic oil production. And the administration's commitment to the global warming problem got only the barest mention.
Perhaps Congress will take this muted initiative and amplify it, taking a cue from some major corporate executives who lately have urged Bush to implement mandatory reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.
On the healthcare issue, the Bush approach of financing private insurance through tax code changes is already being assailed as costing more than it will produce. And plans to use existing dollars to cover the uninsured — reportedly money coming from public hospitals' funds — seems more window-dressing than a solution.
Despite the pledge to boost funding for students struggling under the No Child Left Behind Act, it was also disappointing to hear few systematic changes being proposed for the Congressional debate over reauthorizing this controversial education program.
Even with the polite applause greeting yesterday's genial speech, the divide over Iraq won't be easily bridged. But rather than surrendering to political paralysis, the country needs movement on critical domestic issues. Congress must seize the opportunity to make gains, and the president appears to be handing them that chance.