Bush sets goals, calls U.S. ‘strong’
In front of a noticeably divided Congress and a country that is increasingly dissatisfied with his job performance, President Bush declared Tuesday that the state of the nation is strong as he reaffirmed his resolve to bring democracy to Iraq and end American dependence on Middle Eastern oil.
In a direct challenge to Iraq war critics, Bush used his fifth State of the Union Address to defend the decision to maintain heightened troop levels amid calls for troop withdrawal.
“There is no peace in retreat, and there is no honor in retreat,” Bush said.
Despite a reduction of about 23,000 troops in the past month, there are still 138,000 troops in Iraq, according to CNN.
“Our work in Iraq is difficult because our enemy is brutal,” Bush declared. “But that brutality has not stopped the dramatic progress of a new democracy.”
The president also addressed the criticism his administration has received because no weapons of mass destruction were found in Iraq – one of the administration’s main arguments for invading the country.
“There is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure,” Bush said.
In defending his controversial approval of a domestic surveillance program, which he called constitutional, he said, “This terrorist surveillance program has helped prevent terrorist attacks. It remains essential to the security of America. If there are people inside our country who are talking with al-Qaida, we want to know about it.”
In order to break U.S. dependence on Middle Eastern oil, Bush pushed an ambitious proposal called the Advanced Energy Initiative.
“America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world,” Bush said. His proposal calls for investment in “zero-emission coal-fired plants, revolutionary solar and wind technologies, and clean, safe nuclear energy.”
The president announced a goal of replacing 75 percent of Middle Eastern oil imports with alternative energy sources by the year 2025.
Joel Aberbach, a UCLA professor of political science, called this proposal “activist” and said it was likely spurred by Bush’s sagging poll numbers.
“There is a big energy problem, and this has cut into his popularity,” Aberbach said. This was a “signal to people that he is not only well aware of the problem, but that he has some proposal for dealing with the problem.”
In last year’s address, Bush championed his plan to overhaul Social Security – a plan that met with disfavor from many Americans and was never brought before Congress.
In a contentious moment, Democrats interrupted Bush with cheers when he said “Congress did not act last year on my proposal to save Social Security.” Bush, clearly agitated, continued with a raised voice when the applause subsided, saying the problems facing Social Security will not go away.
Throughout the night, the partisan divide was evident in the applause as Republicans and Democrats disagreed on most major issues.
As much of his speech focused on the Middle East, Bush made a broad call for multilateral support in derailing Iran’s nuclear program.
“The Iranian government is defying the world with its nuclear ambitions, and the nations of the world must not permit Iran to gain nuclear weapons,” Bush said.
Shortly after Bush’s 51-minute speech concluded, Virginia Gov. Timothy Kaine delivered the Democratic response. Kaine criticized the administration’s handling of Iraq and its slow rebuilding of the hurricane-hit Gulf Coast region, among other issues.
“The federal government should serve the American people,” Kaine said. “But that mission is frustrated by this administration’s poor choices and bad management.”
Los Angeles Mayor and UCLA alumnus Antonio Villaraigosa delivered the Democrats’ Spanish-language response. Villaraigosa addressed issues relevant to the Hispanic population, focusing on the issues of education, health care reform and job creation.
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