29 January 2002
Congress United Behind Bush on Fight Against Terrorism
(Democrats diverge from his views on economic recovery, tax cuts)
(860)
By Ralph Dannheisser
Washington File Congressional Correspondent
Washington -- Members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives
have expressed strong support for President Bush's pledge in his State
of the Union address January 29 to keep up the war against terrorism
that was begun in Afghanistan.
But -- while couching their comments in unusually muted terms for
opposition party members reacting to a presidential speech --
Democratic legislators nevertheless voiced substantially less
enthusiasm over his plans for the domestic economy.
Republican leaders, predictably, expressed themselves in much fuller
agreement with the president across the board.
Delivering his party's formal response immediately after Bush gave his
speech to a joint session of Congress, House Minority (Democratic)
Leader Richard Gephardt stressed that Democrats and Republicans stand
with "one resolve" to defeat terrorists abroad and guard against their
efforts at home.
"To our enemies, we say with one voice: no act of violence, no threat
will drive us apart or steer us from our course -- to protect America
and preserve our democracy," Gephardt said. "And make no mistake about
it, we are going to hunt you down and make you pay."
But, though he repeatedly counseled bipartisanship, Gephardt made
clear that support for the president in the battle against terrorism
does not obligate the Democrats to support him on economic policies
with which they disagree.
While Bush has proposed significant tax cuts for individuals and
businesses, Gephardt cited American values that "call for helping the
unemployed, not just large corporations and the most fortunate." The
Democratic leader -- seen as a likely contender for his party's
presidential nomination in 2004 -- called for a bipartisan White House
summit on economic growth.
While Bush, in his speech, avoided direct mention of the recent
bankruptcy of Enron Corp., the energy trading company whose financial
practices have produced multiple congressional investigations,
Gephardt used it as a case in point in calling for new steps aimed at
"protecting pensions from corporate mismanagement and abuse."
And Gephardt said the Enron case underscores the need for campaign
finance reform -- a contentious issue in Congress. "If the nation's
largest bankruptcy coupled with a clear example of paid political
influence isn't a prime case for reform, I don't know what is," he
said.
Still, the Democratic leader made clear that he believes the same
bipartisanship that has marked the war on terrorism can be applied in
economic matters as well. "I refuse to accept that while we stand
shoulder to shoulder on the war, we should stand toe to toe on the
economy," he said.
Senate leaders of both parties struck the theme of cooperation too.
Senate Minority (Republican) Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi said
bipartisanship will be "particularly hard with it being an election
year." But, he added, "the American people expect that of us and we
have an opportunity to come together."
Earlier in the day, Majority (Democratic) Leader Tom Daschle of South
Dakota said that last year's bipartisan passage of an education bill
can serve as a model. "There have been many occasions when the
Congress has come together to deal with critical issues, controversial
issues in an election year. This year ought to be no different," he
said.
He repeated that view after the president's speech, declaring, "With a
renewed commitment to compromise from both sides, I believe that we
can put our economy back on track, win the war against terror and meet
our nation's great unmet goals."
Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (Republican, Illinois) pronounced
Congress to be "committed to working with the president to eliminate
terrorist threats against America."
Representative Bob Stump (Republican, Arizona), chairman of the House
Armed Services Committee, expressed pleasure that Bush "reminded all
Americans that providing for our nation's defense is the federal
government's number one priority."
One of the sharpest responses came from Representative Pete Stark
(Democrat, California), a strong advocate of expanded health care
programs. He termed the president's Medicare prescription drug
proposal "a cruel hoax on America's seniors," adding, "This empty
promise without substantive funding is just cheap rhetoric -- a
political ploy to make the president look like he cares about seniors
and their health."
Representative J.C. Watts of Oklahoma, a member of the House
Republican leadership, urged that Congress pledge to turn what he
termed the president's "ambitious agenda" into reality during this
year's session.
But Senator Joseph Biden (Democrat, Delaware) was more reserved in his
appraisal. "Tonight President Bush gave us a glimpse of what he
proposes, and in a few days the budget will be released and the
picture will become clearer," said the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee chairman.
"We will soon find out how the administration is going to fit all the
things it hopes to implement -- the 10 pounds in their wish list --
into the five pound bag" of available funds, he added.
(The Washington File is a product of the Office of International
Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site:
http://usinfo.state.gov)
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