Bush calls for an optimistic America

Text

President Bush last night implored an unsettled nation to reject the idea that “our culture is doomed to unravel” and used his fifth State of the Union address to promise an end to America’s oil “addiction.”

Addressing a joint session of Congress just hours after the swearing-in of Supreme Court Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., Mr. Bush said the bitter partisanship that has cleaved the two parties is leading to a defeatism that endangers the nation.

“As we look at these challenges, we must never give in to the belief that America is in decline, or that our culture is doomed to unravel,” he said. “The American people know better than that. We have proven the pessimists wrong before — and we will do it again.”

In a 53-minute speech that was markedly scaled down from last year’s State of the Union, in which he called in vain for Social Security reform, the president nonetheless sought to stir the national spirit to action.

But Democrats taunted him on that very topic by cheering and applauding when Mr. Bush noted that “Congress did not act last year on my proposal to save Social Security.”

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, New York Democrat, smiling triumphantly, was among those who stood to celebrate this failure of the president, who responded by raising his voice and wagging his finger sternly.

“Yet the rising cost of entitlements is a problem that is not going away,” he scolded. “And with every year we fail to act, the situation gets worse.”

He vowed to continue his aggressive prosecution of the war on terror, improve health care, and move forward with a compassionate conservatism that he said is transforming America. He also paid tribute to civil rights icon Coretta Scott King, who died yesterday.

The president was interrupted 58 times by lawmakers from both parties, who were joined by guests ranging from Afghan government officials to family members of fallen U.S. troops to a military dog named Rex, who sat among honored guests in the balcony reserved for first lady Laura Bush.

Rex was accompanied by his master, Air Force Sgt. Jamie Dana, who was injured in Iraq and prohibited by law from adopting Rex upon the dog’s retirement. Mr. Bush signed legislation in December that allowed the adoption.

Mr. Bush made a point of repeating what many considered the most audacious goal of his second inaugural a year ago, a vow to end “tyranny in our world.”

“Abroad, our nation is committed to an historic, long-term goal. We seek the end of tyranny in our world,” he said. “The future security of America depends on it.”

Mindful of the increasingly acrimonious debate over Iraq, he added, “There is a difference between responsible criticism that aims for success, and defeatism that refuses to acknowledge anything but failure. Hindsight alone is not wisdom. And second guessing is not a strategy.”

Story Continues →