|
Bush previews State of the Union themes
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-22 11:37
President Bush previewed three domestic themes of his upcoming State of the
Union address — tax cuts, energy prices and the rising cost of health care — in
his weekly radio broadcast Saturday.
Bush took partial credit for recent gains in the U.S. economy and urged
Congress to make tax cuts permanent, a move that he said would specifically help
small businesses because most small businesses pay taxes at individual income
tax rates.
President
Bush and first lady Laura Bush, right, depart
the White House on Friday, Jan. 20, 2006 in Washington. Bush is spending
the weekend at Camp David. [AP
photo] | "Unfortunately, just as we are
seeing how our tax cuts have created jobs and opportunity, some in Washington
want to repeal the tax relief," he said. "Others want to just let it expire in a
few years."
The tax cuts have strengthened the economy, the president said. "To keep our
economy growing and our small-business sector strong, we need to ensure that you
keep more of what you earn — so Congress needs to make the tax cuts permanent,"
he said.
Democrats contend the tax cuts benefited the wealthy, not the middle class.
"Doesn't the president know that real wages are actually falling?" Sen.
Edward Kennedy (news, bio, voting record), D-Mass., said after Bush spoke on the
economy earlier this week. "That minimum wage workers are sinking deeper and
deeper into poverty? That saving for college or a home has become an impossible
dream for many Americans? That with the cost of energy so high, millions of
families can't afford to heat their homes this winter?"
About four in 10 Americans — 39 percent — approve of Bush's handling of the
economy while 59 percent disapprove, according to a recent AP-Ipsos poll. That
is close to the lowest approval he has had on the economy during his
presidency.,
Bush also addressed medical and energy costs in his radio address,
highlighting two topics expected to be included in his State of the Union
address on Jan. 31.
The president wants to raise the dollar amount that can be allowed to
accumulate in existing health savings accounts. In these accounts, people
shoulder more of the responsibility for the costs of medical care. They deposit
money tax-free into an account while buying a high-deductible policy to cover
catastrophic expenses.
Health savings accounts helps control costs by letting businesses or workers
buy low-cost insurance policies for catastrophic events and then save, tax-free,
for routine medical expenses.
"This year, I will ask Congress to take steps to make these accounts more
available, more affordable, and more portable," Bush said. "Congress also needs
to pass Association Health Plans, which allow small businesses across the
country to join together and pool risk so they can buy insurance at the same
discounts big companies get."
Democrats say that giving tax breaks to individuals on health care costs
draws the healthiest and wealthiest out of traditional employer-based insurance
plans, leaving behind the less well-off in a system that is increasingly
expensive.
To help address rising energy costs, Bush said the administration will push
development of new technologies and alternative and renewable fuels to make the
nation less dependent on foreign sources of energy.
|
