Bush outlines second-term goals

A presidential public relation blitz begins today as George W. Bush flies around the country to sell voters on politically risky changes to the Social Security system that were at the heart of his State of the Union address.

The speech, to a packed House chamber and a national television audience, was Mr. Bush's fourth - and the first to focus most heavily on domestic themes.

The president's call for Congress to take political risks "to strengthen and save Social Security" was arguably the night's most politically charged domestic topic. Mr. Bush urged creation of what he calls personal - and Democrats call private - investment accounts. Americans now age 55 and over would not be affected by the President's plan, a move clearly aimed at calming fears of politically potent baby boomers.

On foreign policy, the president hailed the recent elections in Iraq as opening "a new phase in our work in that country." He did not offer a timetable for American withdrawal from Iraq as some Democrats have urged. But Bush did note that,"we will increasingly focus our efforts on helping prepare more capable Iraqi security forces - forces with skilled officers, and an effective command structure."

The most memorable moment of the evening came when the president spoke about Janet and Bill Norwood, whose son, Byron, was a US Marine killed in the assault on Fallujah. Amid thunderous and prolonged applause for the Norwoods, Safia Taleb al-Suhail, an Iraqi woman whose father was assassinated by Saddam Hussein's intelligence service, hugged Mrs. Norwood. The Iraqi woman was first lady Laura Bush's guest in the House gallery.

The president also pledged to push for peace in the Middle East. "The goal of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace, is within reach, and America will help them achieve that goal," the president said. He singled out Syria and Iran as regimes that promote terrorism.

Wednesday's speech - which reportedly went through 17 drafts - was less lyrical and Biblical in tone than the inaugural address the president gave last month although Bush saw the two talks as related. "Two weeks ago, I stood on the steps of this Capitol and renewed the commitment of our nation to the guiding ideal of liberty for all. This evening I will set forth policies to advance that ideal at home and around the world," he said.

Now, the president and top officials from his administration are fanning out across country to sell his message on Social Security. Today, Bush visits North Dakota, Montana, and Nebraska. On Friday, the President will be in Arkansas and Florida. Notably, all the states the president is visiting have Democratic senators who will feel political pressure as a result of the presidential visit.

Also hitting the road in the sales effort: the extremely popular first lady. The president announced last night that Mrs. Bush also will be heading a new effort to help at-risk youth and combat gang violence. Other administration officials flying around to sell the president's Social Security plan: Vice President Richard Cheney, Treasury Secretary John Snow, and Josh Bolten, Director of the Office of Management and Budget.

The president's travels take him around a country that remains very much divided on his performance and policies. A new ABC News - Washington Post, conducted Jan. 26-31, shows the president has a 50 percent job approval rate overall. While some 87 percent of Republicans approve of his performance, just 14 percent of Democrats do. Perhaps most worrisome to the White House is that Bush's approval rating from independent voters is just 48 percent - 13 percentage points lower than Bill Clinton's eight years ago. It is not a particularly strong position from which to sell a sensitive revision in Social Security.

The White House describes what the president is proposing as "voluntary personal retirement accounts." These retirement accounts would start gradually. Yearly contribution limits would be raised over time, eventually permitting all workers to set aside 4 percentage points of their payroll taxes in their accounts.

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