Delegation split on presidential address Democrats challenge Bush’s position while Republicans laud legislative priorities

WASHINGTON – Maine’s congressional Democrats were quick to criticize President George W. Bush’s State of the Union address Tuesday night.

Instead, they cited problems with the president’s economic road map and health care reform plans, as well as his strategy for building international support for a war against Iraq.

Bush said he has a plan to deal with the faltering economy by making permanent many temporary tax measures, by launching broad, new health care initiatives and by coping with the threat of rogue dictators and terrorist groups with resolve, even if the United States had to “exercise power without conquest, and sacrifice for the liberty of strangers.”

Democrats, including Rep. Michael Michaud of Maine, challenged the spin.

In a House floor speech earlier Tuesday, the freshman congressman from East Millinocket said he was proud of America and hopeful of its future, but concerned about where it is today.

He said he did not believe the economic plan will bring help to those who need it most. It gives help primarily to the wealthiest Americans and does nothing to create jobs, Michaud said, adding that he hoped Bush would at least consider the Democratic alternative, which would set up 1 million new jobs and add money to the pocket of average Americans.

Speaking of the Democrat’s plan, Rep. Tom Allen, a Democrat from Portland, said it was “fiscally sound, it doesn’t borrow from our children or our grandchildren, it does not tack interest on our debt.”

After Bush’s speech, Allen said the president had the wrong remedy for the economy.

“By extending temporary income tax reductions, in effect adding to the national debt and giving the federal government excessive liabilities,” Allen said “Our children and grandchildren will be paying for decades to come.”

Instead, Allen called for a broad-based, middle-income tax cut.

Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., the new House Minority Whip, said on CNN the president was engaged in “deja voodoo economics all over again,” a reference to the policies that plagued the elder Bush’s administration.

In response to Bush’s call for a new way to provide health care to seniors, Michaud said he would soon introduce an America Rx plan that would be similar to the Maine Rx plan, and he hoped that the Bush administration would at least take a serious look at how it would work.

“The president’s plan would bring instability and unpredictability to health care every year for millions of seniors. They don’t want that, we don’t want that,” Allen said.

“This grows out of the Bush administration’s hostility to government,” Allen said.

Bush’s plan calls for overhauling Medicare, letting seniors choose between staying with the current fee-for-service system or selecting an option that would provide prescription drug benefits.

Republicans were gracious, with Sen. Susan M. Collins saying: “The president did a terrific job. The tone was serious, comprehensive, and I was pleased to see his emphasis on health care as one of four centerpieces.”

She said that issue would “strike a chord with small businesses in Maine.”

Sen. Olympia Snowe said the president set the tone Tuesday night for unparalleled challenges. She took issue with his pledge to end early-term abortions, saying she hoped the topic would not dominate the agenda.

She called Bush determined and obviously subdued and serious as he recognizes what is at stake for the country.