President Bush stuck to his increasingly hard-line position on Iraq Tuesday night in his 2003 State of the Union Address before a joint session of Congress, citizens of the United States and governing bodies and their denizens around the world.
In the climax of his address, Bush tackled perhaps the most pressing issue facing the country today, America's role in an increasingly hostile world community. Terrorism, both domestic and abroad, stirred both the president and his audience as he reported on the success of America's war on terrorism and the threat of those who wish to disrupt world peace.
\We've got the terrorists on the run. We're keeping them on the run. One by one the terrorists are learning the meaning of American justice,"" he said.
Bush accused Iraqi President Saddam Hussein of 12 years of systematic violation of arms treaties, a continuation in the proliferation of biological and nuclear weapons in the face of harsh punishment, and the blatant disrespect for the United Nation's work in preventing the need for military action.
Early in his speech, the president focused on the economy, asking the House and the Senate to join him in the ""next bold step"" in serving the American public.
""With unemployment rising, our nation needs more small businesses to open, more companies to invest and expand, more employers to put up the sign that says, 'Help wanted',"" Bush said.
He asked Congress to make permanent all the income tax reductions set for 2004 and 2006, calling for the immediate reduction of the marriage penalty tax and raising the child credit for families to $1000 per child.
U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, expressed frustration that Bush insisted tax cuts are the major components of economic reform.
""I was disappointed that [Bush's] main points remain massive tax cuts that predominantly benefit the very wealthiest of Americans. I was hoping to hear him present an economic stimulus package that would be fast-acting and fair and fiscally responsible,"" she said.
Calling for radical health care reform, Bush explained his commitment to an additional $40 billion over the next decade to strengthen Medicare. He also evoked the deepening necessity for youth mentorship programs, the outlawing of partial-birth abortion and a renewed dedication to helping those addicted to drugs.
Bush turned from domestic issues to America's conduct abroad, pointing out the widespread horror and death AIDS has brought to African nations and plotted out a $15 billion plan to turn the tide against AIDS in the most afflicted nations of Africa and the Caribbean.
""Ladies and gentlemen,"" Bush said, ""seldom has history offered a greater opportunity to do so much for so many.""
UW-Madison professor of political science Kenneth Mayer pointed to Tuesday night's address as one of the most important of its kind in recent decades, as there exist many pressing issues on the proverbial ""plate"" of both the president and the nation. Mayer also said that with the address, Bush would have the chance to succeed where his father failed during his presidency.
""[Bush] is trying to avoid the mistake his father made, which was to allow the impression that he's unsympathetic to the hardships that many people are going through,"" he said.
Stephen Lucas, a UW-Madison communication arts professor contemplated Bush's success on delivering a hotly-anticipated speech to the nation and the world.
""The real question is whether any given president's delivery is effective enough for what the president needs to accomplish with the audience at that particular time and place. To me, his delivery is getting better, and for this speech, I thought it was really very effective,"" he said.
