Rejecting calls for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, Bush said, "There is no peace in retreat." He also slapped at those who complain he took the country to war on the erroneous grounds that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction.

"Hindsight alone is not wisdom," Bush said. "And second-guessing is not a strategy."

In an unscripted moment, anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, the mother of a fallen soldier in Iraq, was taken into custody by police in the House gallery just before Bush spoke to a joint session of Congress. She was escorted from the visitors gallery after she caused a disruption, a Capitol Police official said.

With Congress facing midterm elections in November, there was a partisan mood in the chamber as Bush, hampered by big budget deficits, offered a modest program.

Democrats stood and cheered when Bush said that Congress did not act a year ago "on my proposal to save Social Security." Bush got a bemused look on his face, shook his finger and continued, "yet the rising cost of entitlements is a problem that is not going away."

Switching gears, Bush asked lawmakers to join him in naming a commission to examine the impact of Baby Boom retirements on Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid spending.

He declared that the "the state of our union is strong" despite Americans' anxieties about the war in Iraq, the economy and soaring energy costs. Oil prices are inching toward $70 a barrel, throwing a cloud over the economy and pinching Americans' pocketbooks.

Bush called for increased federal research into alternative fuels such as ethanol made from weeds or wood chips instead of corn.

Bush's address came amid a changing of the guard elsewhere in Washington. Conservative judge Samuel Alito was sworn in as a new Supreme Court justice, replacing Sandra Day O'Connor, who has been a moderate swing vote. The Senate also confirmed Ben Bernanke to be chairman of the Federal Reserve, replacing Alan Greenspan after 18 1/2 years in the influential job.

Alito was in the House chamber, alongside new Chief Justice John Roberts, another Bush nominee, and Justices Stephen Breyer and Clarence Thomas. The president was applauded 58 times in a speech that ran slightly more than 50 minutes.

Facing budget deficits that may approach or exceed $400 billion this year, Bush had no room for expensive, new initiatives.

But Bush did call for greater public spending on basic science research and more money for math and science education.

He proposed an initiative to train 70,000 high school teachers to lead advanced-placement courses in math and science. In addition, he urged bringing 30,000 math and science professionals into the classrooms to teach.

"We need to encourage children to take more math and science and make sure those courses are rigorous enough to compete with other nations," the president said.

Bush went before the nation after the toughest year of his administration. His job approval rating is in the anemic high 30s to low 40s.

Health care is a priority for both parties, particularly since nearly 46 million Americans lack insurance. Democrats say that in 2005 alone, the number of uninsured grew by nearly a million.

"Keeping American competitive requires affordable health care," the president said.

Bush proposed greater tax benefits for health saving accounts, the high-deductible health care plan that allows people to contribute money tax-free to 401(k)-like health savings plans, as a way to expand their use. He said lawmakers also must allow workers to take the coverage with them as they change jobs.

Many Republicans cheered Bush when he defended his program of surveillance in the United States without warrants to combat terrorism _ a program whose legality has been challenged by members of both parties. "This terrorist surveillance program has helped prevent terrorist attacks," the president said.

As he has in every State of the Union address to some extent, Bush said the United States must curb its reliance on foreign oil imports.

He called for more research on batteries for hybrid and electric cars and work on alternative fuels.

"Our goal is to make this new kind of ethanol practical and competitive within six years," the president said. "Breakthroughs on this and other new technologies will help us reach another great goal: to replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025.

By targeting only Mideast oil, Bush was ignoring the largest sources of American petroleum consumption _ Mexico and Canada. Imports of oil and refined product from the Persian Gulf make up less than a fifth of all imports and 11 percent of total consumption, according to Energy Department statistics.

Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, chosen to deliver the response for the Democrats, scolded Bush on the soaring national debt, the frustrated effort to rebuild the hurricane-battered Gulf Coast, Medicaid cuts and other issues. On Iraq, Kaine said that Americans were given "inaccurate information about the reasons for invading" and that troops were given body armor that was inadequate.

"The federal government should serve the American people," the newly elected governor said. "But that mission is frustrated by this administration's poor choices and bad management.

Bush divided his address between problems at home and abroad.

With the war in Iraq about to enter its fourth year and more than 2,240 American troops killed, Bush said the nation must not falter in what he called the central front in the war on terror. Bush did not offer any timetable for bringing American troops home from Iraq. There are about 138,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, down from about 160,000 at the time of the January elections.

Despite recent elections in Iraq, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories that have given rise to religious-based parties with views sometimes hostile to the West, Bush pressed Saudi Arabia and Egypt _ longtime allies that Washington is loath to challenge too aggressively _ to provide greater freedoms to their citizens.

He urged Hamas to "recognize Israel, disarm, reject terrorism and work for lasting peace."

Bush said the United States and its allies were united in insisting that Iran not develop nuclear weapons. Speaking directly to the Iranian people, Bush looked toward a different future for their country and said the United States "hopes one day to be the closest of friends with a free and democratic Iran."

The president renewed his oft-stated goal for Congress to make permanent the tax cuts enacted during his presidency.

"If we do nothing, American families will face a massive tax increase they do not expect and will not welcome," he said.

The administration is on shaky legal ground. Last week, the Justice Department issued a 42-page analysis declaring the President "will exercise all authority available to him, consistent with the Constitution, to protect the people of the United States."

The Justice Department brief also contended that some presidential powers are simply "beyond congressional ability to regulate."

But the law is the law. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 -- which was enacted after in-depth congressional hearings on domestic spying-- established a special court to issue warrants for electronic eavesdropping on suspected foreign agents inside the United States.

So far, that court has been basically a rubber stamp for government petitions, rarely turning down a request at crisis times. The court permits emergency wiretaps without court approval for up to 72 hours.

If court procedures tie law enforcement's hands, Congress is open to fixing it. "I know of no member of Congress, frankly, who, if the administration came and said, 'Here's why we need this capability,' that they wouldn't get it," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

But the Bush administration wanted unfettered freedom to spy on who they want, when they want, with no legal constraints whatsoever.

The President and his cohorts are engaged in a full court press to justify their dubious legal position.

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold hearings on domestic spying Feb. 6. But if this GOP-run Congress runs true to form, Bush will have clear sailing.

In an appearance at Kansas State University earlier this week, President Bush claimed that the post-9/11 congressional resolution provided him with all the justification he needed.

"Congress gave me the authority to use necessary force to protect the American people, but it didn't prescribe the tactics," Bush said. "It said, 'Mr. President, you've got the power to protect us, but we're not going to tell you how.' "

Bush's stand is all too reminiscent of former President Richard Nixon who said during the unraveling of the Watergate scandal: "If a president does it, it's not illegal."

Bush might take note that the Supreme Court and Congress said otherwise, leading to Nixon's resignation from the highest office in the land in 1974.

The Democrats, silent for too long, are finally stepping up to the plate, with former Vice President Al Gore leading the charge.

Gore -- who lost out to Bush in the presidential race in 2000 -- is loud and clear, standing with the growing number of critics.

"A president who breaks the law is a threat to the very structure of our government," Gore said. He called for the appointment of a special counsel to investigate Bush's domestic spying.

Gore called the spying "a shameful exercise of power." Helen Thomas can be reached at (202) 263-6400 or at the e-mail address hthomas@hearstdc.com.

A State of the Union address is always an important psychological moment ­ but never more so than this year, as Mr Bush attempts to recover from a disastrous 2005, and boost morale in Republican ranks before this autumn's mid-term elections in which Democrats hope to make major gains.

In recent weeks his approval ratings have hovered around 40 per cent, the lowest at this stage in a presidency for any incumbent since Richard Nixon at the height of the Watergate scandal. But Mr Bush won a significant victory when the Senate confirmed Samuel Alito to the US Supreme Court, tilting the country's highest judicial body to the right.

The vote was highly partisan, as all but one of the Senate's 55 Republicans voted in favour of Judge Alito, and only four of the Democratic minority broke party ranks to support him. He was eventually approved by 58 votes to 42, the tightest margin for a Supreme Court nominee in almost 15 years.

But however narrow, the result was sweet for Mr Bush. Last night the new Justice was in the chamber of the House of Representatives to listen to Mr Bush speak, along with his new colleagues ­ among them John Roberts, who took over as Chief Justice last autumn after the death of William Rehnquist.

Both newcomers are conservatives. As lifelong appointees to a court whose role as arbiter of America's culture wars is steadily increasing, they represent a Bush legacy both longer lasting and more substantial than anything the President was expected to say last night.

Even before the speech, White House officials made clear that given the current $350bn-plus federal budget deficit, the speech would contain no major spending initiatives on the domestic front. But Mr Bush is making a new push for individual health savings accounts, in a bid to impose a measure of control on runaway US health care spending, now accounting for $1.6trn, an unprecedented 16 per cent of GDP.

On the foreign front the most keenly anticipated sections of the speech were to deal with Iran's nuclear programme and the Hamas victory in last month's Palestinian elections.

This fifth State of the Union, marking the start of the President's sixth year in office, is in practice the last in which Mr Bush can hope to impose his will on domestic politics. After the mid-term vote, the focus switches to the battle to succeed him.

His Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, dined in London last night with the other foreign ministers of the UN Security Council's veto-holding powers plus Germany. They discussed whether to press ahead with plans to refer Iran to the Security Council for possible sanctions over its nuclear ambitions later this week. President Bush may also talk about the broader issue of peace in the Middle East, and the Palestinian elections that produced the shock Hamas victory.

"The actions we take in our own country or elsewhere help define America to others, and that's why it's important for us to constantly remind people that we have got a wonderful heart and we are a compassionate nation," Mr Bush said in an interview with CBS television looking ahead to his speech.

With opinion polls showing Mr Bush's approval rating at 42 per cent ­ a dozen points lower than it was this time last year ­ the central question remains whether the President has the capacity to turn around public opinion. Crucially for Republican members of Congress, can Mr Bush do anything to help shore up their defences ahead of November's election which could see them lose either ­ or both ­ the House and Senate?

"In terms of politics, it has been his worst year," said Larry Sabato, professor of politics at the University of Virginia. "So many bad things have happened that he has been unable to [handle] ­ Katrina, the decline in Iraq, pieces of the economy that are not working ... Two-thirds of people think the country is on the wrong track. There is a lot of discontent out there, both [about] foreign and domestic [issues]."

Observers say that if Democrats gain control of the House or Senate, they are likely to instigate a series of investigations into issues such as the handling of Hurricane Katrina and the White House's relationship with lobbyists that would all but cripple the administration.

Stephen Hess, who was involved in writing three State of the Union speeches for President Eisenhower and is currently a professor at George Washington University, said: "His main concern has to be retaining Congress, where both houses have just a slim margin. If he loses even one, in political terms he's toast."

When Mr Bush delivered last year's speech he had just been re-elected and his delivery outlined ambitious aims and a vision for his second term. But in the past 12 months he has watched as his plan to privatise social security has crumbled and his purported ambition of spreading democracy around the world has proved to be at best a double-edged sword.

At home, Mr Bush and his administration have been embroiled in various problems, ranging from the outcry over the revelation about the President's authorisation of a domestic spying programme to the indictment of the senior White House aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby over his alleged involvement in the leaking of the identity of an undercover CIA operative.

At the same time, while many experts say the US economy is performing well, polls suggest few people are giving Mr Bush any credit for that. His personal approval rating is the worst for a president entering his sixth year in office since Richard Nixon was mired in the Watergate scandal, and a recent poll commissioned by ABC/The Washington Post suggests that more than half of voters disapprove of his performance in eight out of nine policy areas, ranging from Iraq to immigration to health care.

On a more positive note for the President, nearly two-thirds of Americans believe the country is safer now than before 11 September 2001, and 53 per cent believe the war in Iraq has improved the nation's long-term security.

Mr Bush is also likely to get a pre-speech boost today with the expected confirmation of his choice for the Supreme Court vacancy, Judge Samuel Alito.

President Bush's previous State of the Union addresses

2005

Buoyed by his re-election to office for a second term, Mr Bush's 2005 State of the Union address strikes a confident and belligerent note. The two main themes are a continuation of his dramatic and idealistic hopes for democracy in the Middle East, and an ambitious domestic agenda.

2004

Mr Bush goes on the defensive over US policy in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the Patriot Act, warning of further terrorist attacks on US soil.

2003

Three months before the invasion of Iraq, Mr Bush lambasts Saddam Hussein's " utter contempt for the UN" and warns Iraq could pass weapons of mass destruction to terrorists.

2002

Mr Bush coins the 'Axis of Evil' for those states that his administration suspects of supporting terrorists - Iran, Iraq and North Korea.

Americans reacted with skepticism and anger at President Bush's fifth State of the Union address Tuesday night, reflecting a national mood that reflects serious reservations about the controversial war in Iraq, revelations about the administration's secret domestic spying program, and missteps following Hurricane Katrina.

At an Uptown neighborhood bar in New Orleans, both Republicans and Democrats paused to watch with at least one common hope: Rebuilding the Gulf Coast will be a top issue for the federal government.

But neither Tom Short, 75, a Republican and a Korean War veteran, nor attorney Todd Hebert, 38, a Democrat, found much to cheer about in Bush's address.

After Bush mentioned the Gulf Coast in one or two sentences deep into his speech, Short exclaimed, "Did I miss something? I think that's a crying shame."

Hebert was just as dismayed. Throughout the speech, he had been looking at his watch to see how long it would take Bush to mention the wrecked area.

"We are some of the most devastated people in a country right now and we're really feeling left behind. And that speech did nothing to make us not feel left behind."

In Souwest Ohio, the president's description of the economy as "healthy, and vigorous, and growing" didn't sit well with one auto worker, where the financial troubles of General Motors Corp. and parts supplier Delphi Corp. have been keenly felt.

"As an auto worker, no, it's not going OK, because we're losing a lot of jobs," said 49-year-old Dave Shores as Bush's speech competed with classic rock and the crack of pool balls at the Upper Deck Tavern in this Dayton suburb.

Blue jeans and black leather jackets are the fashion of choice at a modest bar in Moraine, which has NASCAR posters on its walls, drifting cigarette smoke and sits in the shadow of a GM plant that cranks out SUVs.

Shores is a union member and registered Democrat who has worked for 30 years at auto parts supplier Delphi, which filed for bankruptcy last year. He said his plant employed 4,000 people a few years ago, but now has just 1,500.

"Can I blame that on George Bush? No, not all of it," he said, before noting that Bush's policies have made it easier for American companies to move jobs overseas.

"George Bush has helped open those gates to let them go," Shores said.

At a private home tucked in a quiet neighborhood in central Orange County, California, about two dozen people gathered to watch over tacos and potato chips.

Julie Carlson, 29-year-old social worker, said she felt "negative" about the overall state of the nation. She said her biggest concern was bringing home U.S. troops from Iraq and had grown more uneasy with the conflict as time passed.

"I don't understand the true reasons for why we're there and I feel like we were mislead. There doesn't seem to be any rational," said Carlson, a Democrat.

Carlson also said she was concerned about health care and Medicare reform because she works primarily with senior citizens. "There seems to be every week something that comes up, something I don't agree with or something that disheartens me," she said.

In Richmond, VA, Bush did nothing to calm the fears of Anne Jowaisas, a 38-year-old nanny who identified herself as an independent and voted for John Kerry in 2004.

"In terms of his speech, it was a good speech and he delivered it pretty strongly," said Jowaisas. "But I had a lot of skepticism what he had to say."

She said that Bush's plan to reduce the deficit by 2009 by cutting programs raised plenty of questions, asking, "how is all this going to balance out?"

Jowaisas said that despite the president's low approval ratings, the country "is going in a Bush direction" and believes the religious right has too much influence in Washington, D.C.

"It's not a democracy anymore. It's special interest groups," she said.

As a retired accountant and a World War II veteran, Joe Benavidez of Albuquerque, NM, has two big worries on his mind: the national budget and the war in Iraq.

"The nation is going broke. We get into debt every day with this war," said Benavidez, 84. "Veterans are not going to get what they want or what they need. They're going to cut veteran benefits. They're going to cut welfare, lots of things."

When it came to Bush talking about reducing the deficit by 2009, Benavidez gave a slight chuckle. He said he's heard that promise before by past presidents with no results.

"He wants to cut taxes and do good on the deficit? How do you do that? He'll cut a lot of programs -- programs people need. Talk is cheap," he said.

In St. Louis, MO, Diana Jenkins watched the speech in a downtown bar and wasn't impressed.

"The man is a crook," she said. "He belongs in jail, not the White House."

© Copyright 2006 by Capitol Hill Blue

Wiretaps: Two Who Got Away - President Bush— unawares?— trumpets botched case
by James Ridgeway
December 19th, 2005 2:00 PM

WASHINGTON, D.C.—When President Bush acknowledged ordering the National Security Agency to intercept domestic phone communications between terrorists here and terrorists abroad, he gave as an example the activities of two hijackers who lived in the U.S. prior to the attacks.

"As the 9-11 Commission pointed out, it was clear that terrorists inside the United States were communicating with terrorists abroad before the Sept. 11 attacks,’’ Bush said in his radio broadcast on Saturday. "Two of the terrorist hijackers who flew a jet into the Pentagon, Nawaf al-Hamzi and Khalid al-Mihdar, communicated while they were in the United States, to other members of al Qaeda who were overseas. But we didn’t know they were here until it was too late."

The president left out an essential part of the story. Al-Hamzi and al-Mihdar were known to the CIA, and al-Mihdar, a veteran who had fought for al Qaeda in Bosnia and Chechnya, was living in an al Qaeda safe house in Yemen in 1999-2000. The NSA, through an intercept on this house, learned that al Qaeda would have an important secret meeting in Kuala Lumpur in January 2000, and that al-Mihdar was going to it.

The CIA promptly put al-Mihdar under surveillance, but lost him on the way to Malaysia. There he met up with al-Hamzi. The CIA knew this meeting was important, but didn’t bug it. Agents did spot al-Hamzi and al-Mihdar and another man getting on a plane for Bangkok, but lost them.

The two hijackers easily entered the U.S. and settled in San Diego. By this time, the CIA and NSA had gathered sufficient information on the two to connect them to the African embassy bombings, the attack on the USS Cole, and to Bin Laden himself, according to the Congressional Joint investigation. The Joint Inquiry Report of the Congress found there were at least three occasions when these two should have been put on the State Department’s watch list along with those for INS and Customs.

In San Diego, the two men lived openly, obtained Social Security cards,drivers’s licenses and credit cards. They had contact with a leader of the Saudi community who would be exposed as a possible conduit for money for the hijackings. They moved into an apartment rented to them by Abdussattar Shaikh, an Indian-born Muslim and paid FBI informant charged with monitoring that city’s Saudi population. All of this either never got to the FBI or got buried in its files. (For a detailed chronology of the Shaikh matter, see Paul Thompson’s 9- 11 Timeline.

Al-Hamzi and al-Mihdar eventually left to take up attack positions in the East.

That saga is bad enough. But when the Congressional Joint Inquiry sought to question the FBI informant in San Diego, the Bureau refused to make him available. FBI officials would not accept a subpoena for the informant’s testimony, and they moved him to a undisclosed location. Meetings between top FBI and Justice officials with leaders of the Congressional inquiry came to naught.

So in defending his program of wiretapping phones without a court warrant, President Bush may have unwittingly used an example that shows not the lack of American spy information—but rather illustrates the incompetence of top officials in his own administration to act on it.

Bush stated that previous presidents had used this power but this is patently false.

In the past, president’s have used the authority to wiretap FOREIGN individuals, NOT Americans.

He further stated that he had the statutory authority to engage in the wiretapping but this is also untrue. He appears to be basing his authority on the Congressional mandate to have him pursue the war on terror.

Congresspersons from both sides of the aisle have denounced this notion is absurd. The fact is that Bush was not given any such mandate to bypass congressional oversight and violate the federal law.

Lastly, to further justify this illegal activity, the president made the erroneous claim that if this wiretapping had existed prior to 9-11, we would have been able to prevent two of the hijackers and possibly thwarted that horrible day.

Playing upon the fear and sadness of a nation, Bush grossly misrepresented the truth on this matter. We knew about these two terrorists prior to 9-11 and it has already been confirmed that it was bureaucratic problems that prevented their detention. Bush himself was also briefed on the al Qaeda’s plans, but went on vacation.

The larger issue though on this point as well as all of Bush’s rhetoric in regards to the NSA spy scandal, is that no one is suggesting al Qaeda spying should be shut down, just that Bush should follow the law.

Prior to the Bush administration, there were over 19,000 requests to the secret FISA court for wiretaps and only FIVE were denied. This court also allows a president to start a wiretap and seek court approval within 36 hours.

No, there is no excuse for why this president chose to violate the federal law and then brag about it to the nation. Faced with the mounting criticism Bush is left with no choice but to wrap up his illegal spying in 9-11 and pray that America falls for it again.

The Economy – Never one to be bothered with facts, the president proceeded to parrot the right-wing talking points about the economy being somehow “robust”. Nonsense.

Job growth under Bush remains the lowest since World War II.

Bush likes to talk about the tax cuts as being helpful, without addressing the fact that the deficits they create negate any potential gains. Further, they are grossly skewed to the richest Americans, a revival of the failed Reagonomics, or “trickle-down” economics, which Bush’s father once correctly referred to as “voodoo economics.” The fact is that rich people do not become rich by giving their money to the poor.

Bush insisted again tonight to make these irresponsible tax cuts permanent, but did not mention that would cost this country 3.4 trillion more dollars over the next ten years. The Urban Institute-Brookings Institution Tax Policy Center has summed up the effect of making these unfair cuts permanent as such, “If Bush’s tax cuts are made permanent, the top one percent of households will gain an average of $71,420 a year when the tax cuts are fully in effect. By contrast, people in the middle of the income spectrum would secure average tax cuts of just $870.” The Bush folks will scream class warfare when presented with these facts. Nonsense again. These are the numbers period, they do not lie.

Real people know this economy is not growing. The jobs touted by the president tonight still are not enough to stem the tide of a collapsing economy. The jobs created today are not comparable to those created in administration’s past and the cost of healthcare has risen to unaffordable rates. Faced with these sobering facts, the president chose to face America tonight and tell you that you are mistaken; the economy is doing just fine. This despite the poverty rate increasing each year under Bush with 12.7% of the population living in poverty today.

Corruption – The president tonight spoke tough on corruption. Nice sound bites to placate a public he thinks will continue to buy the snake oil he sells. The facts are that his administration has repeatedly stalled investigations into the Katrina aftermath, has not cooperated with the Plamegate CIA leak scandal, and not been forthcoming about his own involvement with disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff. There is a culture of corruption in the Republican Party and Bush is the leader of that culture. His regime has seen cronyism at nauseating levels, which directly resulted in the Katrina aftermath and the loss of life that ensued. Again, it is about saying the right things for the camera, and then having Scott McClellan say “no comment” the next day. America is weary of this nonsense.

Education – Only this president would have the hubris to trumpet his commitment to education only three weeks after he sliced 14 billion from Pell Grants and has devastated the federal student loan program. You must realize that when President Bush brags about cutting programs, these are often vital services that the neediest in this country need. There are real people behind the cuts. His No Child Left Behind initiative has been massively under-funded, leading most localities to speak out against it. This president remains a massive failure on education. His fiscal year 2006 budget called for the first reduction in education spending in a decade.

There were so many other issues tonight the president was misleading on. As well as issues not even addressed like the environment and the growing problems with his failed Medicare prescription drug catastrophe. The numbers however, bear out what this president stands for. In dealing with his war and national security President Bush used the word “terror” nineteen times and “democracy” only three times. A telling statistic for the president who sells himself as a champion of democracy, but only sells us fear. What I am left with however to truly capture this administration is what happened before the president walked into the room. Cindy Sheehan was arrested and removed from the gallery in handcuffs. Cindy Sheehan, who gave the life of her son to this country and was an invited guest of her local Congresswoman, was dragged out of the people’s house in chains. Why? Because she had the temerity to wear a tee shirt that read, “2245, How Many More?” The shirt referenced the amount of dead American soldiers in Iraq. When smiling pretty for the cameras, Bush can’t allow the truth to interfere with the rhetoric of a vacuous presidency that no longer has the credibility to sell us the snake oil we are no longer buying. Don’t hold him to his word America, hold him to his actions.

Anthony Wade, a contributing writer to opednews.com, is dedicated to educating the populace to the lies and abuses of the government. He is a 37-year-old independent writer from New York with political commentary articles seen on multiple websites. A Christian progressive and professional Rehabilitation Counselor working with the poor and disabled, Mr. Wade believes that you can have faith and hold elected officials accountable for lies and excess. Anthony Wade’s Archive: Email Anthony: takebacktheus@gmail.com

WASHINGTON (AP) - The state of the union is fretful. President Bush acknowledged the public's agitated state Tuesday night when he gave voice to growing concerns about the course of the nation he has led for five years.

His credibility no longer the asset it once was, the president begged Americans' indulgence for another chance to fix things.

There is no shortage: the Iraq war, global terrorism, a nuclear Iran, a stingy global economy, skyrocketing health care costs, troubled U.S. schools, rising fuel costs, looming budget deficits and government corruption. All received presidential attention Tuesday night.

In his fifth State of the Union address, Bush sought to balance his usual optimistic message with an odd-fitting acknowledgment that many Americans are suffering beneath a crush of change.

``Fellow citizens, we have been called to leadership in a period of consequence. We have entered a great ideological conflict we did nothing to invite,'' Bush said. ``We see great changes in science and commerce that will influence all our lives. And sometimes it can seem that history is turning a wide arc, toward an unknown shore.''

Unknown and uneasy.

The problem for Bush is that few of these troubles are new. He's had four years to ease people's pain.

Nearly 46 million Americans have no health insurance, up nearly a million in the last year. Health care costs are increasing three or four times the rate of inflation.

One of Bush's first successes of his presidency was the 2002 No Child Left Behind, but parents still wonder about the quality of education in their schools. For the first time in generations, American children could face poorer prospects than their parents and grandparents did.

Calling for less dependency on foreign oil is a State of the Union evergreen. Bush has done so in every address.

The president who promised to be a uniter, not a divider, has presided over the hyper-polarization of Washington.

Osama bin Laden has not been caught.

Weapons of mass destruction were not found in Iraq.

Victory in that war seems elusive, with more than 2,240 American troops killed - and counting.

The solutions Bush offered were relatively small-bore and wrapped in familiar language: tax cuts, health savings accounts, alternative energy research and investments in education to help keep America competitive with emerging democracies; and a stay-the-course approach to fighting terrorism.

In a preview of his November election strategy, Bush accused foreign policy critics of ``defeatism.'' He also took a jab at critics in his own party on immigration and trade.

Bush's goal in the address was to acknowledge the public's concerns, and if not solve their every problem, assure them he will try to do better.

``He's learned that the election is over - and now he's free to acknowledge that course change doesn't necessarily mean a mistake,'' said Republican consultant Rich Galen.

Bush spoke of the global economy and suggested that competitors like China and India are making gains on the United States. ``This creates an uncertainty, which makes it easier to feed people's fears.''

He said violent crime, abortions and teenage pregnancies are down in an era that has seen Americans take more responsibility - ``a revolution of conscience'' he called it. ``Yet many Americans, especially parents, still have deep concerns about the direction of our culture, and the health of our basic institutions,'' he said.

The mood of the nation is unsettled. Nearly 7 of 10 American believes the country is headed in the wrong direction. Bush's job approval ratings are among the lowest of his presidency.

At the core of his political problems is his loss of credibility. Most voters believed he was a strong and principled leader in 2004, leading many to support him despite their opposition to the Iraq war and a sluggish economy.

They are no longer giving him the benefit of the doubt.

The proportion of Americans who credit the president with being honest and straightforward has fallen, as has the percentage who credit him for strong leadership qualities.

Democrats hope those numbers don't change after Bush's address. ``It's an attempt to make himself healthy before the mid-terms,'' said Democratic strategies Dane Strother. Americans may be anxious, he said, ``but they're not dumb.''

EDITOR'S NOTE: Ron Fournier has covered the White House and politics for The Associated Press since 1992.

Twenty mentions of "hope" or "hopeful".. which I guess is a shout out to the 58% of Americans who disapprove of him - and who can look hope for the day when we no longer have to listen to him.

Wow, trying to equate "staying the course" in Iraq with Lincoln fighting slavery, Martin Luther King not stopping in Birmingham or Selma, and American surrendering Europe to Communism. Chutzpah, indeed!

I love that the biggest applause line of the night was an unintentional one, the spontaneous clapping that followed his mention of the fact that Congress hadn't acted on his Social Security plan. Bush looked flustered, unsure how to respond. Sitting next to me was actor (and HuffPost blogger) Paul Hipp who said: "Next time I want a president who can improv!"

I'm pretty sure this was the first State of the Union speech with the words "wood chips" and "switch grass,"...but, of course, even those were surrounded by lies, too.

"So we strive to be a compassionate, decent, hopeful society."

It's the Return of the "C" word. Compassion. Too bad Katrina wasn't spelled C-A-T-R-I-N-A

Lots of talk about isolationism (indeed 5 mentions of either "isolationism", "isolating", or "isolation"). He is clearly afraid that the American DNA is so solidly against imperial adventures that protecting the U.S. homeland first is going to become a huge populist issue if only some Democrat would take it up. He calls it "isolationism", we call it minding our own business and there are millions of us in the red states, too.

"Our economy is healthy, and vigorous, and growing faster than other major industrialized nations."

Don't believe the hype. Yes, the GDP grew 3.5 percent in 2005 (though it was only up 1.1 percent in the last quarter). And, yes, productivity is up. But median wages fell, our trade deficit is over $760 billion (80 percent higher than when you took office), inflation is at 3.4 percent, the highest it's been in half-a-decade, and the gap between the Two Nations is wider than ever. Not exactly figures to crow about.

The President just delivered the biggest lie of the speech, claiming a "clear plan for victory" in Iraq. I think I even saw Hastert do a spit take on that one.

"If we were to leave these vicious attackers alone, they would not leave us alone. They would simply move the battlefield to our own shores."

Ah, yes.. the Flypaper strategy: Fight 'em over there, so we won't have to fight 'em over here. But Osama seems intent on moving the battlefield to our shores whether we're in Iraq or not.

"In this decisive year, you and I will make choices that determine both the future and the character of our country. We will choose to act confidently in pursuing the enemies of freedom - or retreat from our duties in the hope of an easier life."

Whoever asked for an easier life? Just the opposite, we've been waiting to be asked to sacrifice -- to help fight the war on terror, to help break our dependence on foreign oil. But the only thing this president has asked us to do is go shopping and go to Disney World. Of course, he has asked for the sacrifice of the troops who have had to go into battle under prepared and under equipped.

"The only way to protect our people ... the only way to secure the peace ... the only way to control our destiny is by our leadership - so the United States of America will continue to lead."

And by leading, he means doing whatever the hell we want, whenever we want... the scorn of the rest of the world be damned.

"Abroad, our Nation is committed to an historic, long-term goal - we seek the end of tyranny in our world... the future security of America depends on it."

Ah, a return to the soaring rhetoric of his inaugural speech. Rhetoric he conveniently forgets about when dealing with those he wants to do business with like the Chinese government.