Bush Vows to Fight Terror, Recession in State of the Union Address

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Wednesday, January 30, 2002

Bush Vows to Fight Terror, Recession in State of the Union Address

U.S. President George W. Bush, in his State of the Union address to air Tuesday night, vowed that his administration would fight terrorism and recession with equal vigor.

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U.S. President George W. Bush, in his State of the Union address to air Tuesday night, vowed that his administration would fight terrorism and recession with equal vigor.

"Our war against terror is only beginning," Bush said in excerpts of the speech released by the White House in advance.

Bush will deliver his first official State of the Union Address at 9:01 p.m. EST (0201 GMT).

"What we have found in Afghanistan confirms that -- far from ending there, our war against terror is only beginning," Bush said.

Visiting Interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai will be among the audience to listen to Bush's address at the House of Representatives Chamber.

Bush said most of the 19 men who hijacked planes on September 11 were trained in Afghanistan's camps, and so were tens of thousands of others.

He said the U.S. will be "steadfast, patient and persistent" in its efforts to shut down camps, to disrupt plans and bring suspected terrorists to justice, and to prevent "terrorists and regimes" who seek chemical, biological or nuclear weapons from threatening the world.

"The United States of America will not permit the world's most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world's most destructive weapons," he vowed.

Last week, Bush announced that he would propose a 50-billion-U.S.-dollar increase in military spending and a doubling of the homeland security budget to 38 billion dollars when he submits the fiscal 2003 budget to the Congress on February 4.

He pledged that homeland defense would focus on bioterrorism, emergency response, airport and border security and improved intelligence.

On the U.S. economy, Bush said that creating jobs will be his top domestic priority. "When America works, America prospers, so my economic security plan can be summed up in one word: jobs," he said.

Bush urged the Democratic-controlled Senate to pass his stimulus package that includes tax cuts for businesses and relief for unemployed workers.

Bush's aides said that the president will not mention Enron Corp.'s name in the speech, but he will urge the Congress to reform pension laws and require more financial disclosure by businesses.

Enron, the Texas-based energy company that backed Bush's political career, filed for bankruptcy on December 2 after unsuspecting workers and investors lost their jobs and savings.

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