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US President Addresses Military Support, Energy Crisis
US President Bush visited a marine base Tuesday during his first visit to California that has drawn strong protests for his reluctance to deal with the state's worsening electricity crisis.
In his speech before Marines and their families at Camp Pendleton, Bush stressed support for the nation's military forces before turning to measures to help California solve its energy crisis.
Bush's visit to California will also include a talk with California Governor Gray Davis late Tuesday in Los Angeles, focusing on the state's electricity problem.
Despite of the loud protests from many Californians, Bush said that he will not budge on the governor's call for price caps on wholesale electricity. At Camp Pendleton, he noted that the federal government is the biggest single consumer of electricity in California.
At the base where 50,000 Marines train for missions around the globe, Bush praised military and government personnel for exceeding the goal he set of a 10 percent cut in electricity use in the state. He also announced additional federal aid of 150 million dollars for assistance to low-income energy users.
He also said that the tax relief plan passed by Congress will give citizens some help in paying rising power bills.
Bush said that military personnel are entitled to better housing, better pay and better health care. He said he has also proposed another 1.4 billion dollars in pay for the military in addition to the increases already approved.
Bush's delayed visit to California after taking office has drawn widespread protests from Californians who charged that his delay was meant to retaliate for his crushing defeat by former Democrat Vice-President Al Gore in last year's elections.
About 100 protesters waved signs and shouted in support of rate caps at the gate of the Camp Pendleton Marine base. Protesters from the state Democratic Party, the Green Party and environmental, consumer and socialist organizations called on Bush to support capping energy prices that have soared since deregulation took effect in California last year.
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