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Bush's State of the Union Speech Warns of New Targets
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| Afghan Interim
President Hamid Karzai at Bush's State of the Union address |
WASHINGTON, Jan 29 (News Agencies) -
U.S. President George W. Bush on Tuesday threatened U.S. action against Iraq, Iran and North Korea, and promised to hunt terrorists hiding like "ticking time-bombs" across the globe, warning his war on terror had only just begun.
In his first State of the Union address, just four-and-a-half months after September 11 terror strikes convulsed his country, Bush predicted a victory for freedom, pledged to safeguard the U.S. homeland, and to revive the recession-choked economy.
"Our war on terror is well begun, but it is only begun," Bush said in the address to both houses of Congress, watched by millions of Americans who have endorsed his wartime leadership with astronomical approval ratings.
"The campaign may not be finished on our watch - yet it must be and it will be waged on our watch," Bush said, sparking rowdy cheers from leaders of all parties, with wrangles over the legitimacy of his 2000 election long forgotten.
Warning that he would not allow the "world's most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world's most dangerous weapons" Bush argued that Iraq, Iran and North Korea and their "terrorist allies constitute an axis of evil.
"By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger," he said. "They could provide these arms to terrorists, giving them the means to match their hatred.
"The price of indifference would be catastrophic."
"Time is not on our side. I will not wait on events, while dangers gather. I will not stand by, as peril draws closer and closer."
Raising the dire possibility of new attacks in the wake of the September 11 atrocities that killed more than 3,000 people, Bush promised a new drive to protect the U.S. homeland, following frightening discoveries in Afghanistan.
"We have found diagrams of American nuclear power plants and public water facilities - detailed instructions for making chemical weapons ... surveillance maps of American cities, and thorough descriptions of landmarks in America and throughout the world."
Bush, who welcomed interim Afghan leader Hamid Karzai to the address as his honored guest, celebrated the U.S. victories in Afghanistan over the Taliban militia.
"Terrorists who once occupied Afghanistan now occupy cells at Guantanamo Bay," he said, but warned that tens of thousands of trained terrorists were on the loose "like ticking time-bombs."
But the president never once mentioned the name of the top suspect in the September 11 terror attacks, Osama bin Laden, who has disappeared despite a huge manhunt in the wake of the ferocious U.S. assault on Afghanistan targeting his al-Qaeda network.
Remnants of al-Qaeda and the Taliban are still active in Afghanistan four months after U.S.-backed forces launched a military campaign to oust them from power. Training camps still exist in at least 12 other countries, Bush said.
The president however made no direct reference to the Middle East conflict, after weeks of piling pressure on Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, who Bush said has done too little to stifle "terrorism".
He also labeled the Palestinian resistance movement, Hamas, and the Lebanese resistance group, Hizbollah, as "terrorists".
Bush expanded on his theme of security to encompass the economy, urging Congress to bury partisan rancor and work with him by passing legislation to rescue the staggering economy.
"For the sake of American workers, let's pass a stimulus package."
The few clouds over Bush's young presidency have been the recession, and the scandal enveloping bankrupt energy giant Enron, which had close links to his administration and deprived thousands of people of their retirement savings when it collapsed.
Bush avoided a direct reference to the scandal, but called for reform of 401k pension plans and more accountability from corporate America.
The speech, an annual tradition for presidents, was punctuated by praise for guests in the gallery, a tradition introduced by former president Ronald Reagan. This year, Bush singled out ordinary heroes who have emerged since September 11.
They included Shannon Spann, wife of CIA office Johnny "Mike" Spann killed November 25 in a prison uprising in Mazar-i-Sharif and Hermis Moutardier, a flight attendant who helped thwart alleged shoe-bomber Richard Reid on a transatlantic flight December 22.
He also urged Americans to match the sacrifice of their soldiers, firefighters and police officers who perished in the World Trade Center disaster by taking on new roles in an emergent era of personal responsibility.
"We want to be a nation that serves goals larger than self. We have been offered a unique opportunity, and we must not let this moment pass," said Bush, who put behind him a reputedly wild youth to embrace responsibility and politics.
Bush announced the newly formed USA Freedom Corps would try to recruit 200,000 new volunteers, and asked each American to donate at least 4,000 hours of their lives to their fellow citizens.
He announced that America, under his command would rally to the side of brave men and women who reflect its values around the world, and noted that old rivals like Russia, China and India had rallied to the anti-terror cause.
"None of us would ever wish the evil that was done on September 11, yet after America was attacked, it was as if our entire country looked into a mirror and saw our better selves," Bush said.
"We began to think less of the goods we can accumulate and more about the good we can do," he said towards the end of a speech dominated by foreign policy - once viewed as the new president's weak point.
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