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Bush to Congress: 'Get to work'
©Washington Post published November 1, 2001 WASHINGTON -- President Bush said Wednesday he was "deeply concerned" about figures showing the economy slipping toward recession, and he demanded that Congress get an economic recovery package "to my desk before the end of November." "My call to Congress is: Get to work and get something done," the president said at a White House meeting with the National Association of Manufacturers. Aides said Bush's urgency reflects the increasingly grim news about consumer confidence and economic activity, which makes it likely the economy will slip into a full-fledged recession in the current quarter. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill said Wednesday that there's "still a plausible argument" that growth could resume in the current quarter if Congress acts quickly on a stimulus package. At the same time, Bush aides said they had no intention of negotiating with Congress on a stimulus package before the Senate passes its own legislation. The House, along party lines, last week narrowly approved an economic stimulus package that emphasizes corporate and individual tax cuts. The legislation has stalled in the Senate, where Democrats favor more spending, particularly for the jobless. "The president will, of course, talk to Congress about the final details of it, but you can't talk about the final details of it until and unless the Senate acts," White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said Wednesday. Fleischer indicated no willingness by the White House to budge on Democratic demands for more spending for the unemployed. Pointing to an October agreement to limit fiscal 2002 appropriations to $686-billion, Fleischer said: "The president knows he has an agreement with Congress and he expects that promise to be kept." Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., was equally insistent on more spending for the jobless. "We will fight with all that we've got to ensure that the unemployment compensation and health benefits are covered in any economic plan that the Congress passes," he said. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said he'll seek a vote on a stimulus measure in the committee Tuesday. Baucus met Wednesday night with Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa, ranking Republican on the committee. Republicans have dismissed Baucus' proposal, and Democrats have dismissed Grassley's plan. The only item common to all of the proposals is about $14-billion in tax rebates for people who earned too little money to qualify for an advance tax refund over the summer. Democrats are pushing for more money for idled workers, especially to help pay health insurance, while Republicans favor tax cuts aimed at businesses and upper-income individuals. Democrats also say they would like to limit the cost of the package to around $75-billion, both in the first year and over the next decade. The GOP proposals would reduce revenues by about $100-billion in the first year and $200-billion in the next 10 years. The president has said that about $75-billion in the first year should be tax cuts, arguing that Congress has already spent $55-billion in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, mostly to aid New York and the airline industry. Democrats, however, appear willing to give businesses the ability to write off new investments more quickly, and Republicans appear open to greatly increasing the size of health insurance payments proposed by the president. Democrats also may allow a stimulus package to pass without all the spending they desire and try to add spending later. Democrats want to spend an additional $15-billion to $20-billion on counterterrorism measures.
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