Bush: War reshaping U.S. tactics

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- President Bush said Tuesday that the continuing terrorist threat will force a reshaping of military tactics as dramatic as during World War II, and warned that an urgent new emphasis on technology and intelligence will force the jettisoning of popular bases and weapons.

Bush went before an audience of cheering, whistling cadets at the Citadel to make the case to Congress and the country for dramatically different -- and, perhaps, dramatically more -- military spending in the budget he will propose in February. The president compared the changes he envisions to "overhauling a car engine while you're going at 80 miles an hour," but said the nation has no choice.

"The course we follow is a matter of profound consequence to many nations," he said. "If America wavers, the world will lose heart. If America leads, the world will show its courage. America will never waver. America will lead the world to peace."

The president spoke three months after Sept. 11 attacks, using his afternoon address to promise a fierce defense of the nation after taking a softer tone during a morning White House ceremony. Bush, reminding the cadets how decisively the Pearl Harbor attack of Dec. 7, 1941, changed the nation, said Sept. 11 "set another dividing line in our lives and in the life of our nation."

"An illusion of immunity was shattered, a faraway evil became a present danger and a great cause became clear," he said. "We will fight terror and those who sponsor it to save our children from a future of fear. To win this war, we have to think differently."

The Citadel also was the site of Bush's major defense policy speech as a Texas governor running for president, on Sept. 23, 1999, more than four months before the New Hampshire primary. In that speech, "A Period of Consequences," Bush offered repeated warnings about terrorism.

Bush didn't give new specifics about his plans Tuesday, but made it clear he'll continue his effort to transform the military into a lighter, more agile force. He promised the change during his campaign but had encountered resistance at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill before Sept. 11.

Pausing often for applause, Bush said the combination of "real-time intelligence, local allied forces, Special Forces and precision airpower" that shattered the Taliban regime "has really never been used before." He singled out the Predator and the Global Hawk, both unmanned surveillance planes, as examples of systems that will be crucial to future conflicts.

"The conflict in Afghanistan has taught us more about the future of our military than a decade of blue-ribbon panels and think-tank symposiums," he said. "Our military has a new and essential mission: For states that support terror, it's not enough that the consequences be costly; they must be devastating.

Speaking to the 1,900 cadets in the Citadel fieldhouse, Bush listed three priorities: speeding the transformation of the military; protecting against proliferation of weapons of mass destruction -- nuclear, chemical and biological; and strengthening the advantage that intelligence gives the country.

Bush offers concessions on economic plan

WASHINGTON -- President Bush offered Tuesday to scale back tax cuts and beef up aid to the jobless in a bid to compromise with Democrats on an economic stimulus package. Democrats made concessions as well but continued to oppose GOP income tax cuts.

Taken together, the developments raised prospects that Congress will enact legislation to bolster the languishing economy before recessing for the year. Negotiations broke down last week during a flare-up of partisan acrimony.

Bush's revised proposal, which congressional sources estimated would cost $93-billion in 2002 and $135-billion over 10 years, would extend unemployment benefits by 13 weeks and increase health care assistance for the jobless, partly through a tax credit for some insurance premiums.

The president also will accept a compromise that reduces the 27 percent income tax rate to 25 percent in 2002.

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