White House Watch: Bush speech sparks debate
Sharp debates are going on among President Bush's advisers over the approach he should take in his prime-time address tonight. The fact that Bush agreed to the speech is considered proof that he realizes how much political trouble he's in for the slow and widely criticized federal response to Hurricane Katrina.
He is enduring the worst job-approval ratings of his presidency, partly because of the Katrina debacle but also, White House aides say, because of public discontent with his policy in Iraq and his inability to lower gasoline prices.
Some Bush advisers want the president to announce as sweeping an assistance package as possible to get the Gulf states back on their feet and to demonstrate empathy for hurricane victims. Others want him to make the relief effort an incubator for conservative ideas such as empowerment zones to encourage business reconstruction and public-private partnerships to help the region recover. Still others are advocating more innovative approaches, such as soliciting advice from Dutch experts who are intimately familiar with protecting inhabited land from the encroachments of the sea.
At the same time, some conservatives are warning against unlimited spending and urge restraint until the government can determine if the dollars will be well spent. Finally, it's generally agreed in the West Wing that Bush needs to do more of what he did Tuesday–accept responsibility for the failures of the federal disaster response.
"Everybody knows there were massive screw-ups," says a White House insider. "Bush needs to show that he recognizes it, too."
White House Watch keeps an eye focused on national politics and what's under discussion in the Bush administration.