Speech pleases Utah delegation

Members of Utah's congressional delegation were encouraged by President Bush's final State of the Union address Monday evening, especially his attention to the nation's faltering economy.

"I liked that he started by talking about the issue of the day, the economy," said Rep. Jim Matheson, the only Democrat in the delegation. "What I liked about it was that this was an effort that was conducted in a bipartisan way."

Bush, who is in the final year of his second term, is dealing with a Democratic-controlled Congress. Utahns in Congress said the president clearly recognized there would be little opportunity to push new proposals.

So when it came to the economy, the president spoke of the stimulus package agreed to by both Democratic and Republican leaders. But he also called for the continuation of his tax cuts aimed at the middle class, something not popular with Democrats.

"I'm hopeful we can keep those reductions alive because that's what really has helped the economy," Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said. "He knows this is the last year of his presidency and he's not going to get through any new initiatives."

Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, praised the president for promising to veto any bill raising taxes. "I was so proud of that," Bishop said, adding that any long-term economic fix requires those tax cuts to be made permanent.

Much of Bush's speech was devoted to foreign rather than domestic policy, especially the war in Iraq. "The president is concerned about the economy, but it's not his legacy," said Rep. Chris Cannon , R-Utah. "I think he sees it as something that resolves itself fairly quickly."

The focus on what the country has done since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks reflect what Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, said amounted to a farewell speech — with a bit of a jab at Democrats.

"He outlined everything he's done in the seven years that he's proud of. He didn't back down from the positions he's taken in those seven years, either at home or abroad," Bennett said.

The president "really stung the Democrats a little" by asking for his tax cuts to be extended, Bennett said, even though there is little chance the current Congress will be interested.

"But he didn't seem to care," Bennett said. "He kind of laid it down as a gauntlet in the midst of this talk about economic stimulus."

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