Bush Implores Congress To Move Quickly On Stimulus

White Sulphur Springs, W. Va. - President Bush urged Congress on Friday to approve the recently brokered package of tax rebates and investment incentives "as quickly as possible."

During a brief speech to House Republicans at their annual retreat here at the stately Greenbrier Resort, Bush also warned lawmakers from adding provisions to the $150 billion stimulus package that would delay the legislation in either chamber, a challenge aimed more at senators who did not attend the West Virginia retreat.

"Congress should move it quickly," Bush told the assembled lawmakers and their family in the Greenbrier's cavernous ballroom. "I understand the desire to add provisions from both the right and the left. I strongly believe it would be a mistake to delay or derail this bill."

House leaders scrambled to negotiate the package before partisan sniping at internal demands complicated their efforts to assemble narrow legislation members would approve. The task grows more complicated in the Senate, where lawmakers have already signaled their desire to add provisions that colleagues may not support.

The president said Friday he would like Congress to approve additional legislation to help the sagging economy. In a nod to his conservative colleagues, Bush implored lawmakers to extend a series of tax cuts that are set to expire in 2010 as another spur for the economy. "The best thing we can do to deal with uncertainty in the economy is make the tax cuts we passed permanent," Bush said in a line that drew heavy applause.

The president and congressional Republicans agreed early in the negotiations to leave the tax cuts out of the current package, which provides rebates of $300 for individuals at the lowest end of the income scale, $600 for individuals and up to $1,200 for families.

Bush also took a shot at majority Democrats by imploring Congress to extend a law that allows intelligence agencies to monitor the electronic communications of suspected terrorists abroad. "The bill is set to expire in seven days," Bush said. "The threat to America does not expire in seven days."

The president said both issues would figure prominently in his State of the Union speech Monday night.