Bush Makes Pitch Again for Balanced-Budget Proposal : Economy: The nation’s debt has reached $4 trillion. Democrats say the President has ‘worst record in post-World War II era.’

President Bush, making another pitch for a balanced-budget amendment to the Constitution, said Saturday that “a spending riptide has us drowning in debt, dragging us further out to sea.”

“We’re fed up,” Bush said in a radio address to the nation. “ . . . It’s time to stop treating our federal Treasury like the corner cash machine.

“Over the years we’ve accumulated federal debt totaling $65,000 for every family of four. This debt doesn’t create more wealth, it merely helps pay for our current consumption. And that’s like taking out a car loan and never buying a car.”

In a Democratic response to the broadcast, House Budget Committee Chairman Leon E. Panetta (D-Carmel Valley) suggested that Bush’s appeal was merely “another ploy to draw attention from his political problems,” which include “the worst (economic) record of any President in the post-World War II era.”

Bush and his predecessor, Ronald Reagan, have supported a balanced-budget amendment for more than a decade. During that time, the federal deficit has skyrocketed, to a projected $400 billion this year, and the nation’s debt has reached $4 trillion.

“If they really believed a balanced budget should be enshrined in the Constitution, why has neither of them ever submitted a balanced budget to the Congress?” Panetta asked. “There’s nothing in the Constitution today that prevents the President from doing just that.”

At a news conference Thursday night, Bush said he has offered Congress a plan that would balance the budget within five years. The budget he submitted last January envisions annual deficits of at least $180 billion during that period.

The latest proposal for a balanced-budget amendment is expected to come to a vote in both houses of Congress this month. If approved by two-thirds of each chamber, it must then be ratified by three-quarters of the nation’s state legislatures.

The amendment would mandate a balanced budget within two years of enactment. After that, any deficit spending would have to be approved by a 60% vote of Congress.

Only a few weeks ago, Panetta and others said the amendment stood a strong chance of passing both the House and the Senate. However, House Majority Leader Thomas S. Foley (D-Wash.) said last week that he believes the amendment is losing support.

Both sides agree that balancing the budget within the next few years would require harsh spending cuts or significantly higher taxes--and many economic experts say it could not be done without both.

Bush and other supporters say the nation’s fiscal situation has become so dire that it warrants taking a step as drastic as amending the Constitution.

Critics reply that an amendment cannot substitute for the real job, which is making tough political decisions on spending and taxes.