Bush Foresees Faster Growth

WASHINGTON —  A self-assured President Bush said Wednesday that he saw “hopeful signs” of an economic recovery in the next 18 months and expressed confidence that U.S. officials would thwart any attempts by terrorists to kill Americans with hijacked airplanes.

In a wide-ranging solo news conference, his first since March 6, Bush also spelled out his opposition to same-sex marriages. But he took pains to not condemn gays. “I am mindful that we’re all sinners, and I caution those who may try to take the speck out of their neighbor’s eye when they got a log in their own,” he said, paraphrasing the biblical analogy.

Bush also for the first time accepted personal responsibility for his controversial prewar claim that Iraq had attempted to acquire uranium in Africa. “I take personal responsibility for everything I say, of course,” he said.

The president came across as being in firm control -- and certain of the direction of the war on terrorism and his economic agenda as he prepares to leave town Saturday for his annual monthlong working vacation based at his ranch near Crawford, Texas.

In August, Bush is scheduled to travel around the country, including to Southern California, to raise money for his reelection bid and to make official appearances.

In his opening remarks Wednesday and in response to questions, Bush fiercely defended his stewardship of the economy, asserting at one point that his tax cuts would generate a rebound without creating a major drag on the federal budget, despite the record-breaking deficits.

“We’re beginning to see hopeful signs of faster growth in the economy, which over time will yield new jobs,” he said, citing continued low interest rates, improving manufacturing indexes and “strong” housing starts.

But Bush acknowledged that the nation’s unemployment rate was “still too high,” and he recited a familiar line from his standard stump speech: “We will not rest until Americans looking for work can find a job.”

The president also made a pitch for his proposal to set aside $3.6 billion for “personal reemployment accounts,” which would provide laid-off workers as much as $3,000 each while they searched for new jobs. Beneficiaries could use the money for job training, child care or transportation, or they could even use the money to move to a city where they could find work.

When asked about fresh warnings this week by the Department of Homeland Security of possible terrorist hijackings of airliners this summer, the president reminded listeners that the war against terrorism continued, with the dismantling of Al Qaeda and the hunt for Saddam Hussein far from over.

Bush cited “some data” suggesting that terrorists might be targeting international flights for hijacking. He said he was “confident we will thwart the attempts.”

When asked about his views on homosexuality, the president gave a mixed answer. He said it was “very important for our society to respect each individual, to welcome those with good hearts, to be a welcoming country.”

Then he added: “On the other hand, that does not mean that somebody like me needs to compromise on an issue such as marriage.... I believe in the sanctity of marriage. I believe a marriage is between a man and a woman. And I think we ought to codify that one way or the other. And we’ve got lawyers looking at the best way to do that.”

Congressional Republicans, particularly those in the House, are pushing a constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriages -- even though no state legally recognizes such unions.

And backers of such an amendment, including conservative activist Gary Bauer, said Bush’s comments left them unsure whether he backed the amendment or legislation to ban such marriages.

Bauer said Bush’s ambiguity suggested that he might not have arrived at a precise policy formulation -- and in any case probably wanted to avoid sounding intolerant while not “alienating his Christian base.”

But, Bauer added, the issue loomed as a political risk for Bush.

“If this battle is lost,” he said, “I believe that a significant segment of Christian conservatives will go back to their churches and drop out of politics altogether -- because they’re not in it for capital-gains tax cuts.”

Despite the weighty issues that dominated the 52-minute Rose Garden news conference -- only his ninth as president -- Bush injected a stream of quips, some of them at his own expense.

He set the tone in his opening remarks, as he emerged from the cool of the Oval Office to greet the reporters covering his talk, who were waiting for him under a punishing sun: “I was hoping it would be a little hotter here -- to prepare the traveling team for the Crawford experience this August,” Bush joked, referring to the scorching summer days -- and nights -- in the Central Texas town where he is set to travel this weekend.

To his first inquisitor, who posed a three-part question, the president asked for mercy: “I’m getting a little older. So when you ask four or five questions, it’s hard for me to remember every question.”

When another reporter interrupted him, Bush implored: “Let me finish for a minute, John, please. Just getting warmed up. I’m kind of finding my feet.”

When he welcomed -- by first name -- a reporter newly assigned to the White House, Bush advised: “Be careful whose company you’re keeping.”

And when he tripped over a name while reciting a litany of captured senior Al Qaeda operatives, Bush recovered with a chuckle: “Ramzi al Shibh, or whatever the guy’s name was. Sorry, Ramzi, if I got it wrong.”

In anticipation of his travels next month, the president said Wednesday that he intended to focus on two vital concerns: “the safety of the American people, and the economic security of the American people.”

He also left no doubt that he intended to wage a fierce campaign for reelection. Asked how he planned to spend the $170 million or more that he hopes to raise for a primary election campaign in which he faces no major opponent, Bush snapped: “Just watch.”

Far from apologetic, the president added, with a dash of braggadocio:

“Listen, since I’ve made the decision to run, of course, I’m going to do what candidates do. And we’re having pretty good success, which is -- it’s kind of an interesting barometer, early barometer, about the support we’re garnering.”

So far this year, Bush has raised nearly $35 million -- more than the nine Democratic contenders combined.