DES MOINES, Iowa, June 7 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush Friday took his message on revamping the nation's homeland security structure with a new Cabinet-level agency to the Midwest and also took time to hail the one-year anniversary of his sweeping tax reform legislation.
Bush flew to Des Moines where he spoke to farmers during the World Pork Expo. The event served as a background for celebration of his $1.35 trillion tax cut package which he signed into law last year. He also took the opportunity to urge U.S. Senate lawmakers to permanently repeal the inheritance or estate tax, formerly known as the death tax.
"On the issue of economic security, I went at it the only way I knew how, which is in a straight-forward, plain-spoken way. I said, "The best way to make sure we got a strong farm economy and to make sure our economy recovers from the recession is to let people keep their own money!," Bush said.
The president also highlighted pieces of his domestic agenda which would impact the farm industry such as trade promotion authority and his national energy plan which includes the use of bio-fuels like ethanol, a derivative of corn.
"For the good of the economy and for economic security, they need to give me an energy bill. An energy bill that encourages conservation," Bush said. "An energy bill that encourages reasonable environmentally sound exploration. And an energy bill that promotes renewable sources of energy such as ethanol and bio-diesel."
Bush was expected to leave Iowa in the late afternoon for Camp David, the presidential retreat nestled in the Maryland mountains. There, he is to hold meetings with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak over the weekend on the crisis in the Middle East.
Aside from domestic issues, Bush also sought support from the heartland farmers for his plan to restructure homeland security into a single new Cabinet-level agency. White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters aboard Air Force One that Bush understands there will likely be resistance to the proposal but was "very heartened" by the bipartisan messages of support he has received. Fleischer also said "initial reports" would "indicate Congress wants to act quickly" on the president's proposal.
Bush expressed assurance that his proposal would gain Hill approval.
"I'm confident it's going to happen -- particularly when the American people understand it is in our national interest that we bring these agencies under one -- under one head, so that we can do everything in our power -- and I mean everything in our power -- to keep you all safe," the president said.
Before leaving Washington, Bush held a White House Cabinet Room meeting with congressional members a day after announcing his proposal to create a 170,000-strong Homeland Security Department that would bring together elements of agencies as diverse as the Immigration and Naturalization Service, the Coast Guard and the new Transportation Security Administration.
The new agency would have total control of America's borders, from sea to shining sea, and along some 7,000 miles of land borders with Mexico and Canada. In controlling borders alone, Homeland Security would bring under its control the 22,000-strong U.S. Customs Service, the 40,000 INS and Border Patrol employees, the 43,700-strong Coast Guard and a Transportation Security Agency now budgeted for 41,300 employees.
The reorganization, the biggest change since President Harry Truman brought intelligence operations under one department and created the CIA in 1947, is expected to generate massive political debate. Agencies facing huge loss of power and influence will resist the move and it will change the structure of congressional oversight. Bush predicted a tug-of-war within Congress over his proposal.
"Now, in terms of turf battles, there's nothing wrong with a good turf battle fight," Bush said before his meeting with lawmakers. "And one way to win that argument is to call upon the good services of effective members of the House and the Senate. I think most members of Congress understand the need to act."
Much of the criticisms about the proposal centered on the new agency's potential size and the cost, which is estimated to be nearly $37.4 billion. Bush, however, said the agency would actually save money.
Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge called the meeting with Bush and Hill members "productive" and told reporters later that the president ordered him to Capitol Hill to advocate the reorganization plan.
Earlier this year, Ridge resisted congressional requests to testify about the administration's $38 billion homeland security funding request for 2003. The White House maintained that Ridge should not have to testify because he served as a presidential adviser. That stance angered many in Congress.
Republican Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania said the new agency would not only bring together agencies, but also coordinate analysis of terrorist threats, a lack of which has recently been criticized. Information from the alphabet soup of U.S. intelligence agencies -- the CIA, FBI and NSA -- would be fed to head of the new agency.
"I think that one person's going to have to take a look at how it's gathered, and if you have major foul-ups, like using the wrong standard on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, that Cabinet person will be in a position to correct it and to put it all together," he said.
In recent weeks, the FBI and the CIA fielded criticism over whether information they had could have prevented the Sept. 11 attacks that killed some 3,000 people.
Although the head of the proposed agency hasn't been decided, Ridge is expected to be in the running for the post. Early in his tenure within the administration, Ridge had promoted consolidation of departments and agencies charged with homeland security duties.
(Kathy A. Gambrell reporting from Washington)
