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CNN Live Saturday

President Urges Congress to Pass Education Reform

Aired July 07, 2001 - 12:04   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DONNA KELLEY, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush is vacationing at the Bush family home in Kennebunkport, Maine. And today in his weekly radio address, Mr. Bush urged Congress to pass his education reform plan before members leave for summer vacation.

CNN's White House correspondent Kelly Wallace is in Maine with more. Hi, Kelly.

KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Donna. Well, the president's radio address part of the White House's summer strategy to mount an defensive and try to regain control of the agenda, but most if that work really begins Monday. Until then, Mr. Bush is doing a whole lot of the resting and relaxing.

Early this morning, at about 6:30 am, in fact, the President along with his father, the former president, and his brother Jeb, were out on the golf course for a round of 18. The president told reporters he liked it in Maine, but he also said that the amazing thing about his job is that it is seems to follow him around.

Well, there are some realities certainly following the president around. His approval ratings have been slipping since the spring. And of course, the Democrats now control the Senate. The White House has been very frustrated that the Democratically-controlled Senate has not yet named conferees to a committee to work out the differences between the education bills passed by the House and the Senate. And so that is why in the radio address today, the president put pressure or tried to put pressure on lawmakers to resolve those differences before they recess in August and before students return to school in the fall.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Across America, governors are waiting to work with their legislatures to implement reform. Local school boards are eager put the new flexibility my plan offers into action. We are ready to provide teachers with the best research on the science of reading this very fall. We need that quickly because states and schools must make decisions on how to use their new flexibility and live up to their new responsibility.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Now Democrats, their part on this day, were focusing on a patients bill of rights. The president has said that the bill favored by Democrats would result in too many lawsuits and would jack up health care costs, and that that would force employers to drop coverage. Well, in the Democratic radio response, Congressman John Dingell of Michigan accused the president of engaging in a, quote, "gross and deliberate misrepresentation of the facts."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JOHN DINGELL (D), MICHIGAN: Costs will certainly not skyrocket. According to the Congressional Budget Office, our bill will cause a slight rise in health care fees, approximately 4.2 percent over five years. That's the equivalent of one Big Mac or one happy meal a month. That's a small price to pay to ensure that you have fundamental rights regarding your health care.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALLACE: Now, the president has said he would veto the bill passed by the Senate, Mr. Bush hoping that the House of Representatives passes a bill more to his liking. He will do a number of the speeches this week at some local hospitals in the Washington, D.C. area, hoping to influence the debate in the House.

Donna, back to you.

KELLEY: Kelly, thank you, Kelly Wallace in Kennebunkport. And you can learn more learn about what's on Congress' agenda later today. House speaker Dennis Hastert will be the guest on "EVANS, NOVAK, HUNT AND SHIELD." Comes your way at 5:30 p.m. Eastern, which is 2:30 Pacific.

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