WASHINGTON — President Bush compared Congress’ Democratic leaders Thursday to people who ignored the rise of Lenin and Hitler, saying “the world paid a terrible price” then and risks similar consequences for inaction today.
Bush accused Congress of stalling important pieces of the fight to prevent new terrorist attacks by dragging out and possibly jeopardizing confirmation of Michael Mukasey as attorney general, a key part of his national-security team; by failing to act on a bill governing eavesdropping on terrorism suspects; and by moving too slowly to approve spending measures for the Iraq war, the Pentagon and veterans programs.
“Unfortunately, on too many issues, some in Congress are behaving as if America is not at war,” Bush said during a speech at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. “This is no time for Congress to weaken the Department of Justice by denying it a strong and effective leader. … It’s no time for Congress to weaken our ability to intercept information from terrorists about potential attacks on the United States of America. And this is no time for Congress to hold back vital funding for our troops as they fight al-Qaeda terrorists and radicals in Afghanistan and Iraq.”
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said lawmakers refuse to give Bush a blank check for “his directionless war” and will not rubber-stamp his choice to be attorney general. And he said Bush is the one who has taken his focus off the real threats to security.
“It is because of the administration’s mismanagement of the war that we stand unready for the next attack,” Reid said. “Far from keeping Osama bin Laden on the run, President Bush has distracted us from tracking down a resurgent al- Qaeda.”
Bush’s remarks were his second in two days alleging inaction on Capitol Hill, which has been led by Democrats since January. This speech focused on measures related to the war on terrorism, while Wednesday’s emphasized disputes between the White House and Congress over domestic issues.
Bush repeated earlier criticisms of a move to combine spending bills for the Defense Department and veterans programs with one for labor, health and education matters that Republicans consider bloated.
