Bush Downplays Recession Fears

WASHINGTON — President Bush said today that the country is not headed into a recession and, despite expressing concern about slowing economic growth, rejected for now any additional stimulus efforts.“We’ve acted robustly,” he said.“We’ll see the effects of this pro-growth package,” Mr. Bush told reporters at a White House news conference. “I know there’s a lot of, here in Washington people are trying to — stimulus package two — and all that stuff. Why don’t we let stimulus package one, which seemed like a good idea at the time, have a chance to kick in?”Mr. Bush’s view of the economy was decidedly rosier than that of many economists, who say the country is nearing recession territory or may already be there.The centerpiece of government efforts to brace the wobbly economy is a package Congress passed and Mr. Bush signed last month. It will rush rebates ranging between $300 and $1,200 to millions of people and give tax incentives to businesses.Mr. Bush also used his news conference to press Congress to give telecommunications companies legal immunity for helping the government eavesdrop after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.He continued a near-daily effort to prod lawmakers into passing his version of a law to make it easier for the government to conduct domestic eavesdropping on suspected terrorists’ phone calls and e-mails. He says the country is in more danger now that a temporary surveillance law has expired.The president and Congress are in a showdown over Mr. Bush’s demand on the immunity issue.Mr. Bush said the companies helped the government after being told “that their assistance was legal and vital to national security.”“Allowing these lawsuits to proceed would be unfair,” he said.More important, Mr. Bush added, “the litigation process could lead to the disclosure of information about how we conduct surveillance and it would give Al Qaeda and others a roadmap as to how to avoid the surveillance.”On another issue, Mr. Bush said that Turkey’s offensive against Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq should be limited — and should end as soon as possible. The ongoing fighting has put America in a touchy position, as it is close allies with both Iraq and Turkey, and a long offensive along the border could jeopardize security in Iraq just as America is trying to stabilize the war-wracked country.“It should not be long-lasting,” Mr. Bush said. “The Turks need to move, move quickly, achieve their objective and get out.”He also said, though, that it is in no one’s interest for the PKK to have safe havens.

Bush Downplays Recession Fears

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