Bush: Economy 'gaining strength'
CLEVELAND, Ohio (CNN) -- President Bush lauded the economy Saturday in his weekly radio address, pointing to his tax cuts as a prime source of the gains.
"Because of my policy of strengthening the economy while enforcing spending discipline in Washington, we remain on pace to reduce the deficit by half in the next five years," he said.
The president also said government estimates of the budget deficit are shrinking -- as much as $100 billion for the 2004 and 2005 forecasts combined.
The estimate, however, still showed an increase, up to $445 billion in 2004 from $374 billion last year, according to the administration's mid-year review.
Bush inherited a budget surplus of nearly $500 billion.
Bush pushed for more free trade agreements "to open up foreign markets" to American corporations.
"On a level playing field, American workers and farmers and entrepreneurs can compete with anybody, anytime, anywhere," he said.
He also called for legal changes that would make it more difficult for average citizens to sue companies, a national energy policy and "sensible regulations" on corporations so they "can focus on satisfying their customers and not bureaucrats in government."
Finally, the president called for Congress to make his tax cuts permanent to further drive the economy.
The government's economic growth figures, released Friday, indicated that the gross domestic product figures dropped in the second quarter ending June 30 to 3 percent, from 5.4 percent at the end of the first quarter in March.
Still, Bush kept his message positive. "We have emerged from a period of great challenge," he said. "Terrorist attacks, recession and corporate scandal hurt the wallets of millions of Americans, but these shocks to our economy did not damage our spirit."
"We're a hardworking and resilient nation," he said. "Our economy is on a rising path, and together, we will bring our prosperity to every corner of America."
