Democrats say they won’t give in to Bush

Benjamin Grove

Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2005 | 11:01 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- When President Bush takes his Social Security reform proposal on the road to sell it to voters this week, Democrats will be there to challenge him, Congress' top two Democrats said today.

Congressional Democrats and a variety of activist groups that oppose Bush's reforms intend to offer high-profile rebuttals to Bush when he heads to North Dakota, Florida, Arkansas, Montana and Nebraska after his Wednesday State of the Union address, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California said.

The two leaders said Bush also would be met by radio, newspaper and television advertising that opposes the President's plan to allow younger workers to divert some of their payroll taxes into private investment accounts. Bush aims to build voter support in the five states to put pressure on Democratic senators there.

The senators won't bend, Reid said. Democrats are united in opposition, Reid and Pelosi re-asserted today.

Groups including AARP, AFL-CIO, the NAACP and the National Organization for Women oppose Bush's plan. A coalition of organizations aim to raise $30 million for advertising and other campaigning, the congressional newspaper The Hill reported today. The liberal group MoveOn.org is seeking donations for a $500,000 advertising campaign in key congressional districts.

Critics say Bush's plan would endanger future Social Security benefits and cost trillions of dollars in the coming years.

Bush will find that it is not easy to "manipulate" public opinion on this issue, Reid told reporters today.

Reid and Pelosi met for the second time in two days with the media in an effort to undercut Bush's upcoming speech, which is expected to include details about his plan to change Social Security.

Republicans have slammed Democrats for criticizing Bush's plan without offering one of their own.

In other comments, Reid said Bush had manufactured another crisis in asserting that Democrats were blocking too many judicial nominees. Democrats say that Bush got a good deal during his first term when the Senate approved 204 Bush-nominated judges and opposed just 10. Democrats will reject those same 10 if Bush re-nominates them this year, Reid said. In regard to that fight over the judges, Reid said he wasn't afraid to "go behind the pool hall and see who wins this one."