Bush blames Congress for contributing to tough economic times

President Bush today blamed Congress for failing to expand domestic oil production that could mitigate rising gas prices and for failing to curb “unnecessary subsidies for wealthy farmers” that contribute to the high price of food.

Noting that Americans are “understandably worried” about the economy, Bush urged Congress, which he said has “repeatedly blocked oil exploration” in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, to send “sensible bills … instead of bills that simply look like political statements.”

Eschewing the word recession – “economists can argue over the terminology” – Bush said Americans are concerned about making their mortgage payments “and I don’t blame them.” With 50 lenders having withdrawn from the guaranteed student loan program, Bush said they are also worried about sending their children to college, and he called on Congress to give the government temporary authority to buy federal student loans.

“Americans are looking for their leaders to come together and act responsibly,” he said. “I don’t think this is too much to ask even in an election year.”

On gas prices, Bush was asked about the proposal by Republican presidential candidate John McCain – endorsed by Democratic rival Hillary Rodham Clinton but opposed by Democratic rival Barack Obama – to temporarily waive the federal gas tax. Bush said he’ll look at any “interesting ideas” but will not “jump into the ‘08 campaign.” Asked about Clinton’s proposal to stop filling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, an emergency petroleum store maintained by the U.S. Department of Energy, Bush rejected the idea, saying those 67,000 barrels a day would have little effect on the world demand of 87 million barrels a day. At a previous news conference two months ago, Bush expressed surprise to learn that gas might be headed for $4 a gallon; this time he pointed out right away how much it has gone up in 18 months.

“It’s a sour time, a tough time for the American people,” he said

On food prices, Bush said he doubted that subsidies for ethanol are driving up the cost of food, saying 85% of the increased costs are attributable to increased demand and the high cost of gasoline.

But Bush acknowledged that solving the nation’s economic crisis will not be easy.

“If there was a magic wand to wave, I’d be waving it,” he said.

In a wide-ranging, 40-minute news conference in the Rose Garden, Bush also blamed Congress for its inaction on a bill extending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, and its decision not to consider the Colombia free trade agreement.

“The threat hasn’t gone away,” he said in support of the intelligence bill. “Either it’s a lack of leadership or a lack of understanding the issue, and either way it’s not good for the country.”

Saying that freer access to Colombia markets would help the U.S. economy, Bush called on Congress to stop “playing politics.”

Asked why his administration had withheld disclosure of the North Korean links to a Syrian nuclear project, Bush said the White House wanted to avoid “risk of retaliation or confrontation in the Middle East.” Saying that the administration was “mindful there would be this reaction” over the delay, Bush said that the White House finally released the photos to send a message to Iran, “and to the world for that matter, about just how destabilizing nuclear proliferation would be in the Middle East.”

Asked about former President Jimmy Carter’s controversial meeting in the region with Hamas leaders, Bush said “anybody can talk to who they want to” but that Hamas is undermining U.S. policy in the region. “They’re the ones trying to create enough violence to stop the advance of a two-state solution.” The president said he did not know if anyone in the State Department had asked Carter not to go, or debriefed him after his trip. And, on the eve of a trip to the region, Bush said he is “still hopeful we’ll get an agreement” between Israel and the Palestinians this year.

Asked about Zimbabwe’s longtime leader Robert Mugabe and efforts to unseat him through the ballot box, Bush assailed the government’s “violence and intimidation” and called on “nations in the neighborhood to step up and lead and recognize the will of the people.”

Democrats reacted to Bush’s remarks on the economy by saying that the administration was to blame for much of the downturn.

“The president’s comments on the economy today clearly demonstrate why his popularity is at record lows in national polls now, and why his administration will be viewed by historians as a failure,” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said in a statement. “The president has proclaimed that he is ‘the decider,’ but this morning all he tried to do is pass the buck to someone else rather than accept responsibility for his administration’s failed economic policies and escalating gas prices.”

johanna.neuman@latimes.com

Times staff writer James Gerstenzang contributed to this report.