    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
    [January 27, 2007]
    [Pages 71-73]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's Radio Address
    January 27, 2007

        Good morning. This week, I appeared before Congress to report on the
    state of our Union. I asked Members of the House and Senate from both
    sides of the aisle to join me in confronting the great challenges before
    us, so we can build a future of hope and opportunity for all Americans.
        Two key challenges we face are reducing our dependence on oil and
    expanding access to affordable health care. I have asked Congress to
    take several vital steps to address these issues. And while some Members
    gave a reflexive partisan response, I was encouraged that others
    welcomed this opportunity to reach across the aisle. One Democratic
    Senator said the initiatives I put forward were
    ``serious proposals'' and encouraged his fellow Democrats to ``respond
    in a constructive way.'' Another Senate Democrat pledged to work toward these goals ``through sincere
    bipartisan efforts.'' This is a good start, and I look forward

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    to working with Republicans and Democrats in Congress to reform our
    health care system and increase energy security.
        Our Nation's dependence on oil leaves us vulnerable to hostile
    regimes and terrorists who can hurt our economy by disrupting our oil
    supply. To protect America against supply disruptions, I have asked
    Congress to double the current capacity of the Strategic Petroleum
    Reserve. We also must diversify our Nation's energy supply, and the way
    forward is through technology. On Wednesday, I visited DuPont's
    Experimental Station in Wilmington, Delaware, where researchers are
    developing new methods of producing cellulosic ethanol and other
    advanced biofuels using everything from grasses to cornstalks to
    agricultural wastes. By expanding our use of renewable and alternative
    fuels like ethanol, we can become less dependent on oil and confront the
    serious challenge of climate change.
        To increase the supply of alternative fuels, I've asked Congress to
    join me in setting a mandatory fuel standard to require 35 billion
    gallons of renewable and alternative fuels in 2017, nearly five times
    the current target. At the same time, we need to reform and modernize
    fuel economy standards for cars the way we did for light trucks, and
    conserve up to 8.5 billion more gallons of gasoline by 2017. By taking
    these steps, we can help achieve a great goal: reducing the use of
    gasoline in the United States by 20 percent in the next 10 years and
    cutting our total imports by the equivalent of three-quarters of all the
    oil we now import from the Middle East.
        We must also work together to ensure that Americans have accessible
    and affordable health care. The Government has an obligation to provide
    care for the elderly, the disabled, and poor children, and we will meet
    these responsibilities. For all other Americans, private insurance is
    the best way to meet their needs. And this week, I proposed two new
    initiatives to help more Americans afford their own insurance.
        First, we should establish a standard tax deduction for health
    insurance that will be like the standard tax deduction for dependents.
    Families with health insurance will pay no income or payroll taxes on
    $15,000 of their income. Single Americans with health insurance will pay
    no income or payroll taxes on $7,500 of their income. With this reform,
    more than 100 million men, women, and children who are now covered by
    employer-provided insurance will benefit from lower tax bills. This
    reform will also level the playing field for those who do not get health
    insurance from their employers. On Thursday, I met an uninsured
    mother of two children from Overland Park,
    Kansas. The restaurant where she works does not offer health insurance,
    and she cannot afford to buy it on her own. My plan would help put a
    basic health insurance plan within reach of this mom and millions of
    uninsured Americans like her.
        Second, we must help States that are developing innovative ways to
    cover the uninsured. States that make basic private health insurance
    available to all their citizens should receive Federal funds to help
    them provide this coverage to the poor and the sick. I have proposed
    using existing Federal funds to create Affordable Choices grants. These
    grants would give our Nation's Governors more money and flexibility to
    get basic private health insurance to those most in need.
        Over the next few weeks, I will be talking more about my energy and
    health care proposals. We've set important goals, and now Republicans
    and Democrats must work together to make them a reality. Together, we
    can reduce our dependence on oil, improve health care for more of our
    citizens, and make life better for all our citizens.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 7:50 a.m. on January 26 in the Cabinet
    Room at the

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    White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on January 27. The transcript
    was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on January 26,
    but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. In the address, the
    President referred to Esmerelda Wergin, waitress, Ninfa's Tortilla and
    Taqueria. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish
    language transcript of this address.