Bush Gives Final State of Union Address Tonight

President Bush will deliver his final State of the Union Address tonight before a joint session of Congress. On Saturday, the President said he planned to focus on two key issues in his speech: the economy, and passage by Congress of a bill (S. 2248) amending the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

The Economy
On the economy, President Bush said he would outline the bipartisan economic stimulus legislation agreed to last week by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader John Boehner. The package includes both tax incentives for small businesses and direct tax rebate checks to some 117 million U.S. families.

The FISA Amendments
The FISA amendment bill now before the Senate would make permanent a temporary law enacted by Congress in Aug. 2007 – for a six month period – giving U.S. intelligence officials greater latitude in placing wire taps on telephone conversations between American citizens and foreign nationals without first obtaining court orders. The bill would also grant telecom companies immunity from law suits filed against them for voluntarily cooperating with the government in turning over calling records of their customers. The temporary bill, and the powers that go with it, is set to expire on Feb. 1.

“When I go before Congress on Monday, I will speak more about how we can keep our economy strong and our people safe. I am confident that we can work together to meet our responsibilities in these areas -- and leave our children a stronger and more prosperous America,” said the President in his Saturday radio address.

Complete Transcript of the Speech

Also See:
The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court: America’s Secret Court
FISA: Should Congress Give Telecoms Immunity? (US Politics)
FISA Reports To Congress - 1979-2006 (US Politics)
About the State of the Union Address
The Very First State of the Union Address