The Oklahoma Daily Online Edition - Bush promotes his budget as part of economic prosperity

The Oklahoma Daily Online Edition - Bush promotes his budget as part of economic prosperity

In particular, after being criticized for recommending elimination or stark reductions in several programs that benefit low-income Americans, Bush took pains to explain his rationale for wanting to end a $225 million literacy program, Even Start, to show he is being sensible _ not callous.

"I can’t think of anybody in the Congress who is not for helping low-income families become literate," Bush said, but three evaluations concluded that "the program is not succeeding."

"Families in Even Start have made no progress toward literacy, no more progress than a similar group of families outside the program," he said. "Every government program was created with good intentions, but not all are matching good intentions with good results."

But Scott Himelstein, head of the National Even Start Association, said the program that serves 120,000 poor children and families has been shown to work in local, state and independent evaluations. The president’s criticism is misleading, Himelstein said, noting Bush’s own Education Department has said the population served by Even Start is more complex than that served by any other federal education program.

"So when the president says he’s comparing a similar group of folks, he’s contradicting what the U.S. Department of Education says," Himelstein said.