CARL P. LEUBSDORF Speech shows how much the two parties disagree

Democratic candidates on the campaign trail have been drawing a sharp contrast between what they call the two Americas. In one, President Bush does the bidding of the wealthy and powerful. In the other, average Americans struggle with rising health costs, poor schools and a loss of jobs.
On Tuesday night, Bush presented a far different, far more positive view in which his policies are producing economic and social progress despite resistance from his foes.
In presenting his version of the State of the Union to a friendly Republican Congress and a vast TV audience, Bush demonstrated the electoral advantage of incumbency -- the ability to command a large audience and deliver a unified message.
Democrats
It was no coincidence that the White House chose a night when some Democrats were hailing their first winner of the 2004 campaign and one-time front-runner Howard Dean and others were working to derail Sen. John Kerry next week in New Hampshire. But in the end, the key contrast won't be the atmospherics but the substance of the issues both sides are discussing.
Bush portrayed the nation as facing choices: pressing the war on terrorism or abandoning it, and continuing to make economic progress or returning to "old policies and old divisions." Much of his speech seemed designed to counter arguments his would-be rivals have been making. He spoke of economic growth fueled by his tax cuts and of his success in passing bills to increase educational standards and provide prescription drug coverage for seniors.
By contrast, Democrats note not only that the Bush tax cuts have failed to produce new jobs but also that the economy has lost 3 million jobs -- the worst record for any president since Herbert Hoover. They say the president's signature No Child Left Behind law has created serious problems for states and localities, both through insufficient funding and onerous provisions on teacher requirements and achievement levels.
The Democrats contend that the Bush prescription drug plan will help the health maintenance organizations and hurt seniors by barring cheaper drugs from Canada and banning the use of government muscle to protect Medicare recipients. And they say Bush has squandered the budget surplus he inherited.
The entire focus of Bush's speech was different from the way Democrats portray the nation's problems. Though many surveys show the prime concerns of Americans these days are domestic, Bush devoted the first part to global issues, especially the need to finish the job in Iraq and win the war on terror.
Democrats almost always give foreign issues second billing. And when they do, they focus on restoring U.S. relations with countries that Bush has scorned because they failed to back his decision to attack Saddam Hussein.
Official response
So far, the Democratic message has been diffused by a multiplicity of voices. On Tuesday night, the party's two top congressional leaders, Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Tom Daschle, gave its official response, while presidential hopefuls sought in varying ways to present their views from New Hampshire.
Clearly, it was Bush's night to control the agenda and the message.
But the battle ultimately will be joined on more equitable turf. There will be one Democratic candidate and, by all signs, a party unified by its disdain for this president. That will be especially true if, to the White House's chagrin, the divisive Dean candidacy fails to revive after Monday's setback in Iowa.
Then, the voters will decide which view of America is correct.
XCarl P. Leubsdorf is Washington bureau chief of the Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.