Prometheus 6   

Back From Africa: Bush's Promises Will Be Watched
By RICHARD W. STEVENSON
President Bush made a lot of promises to Africa during his weeklong visit there. Now, back home again, he has to make good on them.

… But it is hard to assess the depth of his commitment. His trip had a dutiful, check-off-box quality that suggested a limit to his passion. He did not visit a single rural village. He stopped by no urban slums. Sticking to his AIDS and trade message, he did not focus on other, equally compelling issues, like the need to bring clean water to much of the population.

Then there is the question of whether Mr. Bush's trip was really about domestic politics, about appealing to black voters who have spurned him or � more likely � to moderate white voters, especially women, who might respond to a message of compassion.

… Largely because of budget pressures created by the administration's own policies � from tax cuts to increased spending for the military � money for Africa will be extremely tight. Last week, a House subcommittee moved to cut financing for Mr. Bush's main economic aid proposal, known as the Millennium Challenge Account, to $800 million from the $1.3 billion he had sought for next year. The same subcommittee voted to finance Mr. Bush's AIDS plan at about $2 billion next year, about what Mr. Bush now says he wants but $1 billion less than allowed under the legislation creating the program.

On the trade issues, Mr. Bush will confront intense pressure from powerful constituencies as he is getting his re-election campaign into gear.

Granting African countries increased access to the American textile market, for example, would run into opposition from lawmakers representing southern textile-producing states that have already lost many jobs to lower-cost nations. Cutting agricultural subsidies has proven to be a very tough sell to Congress, where farm-state lawmakers from both parties hold considerable sway.