Vice President Dick Cheney believes the United States will get through a current "rough patch" in the economy with the help of stimulus checks that are on their way to Americans.
Speaking in front of more than 400 people Friday night at a sold-out reception at a hotel in downtown Tulsa, Cheney touted the tax rebates as the right approach to fixing the country's economic woes.
"Right now, with the economy going through a rough patch, some in Washington view it as an excuse to expand the size and scope of the federal government. Republicans believe when Americans are facing tough times, the first thing we should do is let them keep more of their own money," Cheney said during a 20-minute speech at a $1,000-a-plate fundraiser.
"We moved promptly on a bipartisan basis to pass a sensible, effective stimulus package. It's not a new spending program or a set of regulations or an expansion of the federal government. It's just tax relief. It's on the way."
The rebate checks, for up to $600 for individuals and $1,200 for families, were due to begin arriving directly in Americans' bank accounts Friday. Others were in the mail.
With rising gas prices contributing to Americans' economic difficulties, Cheney pushed for support for added drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska as a way to increase the country's energy production.
"The plain truth is we can produce a lot more energy here in America and we can do it in an environmentally sound and friendly way," Cheney said. "It's not just crude oil or natural gas production that's being held up. It's hard to believe but we haven't built a new refinery in more than 30 years, so now we have to import increasing amount of refined oil.
"President Bush and I believe more of that refining ought to be done right here in the United States at American refineries by American workers."
Cheney's speech, which launched the annual convention for the Oklahoma Republican Party, came in a state where the economic downturn has been softened by an economy built on oil and natural gas production. The financial magazine Forbes this week named Oklahoma City, the state's largest city, the most recession-proof city in the country.
"I think that's obviously a statement of how well we're doing as a state and how well our economy's actually doing compared to everyone else in the country," said Rep. Rob Johnson, R-Kingfisher. "I know this year, as far as budget-wise, we actually have a standstill budget, we weren't able to increase some funding.
"But overall, compared to what everybody else in the country is going through, we're doing pretty good."
In a state that has more than 3,200 National Guard and Reserve troops on active duty for the nation's seventh-highest total, Cheney said he saw nothing wrong with a discussion of drawing down the number of U.S. troops in Iraq and said President Bush's decision "will be based on what is right for our security and what is best for the troops without regard to polls, public opinion or flip-flops by politicians in Washington."
He also challenged anyone calling for a troop reduction to consider the consequences.
