State of the Union Speech = $12.8 Billion

The National Taxpayers Union figures President Bush's calls for new spending in his State of the Union Speech adds up to $12.8 billion -- a record low since the group started tallying SOTUS spending ideas. They attribute much of that to the fact that the President repeated calls for programs that he asked for in last year's speech. The NTU analysis does not take into account the cost of private accounts for Social Security. That cost is hard to pin down. Estimates for transitioning to private accounts range as high as $2 trillion. (NTU)