This week, Mr. Bush will visit a Catholic church in Cleveland. For his appearance here today, Mr. Bush donned a majestic royal blue commencement gown, tugging against its collar with his fingers. After that introduction, Mr. Bush offered his most detailed defense to date of his desire to let religious groups receive more federal money. He noted that 6 of the 10 largest corporate givers in the country forbid or restrict donations to religious groups, and he urged them not to do so, saying that he would convene a summit meeting this fall to ask philanthropic leaders to review these policies. Child care vouchers for low-income families are redeemed every day at houses of worship across America.
Government loans send countless students to religious colleges.
Of course not. The ardor of Mr. Bush's appeal undoubtedly reflected the considerable resistance that his efforts have met. Both civil libertarians and some religious leaders charge that Mr. Bush is dangerously blurring the boundary between church and state, and the legislation associated with the president's efforts is merely plodding through Congress. With his remarks today, Mr. Bush was trying to give it a momentum it has yet to gather. He was also trying, after an initial stretch in office that left many Americans questioning his degree of concern for them, to put an extra emphasis on the compassion that he links to his conservatism.