DRUNK ON TAX-CUTTING

President George W. Bush is considering pressing for further reform of the US tax system following this week's proposed abolition of taxation on dividends, the White House's top economic adviser said on Wednesday.

"The president has said that he continues to be interested in tax reform," said Glenn Hubbard, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers.

Mr Hubbard would not be drawn on details of the White House's tax reform ambitions but said the $674bn package announced this week was more about boosting economic growth. "It is not an effort for tax reform. It's an effort for growth insurance that will also improve the long-term situation."

--Financial Times

A potential problem the White House may face in the House is the desire of some Republican leaders to enact more expansive tax cuts than the White House proposed. Representative Tom DeLay of Texas, the House Republican leader, said today that he would like to pass an even bigger proposal.

"I look at the Bush plan as a floor," Mr. DeLay said, "not a ceiling."

--New York Times