Bush Blasts Dems' Expanded Child Health Bill

President Bush threatened to veto a children's health insurance bill today, knocking Democrats he said were politicizing the issue by moving too far toward universal health care. The Senate last month passed an expanded "S-chip" program that would cover an additional 4 million children currently uninsured, the New York Times reports. The expanded program would require an additional $35 billion.

Bush said the best approach is to "put more power in the hands of individuals. Instead of expanding the S-Chip beyond its original purpose, we should return it to helping poor children." Congress' bill exceeds Bush's plan by $30 billion over five years. Bipartisan support in the Senate is sufficient to override a veto; not so in the House. (More bipartisanship stories.)