A little appreciation can go a long way.

It seems that President Bush can't win for losing these days.

His State of the Union address, with its proposed tax breaks and other incentives, was obviously designed to stimulate the economy and create some level of confidence that things are going to be all right. I don't think the president's recommendations created the effect for which he was hoping.

Most were painted as merely window dressing by his critics--a quick fix for the economy and lip service offered during an election year. But, in a largely ignored passage from his speech, the president actually acknowledged that he was offering short-term solutions for short-term results. At the same time, he pointed out that these must be followed up by a more far-reaching plan of attack on the underlying problems that are eating away at the health and future of our country.

Specifically, he said: "We must have a short-term plan to address our immediate needs and heat up the economy. And then we need a long-term plan to keep the combustion going and to guarantee our place in the world economy."

What it seems to me he was saying is that we need a little breathing room. We are all so caught up in the here and now that we can't see past tomorrow. So, let's step back for a minute. Let's do what we have to do to get back on our feet and then take a hard look at the real causes of this country's difficulties and then fix them.

It's only rhetoric, you say?

If that's the case, then why are so many people attacking Bush's proposals? I'm not talking just about his political foes, but the media and whole host of others who apparently have something to gain or lose. And from what I've seen, no one else is offering any other program to get things going. We're all hearing how we can spend more money, but nothing much about fixing an ailing economy.

And we're hearing even less about how we might rehabilitate a tired industrial base. But the president, again in a mostly unnoticed part of his address, proposed some relief for American business and manufacturing.

"There are certain things that a president can do without Congress, and I am going to do them," he said. "I have this evening asked major Cabinet departments and federal agencies to institute a 90-day moratorium on any new federal regulations that could hinder growth. In those 90 days, major departments and agencies will carry out a top-to-bottom review of all regulations, old and new, to stop the ones that will hurt growth and speed up those that will help growth."

Again, this part of his address received barely a mention. You can bet the only ones who paid any attention were our righteous regulators, those who see that the only solution to any perceived problem is a new law.

Who should the president hear from? Us.

Ninety days may not seem like much time, but it provides a much needed respite from the increasingly regulated environment that is overwhelming manufacturing in America. And as Walter Kiplinger, AFS vice president of governmental affairs explains, "This effort by the president to slow regulatory creep is worthwhile. It could lead to more frequent review of regulations to see if they are working as intended, or need to be modified or even canceled."

Is it too much to hope for that someone may actually be giving some thought to the horrendous burden all of these rules and regulations are putting on business and industry? Maybe not.

The 90-day respite is an opening for business and industry to make it known to the president, Congress and state officials that we support his action. That this is, perhaps, the single best action that could be taken to "guarantee our place in the world economy."

Just as our righteous regulators have expressed their disdain of the president's action, all of us in manufacturing should let him know that we appreciate his efforts and that we encourage him to follow up on this 90-day review.

Will it do any good? Who knows? But it isn't going to hurt. It isn't often we have an opportunity like this. Take 10 or 15 minutes and drop President Bush a note. Tell him in your own words that his attempts to relieve the bureaucratic burden is appreciated. It's worth a shot.

A little appreciation can go a long way.