The White House made a major push today to ease fears about the growing rate of foreclosures across the United States. With concerns mounting over the state of homeownership in America, President Bush outlined a series of proposals that he said will help homeowners avoid foreclosure and keep the economy ticking at a healthy pace.

As I noted on the blog earlier this month, Hillary Clinton jumped out in front on the issue, offering a plan to ‚Äúprotect the American dream of home ownership.‚Äù I called it a savvy move, and while I didn’t like her policy proposals, I did commend her for seizing on an issue that’s gaining traction.

An early review of Bush’s plan seems like he’s heading in the right direction. He noted today that while the government can take some steps to help homeowners, they need to be “limited.”

A federal bailout of lenders would only encourage a recurrence of the problem. It’s not the government’s job to bail out speculators, or those who made the decision to buy a home they knew they could never afford.

My friend Soren Dayton likes that kind of language. From a purely political perspective, Soren is still worried about the massive number of people who are going to be impacted and how it will impact the GOP.

UPDATE — 4:02 p.m.: It just dawned on me that my headline gives the perception that Bush could care less about homeowners. That wasn’t my point; instead, I’m pleased to see he’s emphasizing personal responsibility. That’s a stark contrast to what Hillary and other liberals have proposed.