By Gerardo R. Partido
Variety News Staff

GOVERNOR Felix P. Camacho yesterday said President Bush’s State of the Union Address spoke about issues that directly impact Guam’s future.
The governor said Bush’s proposal to relax foreign labor regulations may help Guam find the skilled labor it needs during the construction boom anticipated over the next decade.
“This, of course, is a policy that may help us to fill a labor shortage and certainly is not our first course of action. The president also talked about association health plans that Lt. Governor Cruz mentioned late last year as a way to bring affordable health insurance to employees of small businesses,” Camacho said in reaction to the president’s speech.
According to the governor, one of the most important initiatives the president highlighted in his address was the six-party talks with North Korea aimed at ensuring a nuclear weapon-free Korean peninsula that will keep Guam safe.
On the president’s Iraq policy, Camacho said he agrees with the president who said the whole nation owes a great deal of gratitude to its armed forces serving in that war-torn country.
“And we should be proud of what Guam sons and daughters already have contributed to. We must always remember that their fight has freed millions of people and is keeping us safe. All too often, their contributions to peace go unnoticed, but we know that our fallen sons gave their lives fighting for what is right in a struggle for freedom that we must always be prepared to defend. With all sense of duty and a commitment to this country that is deeply rooted in this patriotic American community, we continue to support our troops in the field and those on their way,” Camacho said.