ASHINGTON - Republican presidential front-runner George W. Bush expanded his call for ''compassionate conservatism'' yesterday, proposing to provide billions of dollars to religious groups and charities to tackle social problems.
In a speech in Indianapolis, Bush delivered his most detailed policy prescription since hitting the campaign trail early last month.
''In every instance where my administration sees a responsibility to help people, we will look first to faith-based organizations, charities and community groups that have shown their ability to save and change lives,'' Bush declared.
''We will make a determined attack on need, by promoting the compassionate acts of others. We will rally the armies of compassion in our communities to fight a very different war against poverty and hopelessness,'' he said.
Bush, the governor of Texas and son of George Bush, the former president, leads the Republican presidential field by a wide margin in polls and enjoys a huge financial advantage.
He has also been outpolling Vice President Al Gore, his possible Democratic rival in next year's election, by 15-20 percentage points in recent polls.
But Bush has attracted growing complaints from his rivals and critics for not giving specifics of his vision for the nation.
Bush proposed to devote $8 billion in his first year in office to provide new tax incentives for charitable giving and to support charities and private institutions.
''We will provide charity tax credits - credits which will allow individuals to give a part of what they owe in state taxes directly to private and religious institutions fighting poverty in their own communities,'' Bush said.
''We will allow private and religious groups to compete to provide services in every federal, state, and local social program,'' he added.
Bush's speech echoed a similar proposal from Gore in May, in which the vice president promised to place ''faith-based organizations'' at the heart of his national strategy to combat poverty.
''If you elect me your president, the voices of faith-based organizations will be integral to the policies set forth in my administration,'' Gore pledged.
In a statement responding to Bush's speech, Gore's campaign chairman, Tony Coelho, congratulated Bush for following the vice president's lead.
''But we, and the American people, are still waiting for Governor Bush to tell us whether he agrees with his Republican Party leaders who want to privatize Social Security, limit prescription-drug coverage for seniors on Medicare, pass risky tax schemes, and kill a strong patients' bill of rights,'' Coelho said.
Bush said religious organizations should not be required to compromise their core values or spiritual mission in order to get government money.
He added that his administration would ensure that participation in religious activities was voluntary and that secular alternatives were provided.
