It also does so indirectly, by narrowing the gap Mr Bush has tried to create between himself and the congressional Republicans, who are far less popular than he is.

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Yet for a president more keenly aware of America's foreign policy interests than he appeared to be when taking office, there remains a gap in Mr Bush's efforts.

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Bernie Sanders took to the Senate floor to make the case against deepening the deficit and widening the income gap in America by extending Bush-era tax breaks for the very wealthy.

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It is perhaps not surprising that Mr Bush has closed the gravitas gap on issues such as education.

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John Kerry followed suit in his 2004 Presidential campaign against George W. Bush, famously narrowing the funding gap with his Republican rival .

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Yet Mr Bush's team has been working hard to close this gap.

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President Bush has hit Kerry hard over his spending proposals saying there is a "tax gap" between what he has promised and what he can raise by rolling back tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans.

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Their mission gained added urgency this month when President George W. Bush's Treasury Department, as part of its 2008 budget, offered 16 tax gap closing proposals.

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The educational gap between whites and non-whites has narrowed dramatically in Texas since school testing began (which was before Mr Bush became governor).

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