Social Security reform. Speaking of individual responsibility, the president calls "strengthening Social Security" a "vital issue in my second term." The strengthening is supposed to come from allowing workers to divert part of their payroll taxes to private investment accounts, which would generate returns that eventually would allow the government to reduce its benefit payments.

 Over the short term, however, this partial privatization would create a shortfall, since taxes on current workers pay for the benefits of current retirees. In his third debate with Kerry, Bush acknowledged that "we're of course going to have to consider the costs," while insisting that "the cost of doing nothing" would be greater. He's right, but following through on the policy implications will take more political courage than he so far has demonstrated on the domestic front.

  Tax reform. When the Bush administration was faulted for failing to include expected changes in the alternative minimum tax in its fiscal projections, White House budget director Joshua Bolten said "we will be focusing on fundamental tax reform" instead of tinkering with the current system. Bush, who lists tax reform high on his agenda, plans to appoint a bipartisan panel to consider alternatives, which Treasury Secretary John Snow says will include replacing the income tax with a sales tax or value-added tax.

 Drastic action is appropriate. The 10,000-page income tax code is a standing invitation to special favors and social engineering; it is inefficient, burdensome (with estimated compliance costs of about $200 billion a year), and so mind-bogglingly complex that it mocks the rule of law. But so many people have a stake in the current system that it would be surprising if the president's tax reform initiative moved beyond the study phase.

 All three of these goals are among the Bush administration's self-identified top priorities, and all three are ostensibly supported by Republican leaders in Congress. Progress toward them during the next four years will reveal whether the Republicans' avowed principles amount to anything in practice.