Bush, fresh from his reelection victory, has reiterated plans to halve the record federal budget deficit of 413 billion dollars, while making his tax cuts permanent.

He also is eyeing plans to "simplify" the federal tax code, and pressing for private retirement savings that some say would amount to a partial privatization of the social security system.

Although the new Congress will have a strong Republican majority and may be open to many of the proposals, analysts say there are limits to how much a second Bush administration can accomplish in the current economic climate.

Morgan Stanley economist Richard Berner said Bush's agenda may be too ambitious.

"The president clearly wants his legacy to include a significant reshaping of the geopolitical and economic policy order, and he will try to use what he sees as 'political capital' won in the election to implement it," Berner said in a note to clients.

"But the real obstacles to implementation will be the ambitious scope of his proposals, the practical problems in reconciling what I see as serious conflicts among the proposals, and the short timeframe he has to achieve them."

On taxes, Bush has yet to outline what he means by simplification, and has asked a commission for recommendations. But some Republicans are pressing for a "flat tax" or a national sales tax to replace the current system.