President Bush addressed some of the nation's most pressing challenges in the final State of the Union speech of his presidency -- including the need for extending the anti-terrorism act that loosens restrictions on intelligence-gathering, Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., said.

Kyl noted, as did the president, that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) expires on Friday.

``The Senate has now been in session for almost two weeks since the beginning of this session, and the majority leader has done very little to advance the issue," said Kyl, the Senate Republican whip.

He said extending FISA is crucial in the war on terror.

"Al Qaeda still desires to carry out the same kinds of attacks against the United States and other countries that it executed on September 11, 2001," Kyl said. ``We know the incredible amount of damage that can be inflicted if we do not monitor and respond to this threat. We also know that the best way to deal with al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations is to collect intelligence so that we can prevent attacks from occurring in the first place, rather than having to respond after they have occurred. "

On Bush's overall speech, Kyl said, "While there were many fine initiatives laid out by the President, I want to specifically commend him for taking the lead to reform earmarks in Congressional spending bills. I don't believe Congress has done enough to end this wasteful practice, and the President's proposal to direct Executive agencies to not fund projects that are not voted on by Congress is a good start."

On the other side of the aisle, Rep. Harry Mitchell, D-Ariz., was happy to hear the president talk about doing more for veterans.

Mitchell invited Arizona National Guard Sgt. Brian Radke from Chandler as his guest. He said Radke has had 70 operations since he was wounded in October 2005.

While Radke's recovery shows the good points of veterans' care, more needs to be done, Mitchell said.

``I think we've found that Carl T. Hayden (veterans hospital in Phoenix) and probably many others need more space and they need more personnel," he said.

Mitchell also liked Bush's comments about immigration.

``Immigration is a federal issue, and I was pleased to hear the president speak about that," he said. ``It's too bad he didn't speak about it earlier. More than half of all illegal immigrants come through the Arizona border, and so it is something that we have got to work on, and I would hope that he would put everything he can behind it."