Tech leaders laud Bush's competition plan: PUSH FOR INNOVATION WOULD AID VALLEY FIRMS, SCHOOLS.

Byline: Jim Puzzanghera

Feb. 2--WASHINGTON -- The White House offered additional details Wednesday about President Bush's $136 billion initiative to boost America's global competitiveness, and the benefits for Silicon Valley were potentially big:

-- Additional federal money for basic research at Bay Area universities.

-- More Silicon Valley companies eligible for a tax credit for research and development costs.

-- New part-time math and science teachers drawn from retiring Silicon Valley engineers and scientists at NASA-Ames Research Center in Mountain View.

But some in the high-tech industry, academia and Congress said the fine points are not entirely the point of the ambitious program unveiled during Bush's State of the Union address Tuesday night.

What's important, they said, is that the administration …