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WASHINGTON -- President Bush is expected to ask Congress as early as Monday for at least another $3 billion to help cover the cost of Florida's pummeling by hurricanes, congressional aides said Friday.

But unlike his Sept. 4 request for $2 billion, which cleared Congress the next day, Bush's new proposal may be slowed by campaign-season politics as lawmakers consider adding money for their own states.

"There's been some history of succumbing to that temptation," Sen. Bob Graham, a Florida Democrat, said Friday.

The aides, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the latest package would be primarily for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which helps individuals and state and local governments cope with disasters.

It might also have funds for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, which suffered damage at Cape Canaveral, the Agriculture Department and other federal agencies.

It is unlikely that the new request will fully cover recovery efforts from Hurricanes Charley and Frances, which lashed Florida within the last month. Added costs could come from Hurricane Ivan, which was moving through the Caribbean toward a possible rendezvous with Florida as early as Monday.

Members of both parties will have to think twice about attaching provisions that might snag Bush's latest request, since Florida is a potentially pivotal state in national elections now less than two months off.

On the other hand, few bills are likely to pass Congress before it recesses for final campaigning in early or mid-October. That means the next hurricane aid measure -- which leaders hope to send Bush by late September -- will be a tempting target for lawmakers looking to help the voters back home with roads or other projects.

Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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