NEW YORK (AP) – President Bush came to Wall Street on Wednesday, taking aim at lavish salaries and bonuses for corporate executives and issuing a sharp warning for corporate boards to “step up to their responsibilities” and tie compensation packages to performance.

Bush, who was introduced by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, delivered his “State of the Economy” speech from the financial center of the world, aimed at bringing his economic message out of the shadows of the Iraq war. On his second day in a row focused on the economy, the government reported faster-than-expected growth of 3.5 percent in the final quarter of last year.

Bush spoke to an audience of business leaders at the venerable Federal Hall – a symbol of both America’s democracy and its economic resilience. The hall, which dates to 1842, is now a museum that helped provide emergency shelter when terrorists destroyed the World Trade Center, just a few blocks away.

Later, he stopped along Broad Street to shake hands with New York police officers and then ducked inside the New York Stock Exchange.

The surprise visit caused a frenzy on the already chaotic trading floor. It was so crowded that traders standing just five feet from Bush had a better view of him on television screens.

The New York Stock Exchange faced an uproar over former CEO Richard Grasso’s $187.5 million severance package.

Former New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, now governor, sued members of the NYSE board over the package given to Grasso when he quit as chairman in 2003.

Bush’s words on pay were met with complete silence from the business crowd he addressed.

The annual salary of the president is $400,000.

AP-ES-01-31-07 1454EST