Right Back At Ya

Moments after President Bush delivered his first address to Congress, Democratic leaders in the House and Senate spoke of a new hope in the nation's Capitol — and promptly took issue with several key points in the new president's agenda.

The top target of the Democratic response was the president's proposed $1.6 trillion tax cut, which the leaders slammed as irresponsible and unfair. Said House Minority Leader Rep. Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., "The Democrats have a better plan."

But while taxes dominated the response to the president's speech, the Democrats — in a clear reference to the controversial election that won Mr. Bush the White House — also called for elections reform to restore the principle of "one person, one vote."

Senate Minority Leader Sen. Tom Daschle, D-S.D., led off the Democratic response with a pledge to work with the president on ideas where the parties agree and strive "to find common ground" on areas where they don't.

But Daschle vowed the Democrats would "fight hard" to defend working families against Bush proposals that threaten prosperity.

Daschle compared Mr. Bush's proposals to those made by President Reagan in 1981.

"We were promised that if we gave huge tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans, the benefits would trickle down, deficits would disappear and the economy would flourish," Daschle said. "Congress supported that experiment. It was a huge mistake."

Daschle blamed the Reagan program for high deficits and interest rates and said that now, America' "first priority must be to continue paying down the trillions of dollars in federal debt Washington ran up in the 1980s."

Daschle also questioned the estimates on which the Bush tax plan is based, saying that rather than the $1.6 trillion cited by the president, it would cost "well over $2 trillion" and draw funds away from Social Security and Medicare.

And, te Senate Democrat said, the plan is skewed toward the wealthy, delivering 43 percent of the tax cut to the wealthiest 1 percent of taxpayers.

Gephardt, who delivered the second half of the Democrats' address, said the Democrats offered instead "a balanced plan that treats the national budget the way you treat your household budget."

The Missouri Democrat said the minority budget plan offers $900 billion in tax cuts, debt reduction and a Medicare prescription drug benefit,

Gephardt also addressed other policy areas. On education, which he stressed is "one of our highest priorities," he promised opposition to vouchers.

And Gephardt charged that "with tax cuts consuming almost all of the projected surplus, (Mr. Bush) cannot possibly keep his commitment to leave no child behind."

He slammed the new president for earmarking money for a tax cut rather than setting aside enough funds to keep Social Security and Medicare afloat or including middle-income seniors in his prescription drug plan.

Gephardt hit a laundry list of key Democratic issues, calling for "a higher minimum wage, a Patients' Bill of Rights, safer schools, safer streets, and a cleaner environment."

And, as Mr. Bush had in his own remarks, Gephardt resurrected the controversy over the 2000 elections.

"All across America, too many people have lost faith in the fundamental principle of democracy — the principle of one person, one vote. We must act to restore their confidence," he said shortly before concluding. "We should not leave this session of Congress without reforming our election process. Our democracy depends on it."

By JARRETT MURPHY
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