"Here we go again!" That was a favorite line iof former president Ronald Reagan. Today many Americans want to "go again" by electing another 70-something conservative president. I hope more Americans realize that, like Reagan, Dole's policies will jeopardize our future competitiveness, and so vote against him. The problem with both Reagan and Dole's plans is that they both represent too much, too soon. Reagan spent trillions for defense which increased our national debt, and ultimately caused the recession in the late eighties and early nineties. Dole and the Republicans hope to correct this overspending by balancing the federal budget by 2002. Dole's spending cuts will jeopardize our future by further polarizing the "haves" and "have nots" and will significantly reduce spending on education and job training.

The U.S. government is currently in crisis. If the debt ceiling is not raised, the government risks defaulting on its debt. This crisis is caused by the disagreement on how to reduce the national debt. Everyone agrees that the debt must be eliminated, but Dole and other Republican candidates are in a bidding war to eliminate it the quickest. This is a classic case of the "ends don't justify the means." Eliminating the debt is a good campaign promise, but we should be careful not to alienate a major portion of the population on this worthy goal.

The annual deficit is $190 billion dollars this year. Even without the Republican Contract with America, this is down from $290 billion dollars before Clinton took office. Unbelievably, Dole's deficit reduction plan calls for $245 billion dollars in tax breaks for corporations and the rich. Just this past year, a bill that would have eliminated a tax break for ethanol (which supports processing of corn for alternative fuel) was defeated by the Republicans. Dole thought the legislation should be defeated. Who will pay for these hand-outs? The middle-class and the poor, as usual. Over the past 20 years there has been an increasing difference between the rich and poor. The rich are getting richer. The poor are getting poorer. The Republican strategy slashes social programs (from health care to job training) and will worsen the income gap. Moreover, Dole helped defeat Clinton's job training initiative According to Labor Secretary Robert Reich, "Every year of postgraduate education or job training generates an increase of 6% to 12% in incomes."

Many believe that Clinton has been an inconsistent leader, but his economic policies have lead us to a growing economy every year he's been in office. In addition, inflation remains under control, and unemployment is a moderate 5.6%. Let's all agree with Dole and the Republicans that the deficit should be eliminated. But let's take the moderate approach and eliminate the deficit in ten years, as suggested by Clinton. This will ensure our continued economic growth and will enable us to fund important programs like job training and education. And most importantly, this will allow all Americans to reap the benefits of sound government spending. ?