NATION/WORLD UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Wednesday, January 24, 1996
7A
Clinton disputes GOP policies
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — In a State of the Union address to a skeptical Republican Congress, President Clinton traced the themes of his upcoming re-election campaign last night and petitioned the GOP to finish the job in balancing the budget.
Clinton challenged Congress never to shut down the government again.
Clinton began his remarks by expressing pride in U.S. peacekeeping troops in Bosnia.
Clinton said the state of the union was strong and cited economic and anti-crime statistics to prove his case.
With tempers rubbed raw by months of battle, Republicans accused Clinton of standing in the way of balancing the budget, cutting taxes, reforming welfare and giving parents more control over schools.
Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole — front-runner for the GOP presidential nomination — outlined GOP campaign themes and assailed Clinton as the chief obstacle to a balanced budget in the Republican response televised after Clinton's address.
He said Clinton was careening dangerously off course in welfare, education, Medicare and taxes.
"We will challenge President Clinton again and again to talk the walk he talks so well." he said.
Clinton challenged Republican stands on welfare reform, tax cuts, the minimum wage, health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid, environmental cleanup, crime-fighting and foreign policy.
Clinton proposed several new initiatives. Among them were $1,000 college scholarships for the top 5 percent of graduates from every high school, and turning the FBI loose on youth gangs.
GOP lawmakers led the applause when Clinton declared that the era of big government was finished. Democrats initiated the clapping at the president's next sentence: "We cannot go back to the time when our citizens were left to fend for themselves."
The budget crisis loomed paramount over the House chamber. The next budget deadline comes at mid-
the minimum wage, which the GOP has opposed.
He also urged a tax cut for working families.
night Friday with the expiration of a temporary spending measure that has kept much of the government open.
"We cannot go back to the time when our citizens were left to fend for themselves."
"I am convinced we will balance the budget," Clinton said, adding, "Now is the time to finish the job."
"None of this will work unless all of you, every person in America, reach across the lines that divide us, and try to find common ground," he said.
On other sensitive points, Clinton urged Congress to enact a welfare reform plan, replacing the Republican version he vetoed, and to increase
Bill Clinton President
With Republicans controlling the legislative agenda, Clinton's proposals are unlikely to see the light of day, especially in an election year.
Other proposals:
Expansion of a federally financed college work-study program to 1 million students, up from 700,000 now. He also called for all schools to be linked together through the information superhighway.
An FBI-led war against youth gangs. "We should take on gangs the way we took on the mob," said White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta.
Legislation protecting workers'
pensions and ensuring health care benefits for employees when they change jobs or have pre-existing conditions.
He challenged Hollywood producers to provide entertainment their own children would enjoy and urged a TV ratings system much like the movies. He invited entertainment leaders to the White House to work on ways to clean up television programming.
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