National Issues Convention

January 21

The forum came after two days of small-group discussions on the economy, foreign policy and the troubled American family. Moderators tried to help delegates sharpen their opinions on broad policy priorities. In final preparation for the candidates, delegates spent an hour and a half questioning pairs of experts, one liberal and one conservative, on each of the three main issues, in order to further arm themselves with facts. The delegates questioned the four participating GOP candidates one at a time -- asking questions agreed to in the small-group sessions. Many questions focused on the the growing gap between the rich and poor... and the uneasiness many feel about their economic future. Delegates were sometimes unsatisfied by the answers and said so, as in this exchange between Douglas Zokatis of California and candidate Richard Lugar.

Zokatis: "Our group, when we discussed it, we were thinking of the bottom of the scale, the minimum wage people, getting a very small piece of the pie. And the fact that even with our increased economy, the greatest increases are gonna be at the higher end rather than the lower end. And my question is, is it possible to not have it do that, not have it spread further and further apart and still keep our American way of doing business?"

Lugar: "Probably not. The incentives to invest and to make things grow mean that some people are going to make money, and I'm excited that they'll have those incentives to do that. In fact, that is probably what will lift our economy. Now, if it's the politics of envy, in essence that we're worried that somebody's going to make money, we can make it very flat, and we're not gonna grow. My point is that we have to have growth, we're not getting growth, therefore the incentives to invest and save have to be there for all Americans. The minimum wage will not do that. What will occur -- and I say this as the former mayor of Indianapolis, where we got unemployment down below 2%. It got there because in buildings and jobs, and then one by one we worked with the hardcore unemployed on work habits, on interviews, on the tough work that it takes to reduce the minimum as close to zero as you can."

Zokatis: "Well, it doesn't answer the question, but I don't think it will be answered."

Lugar: "No, I've answered your question. I'm not in favor of flattening the rich. I'm not after them, to knock em down, to somehow hope that that will bring the poor up. It never has ...."

On each topic, delegates had discussed approaches ranging from minimal to heavy government involvement. Those favoring smaller government would have been pleased by the Republican candidates' responses. Former Tennessee Governor Lamar Alexander, one of three candidates who appeared by satellite, told a golf pro from Alaska that government is not the best way to support single-parent families or provide parenting skills.

Alexander: "If we kept at home in Nashville, where I am tonight, the money we send to Washington for Food Stamps, for Aid to Families with Dependent Children and the Women with Infants and Children program, we'd probably keep here about 80 or 100 million dollars a year. We should then spend that money with our local agencies here. We are the only ones who can help each other. It takes a lot bigger heart to say 'I will help you' than to say 'I will lobby the government to help you.' And someone might say, 'That's not a program, that's not a solution.' I think it is a solution. I think we have to go into the next century expecting less from Washington and more from ourselves."

Texas Senator Phil Gramm argued for a similar hands-off approach in foreign affairs. A California delegate challenged Gramm's opposition to U.S. involvement in Bosnia, saying the U.S. must not behave as if genocide were acceptable. Gramm responded that the U.S. should simply accept that it can't solve all conflicts.

Gramm: "And I've often thought -- and it's affected my decision-making process on this -- that I have two college-age sons. And it seems to me one question I ought to be able to answer in sending Americans into combat is, not only do we have a vital national interest, not only can we be decisive in promoting those interests, but would I be willing to send one of my own sons? And I think if the answer to that is not decisive, and it's not yes, then as president, and in fact this has been the case as a senator...I couldn't feel comfortable sending my own son, I couldn't feel comfortable feel comfortable sending your son or your daughter."

The final candidate at the forum, magazine publisher Steve Forbes, answered three out of four questions by touting the flat tax, the proposal on which he's built his campaign. When Donna Chandler of California asked what the candidate would do to stop profitable corporations from firing workers, Forbes said he'd reform the tax code.

Forbes: "We have a chance in 1996 to remove this monstrosity, and when we do we'll have a chance again as we've had in previous periods in our history where new businesses can be created. That's where the new jobs are created and the better-paying jobs are created. That's the way to go. You cannot depend on existing large companies to do it. They're in a downsizing mode, as you indicated. We've got to go in a different direction."

Chandler: "Our concern, though, is the corporate layoffs. Americans are losing their jobs by the thousands, and if and when they find new jobs their wages are drastically reduced. It just doesn't seem right or fair that workers are paying the price to keep the corporate profits rolling in."

Unlike Ms. Chandler, some questioners seemed to like the candidates' responses, while others simply nodded and sat down. After questioning Vice President Gore in a similar forum Sunday, the delegates will take a final opinion poll to measure whether their opinions have been changed by their experience at the National Issues Convention.

For Democracy Place, I'm John Biewen in Austin, Texas.