Unofficial Summary of the Rush Limbaugh Show for Friday, October 21, 1994 by John Switzer This unofficial summary is copyright (c) 1994 by John Switzer. All Rights Reserved. These summaries are distributed on CompuServe and the Internet, and archived on CompuServe (DL9 of the ISSUES forum) and Internet (cathouse.org and grind.isca.uiowa.edu). The /pub/jrs directory at ftp.netcom.com contains the summaries for the past 30 days. Distribution to other electronic forums and bulletin boards is highly encouraged. Spelling and other corrections gratefully received. Please read the standard disclaimer which was included with the first summary for this month. In particular, please note that this summary is not approved or sanctioned by Rush Limbaugh or the EIB network, nor do I have any connection with them other than as a daily listener. ************************************************************* October 21, 1994 BRIEF SUMMARY OF TOPICS: Senator Dianne Feinstein echoes conservative complaints about Proposition 187; Clinton administration calls for change in the War Power Act; Democrats fear major losses this November; David Wilhelm suggests that Democrats run not on their record but by reminding people what 12 years of Republican rule was all about; Tony Snow is guest host for the show; Democrats' slogan for 1994 is "the people are stupid"; Clinton complains New Yorkers don't understand what Cuomo has done for them in the past 12 years; Democrats running for re-election scatter when Clinton comes to town; Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) drops in polls after Clinton visit; Rep. David McCurdy (D-OK) gave nominating speech for Clinton but today wants nothing to do with him; Rep. David Mann (D-OH) is running ads about how he's always been "separated" from Clinton; Rep. Paul McHale (D-PA) lists 16 points of independence with Clinton, although he's voted with Clinton 86% of the time; median family income suffered drop in 1993, with young and old workers suffering most; only the rich got richer last year, thanks to Clintonomics; Clinton is chasing businesses and money out of the country, and even Lloyd Bentsen is investing overseas; Democrats raise twice as much soft money as Republicans; caller's company isn't hiring new employees or travelling as much because of Clintonomics; it's Democrats who raised taxes on Social Security, not Republicans; Tony talks with Dave Carney about the upcoming Senate races; Carney predicts Bob Dole will be Senate Majority Leader this November; Democrats running for Senate in Tennessee are facing close races; Senator Jim Sasser (D-TN) is trying to ignore his 18-year record; Senator Bob Kerrey (D-NE) talks like Rush Limbaugh in Nebraska but votes like Ted Kennedy in Washington; Senator Harris Wofford (D-PA) is facing voters without having delivered on his three main 1991 campaign promises; caller oppose California's Proposition 187 because it would invade people's privacy and result in higher taxes; immigration is a big issue in California where the economy is doing poorly; Tony describes his upcoming PBS special about "The New Militant Center"; Hancock 2 initiative in Missouri will close loopholes that allow state legislators to avoid getting the people's permission on tax increases; Houston woman gets four Republicans to challenge Democrats for Congress, simply by running a classified ad; Americans are not angry about the system but about the nimrods in Washington; caller asks why Whitewater hasn't been in the press lately; new book, "When Should the Watchdogs Bark?", discusses the press's coverage of the Clinton scandals; trooper L.D. Davis corroborates David Hale's story about how Clinton asked him to divert loans to a business partner; both Republicans and Democrats will have motivations for pursuing the Whitewater scandal; press is avoiding Clinton's "embarrassing" sex scandals; jokes being told about Clinton concern his sexual habits, in contrast to those told about George Bush; words to "Fifty Ways to Stay in Office"; caller recommends the book "The Whitewater Fiasco"; caller defends California's Proposition 187; letting the people give their money to charity instead of taxes is far more efficient; national debt can't be paid off until government spending is put firmly under control; caller asks who is Hillary Clinton to declare that she doesn't trust Americans to make the right choices with medical savings accounts; Bryant Gumble thinks average American dislikes Hillary because they are turned off by "strong women"; Texans are talking about forming militias to safeguard private property from federal confiscation; Washington Times reports that the White House offered Doug Wilder an ambassadorship in exchange for his endorsement of Chuck Robb in Virginia, which if true would be a federal felony; Algore claims Oliver North "has a talent for lying with a straight face"; Clinton campaign appearance with Hugh Rodham draws only 500 people instead of the 5,000 expected; arrogant press doesn't realize voter anger is about liberal policies; Rep. David Mann (D-OH) initially opposed Clinton but quickly became a convert when he was frozen out of Congress; trustee of Cabrillo Unified School District wants to eliminate homework because it's "unfair" and against anti-family values; terms such as "adult" and "couple" are forbidden in real estate ads by the Department of Housing and Urban Development; Indians claim the entire mountain of Mount Shasta should be turned over them because it's is sacred to them under the National Historic Preservation Act; report claims cities have dangerous water, but the risk from drinking it is far, far less than from other dangers, such as getting hit by lightning; the Clinton administration is worried about the growth in states' rights movements; Dutch TV televises killing of elderly man with Lou Gehrig's disease; society seems to have such a phobia about pain that the killing of others is condoned and even encouraged; a balanced budget wouldn't prevent government from raising taxes so as to spend more money; deficits and high taxes can be solved only by limiting government spending; sources for the book "When Should the Watchdogs Bark?"; caller thinks if schools used the school day properly, kids wouldn't need to do homework; caller thinks that in addition to a balanced budget amendment, Constitution must be amended to prohibit unfunded federal mandates on the states; state deficits are going up because the federal government is forcing states to spend their own money for federal programs; caller thinks federal government should avoid duplicating state services and programs, so that tax money can be spent locally where it will be more effective; San Diego researcher thinks tall people consume too much of world's resources, so he wants to limit children's height by modifying their diets. LIMBAUGH WATCH October 21, 1994 - It's now day 640 (day 659 for the rich and the dead, and 18 days until the November elections) of "America Held Hostage" (aka the "Raw Deal" which has 822 days left) and 703 days after Bill Clinton's election, but Rush is still on the air with 659 radio affiliates (with more than 20 million listeners weekly world-wide), 250 TV affiliates (with a national rating of 3.7), and a newsletter with nearly 500,000 subscribers. His first book was on the NY Times hardback non-fiction best- seller list for 54 consecutive weeks, with 2.6 million copies sold, but fell off the list after Simon and Schuster stopped printing it. The paperback version of "The Way Things Ought To Be" was on the NY Times paperback non-fiction best-seller list for 28 weeks. Rush's second book, "See, I Told You So," was on the NY Times best-seller list for 16 weeks and has sold over 2.45 million copies. NEWS o Two days after two prominent conservatives denounced California's Proposition 187, which would end public services for illegal aliens, Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has finally come out in opposition to it. Echoing many of the complaints found in the statement released by Jack Kemp and William Bennett about why they oppose the "Save Our State" initiative, Feinstein said the measure would oust over 400,000 children of illegal aliens from public schools, putting them on the street, a "fertile recruiting ground for crime and drugs." She also complained the measure was unconstitutional and would be challenged in the courts. o Anthony Lake, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, said today that Congress should revise the War Powers Resolution because "it undermines our objectives and compounds the risk for our troops." Lake, speaking at the Harvard University Center for International Affairs, also said Congress was putting U.S. troops in Haiti, the Gulf, and elsewhere at risk by debating resolutions for their withdrawal. However, Lake then complained that "too often Congress only sees costs and casualties, rather than benefits and opportunities." He complained that the 1973 War Powers Act was unconstitutional, and that congressional interference with military missions "is virtually an invitation for the `thug of the month' to see if he can force our departure from some difficult corner of the world by attacking our soldiers." LEST WE FORGET The following are from the Rush Limbaugh show on Friday, October 23, 1992: o At a rally in London, KY, President Bush said the following about Clinton's record in Arkansas: "The only way to get Arkansas' economy moving was for Governor Clinton to get out of the state. He was out of there in '91, running for President, the only time they did better than the national average. And if you want to get the economy in this country moving, and I do, and we've got the ways to do it, . . . send him back to Little Rock and keep him there." o The response to the previous day's show, in which Rush "endorsed" Clinton, overwhelmed the EIB offices, but it was predominantly supportive. However, some people told Rush that what he did was unnecessary, given the composition of the EIB audience. William Bennett, for example, thought Rush made a mistake in being anything but honest - "hoaxes are not for your audience." Bennett said that if Rush wanted to do hoaxes in the future, he should make sure his audience would be all Democrats and liberals. Others, however, said that Rush should have continued his pro- Clinton hoax for more than a week, but Rush knew from experience that such a thing had to be wrapped up within one show. As it was, the LA Times ran an article about Rush's performance, and the San Francisco Chronicle, along with other papers, picked up on it. The Chronicle added that "Clinton's campaign took the bait, too, telling some reporters that Limbaugh's endorsement of their candidate was perfect timing" because Clinton was campaigning in Orange County, a conservative stronghold. Rush explained that he had discovered over time that the most important reason for his success was that his audience trusted and believed him. He thus became depressed when a rising number of people were claiming that character was irrelevant in the President. Rush therefore demonstrated exactly what Clinton had been doing for 20 years - saying one thing and then later on denying that he ever said it. Rush knew that his audience contained many liberals and Democrats, not to mention a large number of Republicans who were so angry at Bush that they wanted to "punish" him by electing Clinton. He therefore wanted to wake up these voters and make them realize that the most important aspect of leadership was character. He knew that his "practical joke" would distress a great many of his fans, but thought that the point still needed to be made. o The NY Post reported that Clinton was going to make a speech about AIDS, promising to appoint an "AIDS Czar," fulfilling a promise he made during the primaries to 22 New York AIDS groups. Reportedly Clinton, in addition to attacking the Bush administration and the Republican party for not doing anything about AIDS, would announce plans for a "veritable Manhattan Project" to find a cure for the disease. o The Kellwood company of St. Louis, MO, a Fortune 500 company with over $900 million in annual sales of apparel, recreation, and camping products, issued a press release titled "Kellwood Company Refutes Gore Ad running in North Carolina." Clinton and Gore were running a political radio ad in North Carolina that asserted Kellwood had closed its plant in Fletcher, NC because it was "chasing cheap labor in Central America"; the ad also claimed the company used taxpayer dollars for training and loans. Kellwood denounced these as lies - the Fletcher facility was a warehouse and a distribution point, but when the company reorganized, it closed the Fletcher plant and consolidated its functions with its warehouse at Rutherford, TN. All 175 employees in North Carolina were offered transfers to other facilities within the United States, and "Kellwood has never received money or enticement from the US government to move its operations overseas." Although Kellwood had contacted the Great American Ad Group, which did the ads for the Clinton/Gore campaign, the agency refused to change its ad. Meanwhile Senator Gore had been claiming for weeks that the Bush administration was enticing US corporations to shut down their domestic facilities so that the jobs can be moved to Mexico and other lower-wage countries. Gore said the US AID program was an attempt by Bush to put Americans out of work, even though AID was a bipartisan 20-year-old program that strengthened the economies of the U.S.'s trading partners in the Americas so they could buy even more American products. Clinton and Gore had also been telling Americans that their children's chances for a good future were fading fast, but a Time/Warner survey of 8 to 12-year-olds showed that 80% of the kids were excited about the idea of growing up and going to work, with 90% saying they knew what they wanted to do. The top occupations cited by these 1,000 children were doctor (13%), lawyer (10.5%), cop (8%), and firefighter (5%). The remaining children chose occupations as varied as astronaut, McDonalds manager, and herbalist; 20% of girls and 6% of boys wanted to be teachers, while 9% of boys and 3% of girls wanted to be police officers. An equal number of boys and girls wanted to be doctors. o The October 10th issue of the Economist had a feature article titled "America's Parasite Economy" about the huge wealth transfers that occurred in America because of federal regulations. Among the reasons for a major increase in regulations were: 1) The number of lawyers had grown 250% faster than the US population rate; the number of lawyers had tripled since 1960, along with a tripling in the number of federal lawsuits. 2) The number of national trade associations had grown from 4,900 in 1959 to 23,000 in 1989. 3) The number of paid lobbyists registered with the Senate has grown from 365 in 1960 to 40,111, or about 400 lobbyists per Senator. The Economist also pointed out that federal regulators didn't care much about the cost effectiveness of their regulations. The cost per premature death averted was $100,000 for car seat belt standards, $800,000 for child clothing flammability standards, $106.9 million for arsenic exposure limits, $110.7 million for the ban on asbestos, $4.1 billion for hazardous-waste land disposal bans, and $5.7 trillion for hazardous-waste listing for wood-preserving chemicals. o Rush received a manila envelope filled with taped-up coins and a letter from a boy in Raleigh, NC who really wanted a diploma from the EIB Institute. His family didn't have any credit cards, so he had been saving his quarters, nickels, and dimes; the kid was so excited when he had enough money that he didn't bother going to get a money order but sent the coins in via overnight mail, which cost him another $5. The people at the clearing house were moved when they saw this and called the boy's mother who said that her son was unbelievably excited about getting his diploma. The clearing house contacted Rush, who was also moved, so EIB was refunding the guy's money, sending him a diploma gratis, as well as a Dittohead T-shirt. Rush wanted to keep the envelope as a memento of this dittohead's loyalty and devotion. o New York Governor Mario Cuomo was asked how he felt about Rush's mispronouncing his name as "Coo-mo." Cuomo replied "I think Rash Limbaugh is entitled to the First Amendment." Rush remarked that Cuomo's comments were at least better than the old days when Cuomo would be asked about Rush and would reply "who?" ******** <> MORNING UPDATE Rush has been hearing quite a few stories about the November elections lately in the print media, which is also known as the public relations arm for the Democratic party. For example, a Washington Post article contends that the November elections will favor Republicans because "traditional Democrats are not enthused." A Democratic pollster insists that even under the best of circumstances, this would be a hard year for the Democrats, "but frankly, this isn't even close to the best circumstances." How bad the circumstances are can be seen in the words of a Democratic operative who said that by late October, if the "national jet stream blowing by Republican candidates is still strong," Republicans could gain up to 30 seats in the House. The Post adds that the latest polling data shows that Clinton is in deep trouble; one southern Democrat remarked "Clinton is as popular here as Satan." Outgoing Democratic National Committee Chairman David Wilhelm has suggested that Democrats fight this trend, but not by defending their record or that of President Clinton; instead, Democrats should "run aggressively and remind people what 12 years of Republican rule was all about." Rush thinks this is a fine strategy because if the Democrats were to tell the truth about the 80s just once, they might not see the inside of the White House or be in control of Congress again for generations. <> FIRST HOUR Tony is pleased to once again sub for Rush, who will return to the radio airwaves on Monday. He adds that today will be unique because he'll be promoting his upcoming PBS special, which means today will probably be the first and last time a PBS special will be shilled on the EIB Network. However, this special, titled "The New Militant Center," is all about the voter-led revolution going on, and he'll discuss it a bit later. Meanwhile, Tony thinks he's finally discovered what the Democrats' 1994 campaign slogan is; in contrast to 1992, when the slogan was "It's the economy, Stupid!" and in 1993, when it was "It's health care, Stupid," this year's Democratic slogan is "The people are stupid!" President Clinton has been using this idea throughout his speeches, complaining that the people just don't understand what he's done for them. He was in New York the other day and told the Democratic audience "if people only understood what Mario Cuomo's been doing for them for the last 12 years, they would fall down on their knees and be grateful." When he spoke yesterday in Massachusetts on behalf of Senator Ted Kennedy, Clinton gave Republicans a great campaign ad by whining "the problem is that people who claim that Ted Kennedy is a liberal just don't understand." Clinton is now involved in a "Where's Waldo" form of campaigning - no matter where he appears, the Democrats from those districts seem to disappear into the crowds. When Clinton was visited last Saturday, Senator Joe Lieberman (D-CT) was nowhere to be found; he later explained that he's an observant Jew and was observing the Sabbath. Tony suspects, however, that while this probably is true, Lieberman would have found some other reason to be wherever Clinton was not. Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) met Bill Clinton at the airport last week but he didn't invite any press to their two "stealth" campaign appearances. Usually, though, local politicians are excited when their President comes to visit them and they make a big deal about it, but this is not the case this year. Clinton is acting as if he's in the Witness Protection Program, slipping in and out of town quietly. However, it didn't help because Bingaman's poll numbers went down after Clinton's visit. Rep. David McCurdy (D-OK) is running for the Senate this year but even though he gave a nomination speech for Bill Clinton in the 1992 Democratic Convention, he doesn't want to be anywhere near the President today. McCurdy desperately wanted to be photographed with Clinton two years ago, but now doesn't even want to be in the same state. However, Tony's favorite story is about Rep. David Mann (D-OH) who's running "separation ads" that are designed to separate him from Clinton. Today's Washington Post reports that Mann's ads begin with quick rapid fire references to Mann's votes against Clinton's tax increases, pork barrel programs, and health care plan, concluding "we always knew where he stood - now they [the Clintons] do, too." Rep. Paul McHale (D-PA) two years ago ran ads about how he wanted to change America and end trickle-down economics, and his campaign literature featured photos of McHale standing next to Bill Clinton. This year, though, McHale held a press conference at a church with a replica of the Liberty Bell to declare 16 "points of independence" between him and Clinton, even though McHale has voted with Bill Clinton 86 percent of the time. McHale supports Clinton but no longer wants to be associated with him. Clinton is thus faced with having to campaign for Democrats without being seen with them, and he's blaming this on the stupidity of the American people. To Clinton, the people just don't get it, but Tony disagrees because the people are getting it. The economy is recovering slowly, but most people don't think it's a strong and robust economy for them personally. Even the Clinton economic figures aren't that good; the Clinton tax increases went into effect on January 1, 1993, and the economy started slowing down. In 1993, median family income fell 1.9%, with those between 25 and 35 suffering a 3% loss in come; those between 54 and 64 saw a 4.4% drop in their income, and this doesn't even include increased taxes. Furthermore, those who worked full-time last year worked longer than ever before, with new records being set for the average work week and for the amount of overtime worked. Thus, Americans are working longer hours and making less money. The administration claims it added 2.2 million jobs, but there are a lot of part-time jobs; businesses responded to Clinton's higher taxes and expected higher regulations by firing full-time workers and hiring part-timers; among the first to be let go were middle managers, who probably have found new jobs by now but those jobs have lower salaries. Clinton is also talking about how the Reagan years benefited only the rich, but nearly everyone last year made less money; the only people who got richer were those in the top one-fifth of income earners - in other words, the rich got richer. This is not surprising because Clinton is an "apple-polisher" politician who will aid his rich buddies. It's thus not surprising that the average American is angry that their standard of living is falling, thanks to Clintonomics. The people aren't stupid and they know the economy isn't better than it was two years ago. *BREAK* Tony continues on with the topic of Clintonomics to mention that jobs are created when people can invest in new ideas and businesses. Reagan's tax cuts worked because they allowed the rich to invest their money in new ventures; Washington doesn't even have the competence to run its own businesses, much less micro-manage the economy. The Clinton administration, however, still thinks it can pick the winners and losers in the economy. The people are anxious, though, because of the ongoing changes in the economy - old industries are disappearing, replaced by new ones. The way to help those losing their jobs is to encourage the creation of new ones, but Clintonomics has slowed the growth of this. In fact, investors are even pulling their money out of the U.S. economy and parking it overseas, out of fears over what Clinton wants to do. These investors aren't anti-American, but are looking for more stable countries and places where they can take advantage of a declining dollar. Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen in fact personally spent between $250,000 and $500,000 supporting businesses in Asia. In short, Clinton is not only chasing businesses out of the U.S. but also chasing money out as well. Democrats also love to argue that Republicans are the party of the rich and famous but this is totally untrue. Today's NY Times reports that the Democratic party has doubled its "soft money" receipts to $27 million; in contrast, Republicans raised only $13 million from these special interests and corporations. In contrast, Oliver North and other Republicans are getting big bucks from small donations received from individual supporters. Phone Mike from Jacksonville, FL Mike is a partner in a heavy equipment distributing company, which has decided it can't hire a new mechanic because of Clintonomics. The company used to be able to write off 80% of their travel expenses, but now that figure is only 50%, so they travel less; this not only affects their search for new business, but also means less business for all the hotels, restaurants, etc. that they would otherwise have been visiting. Mike thinks Clinton has to be gotten out of office. However, he often talks with his parents about these things, but because they're planning for their retirement, they're thinking differently than those who are active in the business market. Tony says the Democrats are trying to scare senior citizens into thinking the Republicans' contract will hurt them the most. Clinton, though, was the guy who raised the tax on Social Security, plus last year's income figures show that the trend towards lay-offs and more part-time workers hurt those at the beginning and end of their careers the most. Mike adds that the banks have also changed the way they do business, thanks to Clinton. They used to be willing to loan up to 80% of the value of capital goods, but this has been dropped to 60%, plus businesses have to have higher reserves in order to borrow money. Thus, businesses such as his get hurt as well. Tony asks if the Mike's company has reduced its charitable contributions, and Mike says yes because a company has only so much money, and when business goes down, you have less money to give out. Tony asks a rather obvious question: what's kinder and gentler - a system that allows companies to give more to charity and create more jobs, or the current system? Mike says the answer is obvious. Tony thanks Mike for calling and adds that every election campaign seems to bring up at some point or another which candidates are the "nicest" and "most fair." However, the recent survey that reveals Americans are giving less to charity and volunteering less time shows that Americans are working harder to make ends meet, and they have less to give, both in terms of time and money. In contrast, when Reagan cut taxes, charitable giving not only went up, but people spent more time helping others. Thus, whenever Clinton attacks the Reagan years as being mean and nasty, he just doesn't get it, but the November elections hopefully will make sure Clinton gets it from now on. *BREAK* Tony introduces Dave Carney of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, which coordinates and aids Republican Senate candidates. He first asks how well Dave thinks Republicans will do this year, and Dave says Bob Dole will definitely be the Majority Leader, and Republicans could gain as many as 12 or 13 seats in the Senate this November. Tony mentions Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) and Dave says "he's toast" because his Republican opponent has waged a campaign based on the issues; Bingaman is someone, though, who just doesn't get it; he voted with Clinton on every clutch vote and has supported Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt's war against those in the West. In contrast, the Republican candidate represents New Mexico and its values. Tony notes that Bingaman's wife is head of the anti-trust division of the Justice Department, so he asks if it hurts or helps Bingaman to have a wife who's an active member of the Clinton administration. Dave says that early in the campaign there was some talk about whether Bingaman could be truly independent of Clinton, especially since the two pull in over a quarter of a million dollars in federal salaries each year, which is not an average New Mexico salary. However, since then this issue really hasn't come up. Dave notes the polls show that Bingaman has a five-point lead, 45 to 40, but the Republican is moving up quickly in the polls. Dave thinks a good voter turnout will ensure that Bingaman will be out of office next year. Tony asks about the two races in Tennessee, with Republican Fred Thompson facing Democrat Jim Cooper. Dave says that Cooper's $1.6 billion health care plan is a millstone around his neck, and he's dropping in the polls, behind by 11 points. The Democrats seem to be giving up on Cooper, instead concentrating on trying to save Senator Jim Sasser (D-TN). Tony says that Cooper was initially believed to be a shoe-in for the Senate, given his ties with the administration and how his father was once governor. Dave, though, points out that the people are realizing that these Democrats are out of touch, never having really worked in the private sector, not understanding what it means to meet a payroll. Tony says Senator Sasser is having problems with Republican physician Bill Frist. Dave says Sasser is waging one of the most hypocritical races in the country; his 18-year record is out there for everyone to see, but his campaign ads feature issues such as school prayer and family values; people would be hard pressed to find any word by Sasser in the Congressional Record that match what he is now saying in his ads. Dave thinks the Democrats are so desperate that they're running as Republicans, but he's certain that voters will understand that if they want a Republican, they should vote Republican. Dave adds that one of the best soundbites he's yet heard is that Senator Bob Kerrey (D-NE) talks like Rush Limbaugh in Nebraska but he votes like Ted Kennedy in Washington. This could be said of many Democrats, such as Joe Lieberman (D-CT), who's trying to portray himself as a conservative even those he's always voted with Clinton in the close votes. Tony asks about the Democrats' attacks against Reagan, and Dave says the attacks against the most popular living President only show how desperate the Democrats are. Initially the White House suggested that Democrats run proudly on their record, but nobody wanted to do that, and while national Democratic ads are attacking Reagan, on the local level politicians are trying to link themselves with Reagan. Tony asks which races are the ones to watch this year, and Dave replies that Minnesota is a key one, as will be New Mexico and California. Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maine, and Virginia, though, seem to be over for the Democrats. Tony mentions Harris Wofford, who won his seat in 1991 by campaigning on health care, setting the stage for Bill Clinton. Wofford, though, is now faced with running on the same issue which got him in office. Dave says that the voters are disappointed with how Wofford has not delivered on his three promises: a middle class tax cut, opposing NAFTA, and universal health care. He's struck out, and it doesn't help that in 1991 Wofford claimed his election was a mandate for health care reform. However, he hasn't been a leader in Congress for true reform; he didn't even sponsor his own bill, but rather signed onto every other bill that came out. Wofford is now facing a close race with Rick Santorum, who's running one of the best campaigns in the country. In short, Dave thinks Santorum will become a Senator in November, and Bob Dole will be the Majority Leader, with Republicans helping to get the budget and taxes low. Rush thanks Dave for calling with this update on the nation's Senate races. *BREAK* Phone Diane from Lomita, CA Diane first says that she's been a conservative all her life, but she opposes California's Proposition 187, the "Save Our State" initiative, which if approved, would make illegal aliens ineligible for public benefits. She supports this idea in theory, but the proposition itself is too badly written for her to support. While Proposition 187 would do some good things in terms of restricting medical care, Diane opposes how the measure would require all public schools, from elementary school on up to colleges, to investigate the citizenship status of not only their students but of their parents. This would violate federal privacy laws, resulting in a loss of federal funds to these schools. Tony says he hasn't gotten around to reading the proposition yet, but he's already angry at how much the government has already intruded into business, requiring all of his would-be employers to see proof that he is an American. Jack Kemp and William Bennett have put out a position paper explaining why they're against this proposition, but Pat Buchanan thinks their opposition insults the state's voters, who support this initiative two to one. However, it's just jingoistic to claim that illegal aliens are responsible for the state's problems. Diane agrees, and notes that this proposition would force higher taxes to pay for the additional staff needed to handle the attempt to verify everyone's citizenship. The ballot analysis for the proposition estimates a cost of $100 million for just the first year, but Diane thinks this is a low estimate. Tony notes this is a big issue in California, where the economy is still in a recession, but not in Texas, where the economy is going along fairly well. Thus, Tony thinks the immigration issue is being used by some people as an excuse for the poor economy. Diane hopes that California voters read this legislation for themselves, and avoid making their decision by listening to the commercials being aired right now. In fact, she hopes that most people read their ballot pamphlets, so as to understand exactly what the dozen or so initiatives being voted on this year in California would really do. Tony agrees, and bets there will be a lot of callers with their own opinions on this. In particular, though, Tony is interested in whether strict immigration controls can be implemented without violating people's basic privacy rights. *BREAK* Tony admits he's been lacking in "shilling" his upcoming PBS special which will air in most markets on October 31st, although a bit later elsewhere. The special is titled "The New Militant Center," and it focuses on dittoheads and other Americans who are fed up with the government's inability to respond to the will of the people with regards to term limits, property rights, tax limits, balanced budgets, etc. The people have taken matters into their own hands because both major political parties seem reluctant to wage a war on big government. It's time that people be given back their government and their freedoms. Americans should be able to live free again, and this is the goal of the "new militant center." Tony says one of his favorite parts of the show is its discussion of the "Hancock Two" initiative being discussed in Missouri, which seeks to close a loophole in the first Hancock referendum that requires voter consent of all tax increases. Of course, third parties, independent candidates, and Ross Perot are also mentioned, but Tony admits that if it weren't for Perot, he wouldn't have been thrown out of the White House in 1992, a fact that has allowed him to go back to being a pundit and being able to guest host Rush's show from time to time. *BREAK* SECOND HOUR Tony mentions his PBS special again because it concerns the public fury and anger that's defining what's truly happening in politics across America. Americans are proving that democracy is alive and well in all those states that allow the referendum and initiative; such states have a political atmosphere that is charged up, and Tony predicts that by the end of next year, every state with the initiative process will also have passed term limits. Most states are also considering tax limits, such as the "Hancock 2" initiative in Missouri. In 1980, conservative Republican Mel Hancock put an initiative on the ballot which limited the amount of taxes that could be raised to a strict percentage of income. If the state legislators wanted to raise taxes higher than that, they would have to get the people's approval first. However, there were loopholes in the law, and the legislators took advantage of them, increasing spending last year by $340 million without getting voter approval first. The Hancock 2 measure, though, will close those loopholes, sending a clear and very angry message to their representatives. This is what democracy is supposed to be, and what's happening in Missouri is happening elsewhere across the country, with a revolution occurring in the center of the political spectrum. Mainstream Americans are angry because they don't think the system is working, and unlike special interest groups, you can't buy off middle America. The only way to placate them is to fix the system and get a handle on taxes and spending, which is the coming wave in American politics. When Tony put together his PBS special, he talked to dozens of normal Americans who were doing all sorts of things to get the system working again. Betty Potts of Houston, TX, for example, saw that seven Democrats didn't have any Republican challengers, so she took out a classified ad asking for qualified candidates. From this one little ad she got 63 resumes and four of them are now running for Congress. It's unlikely any of them will be elected but it shows that the people are not cynical and disgusted with the system itself; if anything, they are cheery and optimistic about it. The people are disgusted, though, towards the nimrods in Washington who are out of touch with the rest of America. America today no longer accepts the smokestack politics of the New Deal, but instead is going back to the debate about the 80s, Reaganism and its precepts of limiting government and letting people prove they can do better things than the government. Phone John from Winterpark, FL John has heard nothing about Whitewater lately, so he wonders if this is part of the press's plan to rehabilitate Clinton or has this issue just played out? Tony says Whitewater will be all over the news next year, and a book, "When Should the Watchdogs Bark: Media Coverage of the Clinton Scandals," by Larry Sabado and Bob Lichter, has just come out about this very topic. This book examines the coverage of the Clinton scandals, concluding that the Whitewater scandal has been covered more than it otherwise would have been, simply because the press is too embarrassed to get involved with the character issues at the root of Clinton's sex scandals. The book notes that the quality of evidence for the sex scandals seems better than that available for the Whitewater scandal, and some members of the press clearly believe that Clinton is guilty. Arkansas trooper L.D. Davis last week said he saw Bill Clinton involved in a conversation with David Hale, a judge appointed by Clinton. Hale also ran an investment company which was financed by federal loans, and Hale has testified previously that Clinton asked him to make $300,000 in such loans to a company owned by Susan McDougal, wife to James McDougal, partners with the Clinton in the Whitewater investments. Davis has come forward to partially corroborate this story, and the Washington Times, Associated Press, and Washington Post have mentioned all or some of it, but the NY Times has so far ignored Davis's statements. Tony suspects that the media is going to claim that Davis is not considered a good source because of his involvement in the Fornigate sex scandals, so this will be a convenient excuse for not running the new Whitewater details. However, Whitewater is not going to go away because there will be a Republican Senate this November. Plus, Tony theorizes that while the Democrats understand that they're unpopular now not just because of Clinton but because of Democratic policies, they still think Clinton is an embarrassment. Therefore Democrats will hold wide-open scandal hearings in an attempt to shame Clinton out of office in 1996. Doing this will allow the Democrats to both blame their problems on Clinton and to avoid admitting to the shallowness of their ideas. It's a politically expedient thing for Democrats to do, given that they could then work to have a stronger Presidential candidate in 1996. However, it has to be admitted that the press hasn't found any smoking gun in Whitewater; this is a very complicated scandal, but there are no concrete charges that you could nail Clinton on. Thus, the story will come and go as vague accusations and evidence come and go, but Tony suspects that more evidence will be revealed in the future, especially as special prosecutor Ken Starr continues with his investigation. John asks about Hillary Clinton's $100,000 profit in commodities futures, and Tony notes that health care was a casualty of this - the people know that Hillary got away with a fast one, plus Hillary lied to press about all this on March 22. He thanks John for calling. *BREAK* Tony thinks "When Should the Watchdogs Bark" is an important book, and it's not something put out by a right-wing think tank. This book's examination of the press's coverage of the Clinton scandals is devastating because it points out how the press is ignoring the President's character deficiencies. However, the book also makes the point that many of those in the press corps have a very low opinion of the President. As to these scandals, the book comes to three basic conclusions: o Whitewater was heavily covered, while the sex stories were basically ignored by the major media. o The standard of proof that the newspapers required for Whitewater charges were lower than the Troopergate and Fornigate stories. o Whitewater sources also received more respectful treatment than those for the other sources. This later one is particularly important, given that Anita Hill received positive coverage from the press 67% of the time during the Clarence Thomas hearings, while Paula Jones received negative coverage 67% of the time. The reason for this was that the press considered Jones to be "white trailer trash," while Hill was more of an elitist. Even so, though, reporters such as Jim Wooten and others from the New Republic went on record in this book to say that they believed the stories told by the Arkansas troopers about Clinton's infidelity. The book's authors, though, also found out that nearly half of the members of the press corps weren't willing to say that adultery was wrong, compared to how 80% of the general public does think adultery is clearly wrong. If nothing else, this book is worthwhile for its compilation of Whitewater jokes. For example, David Letterman last July noted there were three basic questions being asked during the Whitewater hearings: "what did Clinton know, when did he know it, and whom was he dating at the time." Letterman also remarked that Arkansas state troopers had their arrest techniques down pat: "Will you step out of the car, ma'am, and put your hands on the governor." And when Winona Judd announced she was pregnant, Leno joked "the White House immediately ran a denial." Tony admits he has some bias towards Clinton, given that he worked as a Bush speechwriter, but he notes that when people told jokes about Bush, it was about him throwing up on other heads of state, not about him hitting on their wives. This is a difference that Americans take seriously because character does matter; the strength of character of the person in the Oval Office can decide whether a disaster occurs, and that's why these scandals aren't going away. *BREAK* Tony starts off the segment with the pertinent Clinton tune, "Fifty Ways to Stay in Office": <> Come on in and have a seat. There's some things I need to tell you boys. <> "I know November isn't very far away, So before you hit the campaign trail, there're some things that I must say. Cause let me tell you boys, I know the ropes, come re-election day, There must be fifty ways to stay in office. Lots of nifty ways to stay in office." <> "First fudge on the facts and relax, Say it wasn't your plan, man, And it'd be a good ploy, boy To get some distance from me. Well, you can use our bus, just . . . Well, don't discuss us . . . By radio or TV, and then you'll be home free." <> "They have to be convinced that you can feel their pain, Don't get lost in your convictions, it's the image you maintain. Just make appeals to their emotions and they'll keep be coming back again. There must be fifty ways to stay in office. Yeah, there's lots of nifty ways to stay in office." <> "Got to fudge on the facts and relax, Say it wasn't your plan, man, And it'd be a good ploy, boy To get some distance from me. Well, you can use our bus, just . . . Well don't discuss us By radio or TV, And then you'll be home free!" <> Now, when you say the pledge, you need to be sure to put your hand over your heart. No, no . . . Sasser! Other hand. Well, I'll just right it down for you. ******** Phone Richard from Burlingame, CA Richard wants to "launch a Patriot missile" but first recommends Martin Gross's book "The Whitewater Fiasco," which mentions Clinton's illegal slush fund, something no one else has picked up. Tony says he has this book, although he hasn't read it all yet; Gross, though, is one of those guys who have led the fight for smaller government, and his book basically does what investigative reporters should do: go through the public records to create a clear picture of what's been going on. Richard's "Patriot missile," though, is about Proposition 187; he supports this proposition and bets that the woman who called earlier was a teacher or some member of the other groups that have banded together to oppose it. Richard has read the proposition and the ballot pamphlet notes it will reduce, not increase, administrative costs by $100 million. In addition, it could save up to $1.2 billion in educational funds being used to educate illegal aliens. In addition, this proposition is not about illegals but about eliminating the public bureaucracy which thrives on it. Tony says that it seems the real issue is welfare reform, and Richard agrees - the California Teachers Association and the California Medical Association are the two biggest opponents to this proposition because they receive millions of taxpayer dollars so as to service illegal aliens. Tony asks about the argument made by Jack Kemp and William Bennett that this proposition would intrude on people's privacy so as to find the illegals, but Richard notes the federal government is already doing this far more than the proposition would. It's also a straw argument to claim that California could lose billions of dollars in federal funds if this proposition passes; Clinton needs California in 1996, so he's not going to write the state off. Also, the argument is made restricting health care for illegal aliens will result in diseases running rampant, but there is still the public health service to deal with such things. Richard, though, thinks that illegal aliens do a lot of jobs that Americans won't take, so he doesn't want to stop them, only the free ride being given to some of them. Tony asks about those who are working and paying taxes, and Richard says this is a great things - one out of two millionaires in America is an immigrant. Tony, though, says that it's illegal aliens being discussed and what happens to those who do pay taxes. Richard can't address this but he does know the majority of illegals are in the country to go to work, not to go on welfare, but the bureaucrats are determined to increase their numbers. Tony asks if NAFTA has become an issue in California, and Richard says California is still hurting from defense cutbacks, but California has seen more jobs created than lost from NAFTA. Tony thanks Richard for calling with his very polite "Patriot missile." Phone Amy from Seattle, WA Amy says that conservatives are often accused of being greedy and selfish, and the drop in charitable contributions is given as proof of this, but this ignores a simple fact: if people paid less in taxes, they'd not only have more to spend on charities but that money would be spent more effectively. When you send tax money to Washington, only a third of it ends up in the pockets of each recipient. Private charities do much better; for example, Catholic Charities spends 93 cents of each dollar given on the people they are supposed to be helping. Planned Parenthood, however, spends less than 70 cents on every dollar on those they help, which makes Amy think that many groups back the liberals because they'll be able to skim their cut off the top of the liberal programs. Tony adds that when people don't have money to give, it's the small, locally-based charities that suffer the most. These are the most effective charity groups but they get starved out by the big monolithic charities such as the United Way. Amy adds that it's far more charitable for people to give their own money and time to the groups they think are doing a good job, and Tony agrees. *BREAK* Phone Tom from Hershey, PA Tom heard Mary Matalin on the show yesterday, talking with Newt Gingrich and Phil Gramm about the Republicans' Contract with America. Tom likes this contract, but it fails to explain how the $4.3 trillion national debt will be paid off. Tony says that the national debt is created from spending and interest payments, so the first thing to do is to cut spending. The Democrats complain that a balanced budget amendment will "cost" a trillion dollars, but this only means that the Democrats won't get all the spending increases they want. Plus, cutting taxes will generate more revenues, which will help to balance the budget. The real key, though, is to enforce discipline upon Congress, to make members of both parties more honest in their spending. Tony thinks the Republican contract, if anything, doesn't go far enough and doesn't make enough of a radical break from business as usual. Even so, though, the contract has made Democrats near hysterical, to the point that they actually thought they could score points by bashing Reagan. To eliminate the debt, though, will require true spending cuts and economic growth that will generate more revenues. Tom would also like to hear the "Philanderer," so Tony promises to see if Bo can find it. Phone Ellen from Cleveland, OH Ellen finds a lot of things wrong with the administration, but the Clintons' arrogance is matched by the arrogance shown by the dominant press. Bill Clinton went to New York to tell the people that they were too stupid to understand how much good that Cuomo has done during the past 12 years, but New Yorkers know exactly what Cuomo has done to their state. Then when Hillary Clinton was asked about medical savings accounts, she said that she couldn't trust the average American to make the proper choices. But who is Hillary to make such Evita-like statements, and to decide for the American person what choices they should make? And when Bryant Gumble was interviewing an author of a book on the Roosevelts, Gumble claimed that the average person in America was turned off by powerful women such as Eleanor Roosevelt and Hillary Clinton. This is an amazing insult to the average American, implying that they don't understand just how great and wonderful Hillary is. Tony says that the average American knows what is going on, and they know that Clinton promised to put more in their checkbooks but this hasn't happened. Americans are better informed than ever, and they know the prosperity that Clinton promised hasn't shown up. *BREAK* Tony hopes he can get some more dissenters on the show. "Come on liberals," he urges, "let's have at it," plus he pledges not to do any more gratuitous Clinton bashing. However, before closing the second hour, he again shills for his PBS special, due to appear on most PBS stations on Halloween, which is Monday, October 31st. Clinton is also scheduled to do a press conference in about a half hour, so Tony will be interesting to see if Clinton again tries to portray himself as the salvation for all Americans' lives. In reality, though, Americans believe that he governs best who governs least; Americans don't want their government to be a nuisance, but just to do the job and then get out of the way. *BREAK* THIRD HOUR Phone Jeannie from Lake Tahoe, CA Jeannie says she and her friends have had enough of government regulations which are touching every aspect of their life. It's time for Americans to take back their rights, but she's not quite sure how this can be done other than supporting the NRA and other groups that are trying to stop the increasing regulations. Tony says he heard of one county in New Mexico that requires people to own handguns, and in Texas the incursions onto property rights have inspired talk of forming militias to stop the increasing appropriation of private property under the Endangered Species Act. Folks are getting to the point of literally being up in arms, and these aren't wackos but average Americans who can't take the government's intrusions anymore. Phone Chuck from Baltimore, MD Chuck used to work for the Daily Press in Newport News, VA, where Tony used to work and which still carries his column, so he's been following the Virginia Senate race pretty closely. The Washington Times is reporting that former governor Doug Wilder was invited to the White House to be offered an ambassadorship in exchange for endorsing Chuck Robb, but if this is true, then it's a federal felony. Tony notes that Oliver North made this point yesterday in a press conference, but the more interesting thing is that if someone in the White House was stupid enough to make this offer, it's dead now because of the publicity. This story will now kill any chance that Wilder will support Robb, which was a difficult proposition at best, given the animosity that has existed between these two men for some time. Tony recalls how when Wilder was governor, Chuck Robb's aides received tapes of Wilder's cellular phone calls, and this dispute led into many others. Chuck adds that Algore said this morning that Oliver North "has a talent for lying with a straight face," and Tony wonders why the White House doesn't then offer North a job since that's a qualification for working there. As to the Virginia Senate race, there are three candidates, but Marshall Coleman is not going to play much of a significant role. The real race will be between North and Robb, both of whom have black marks on their records, so the character issue will probably be a wash. Thus, the election will come down to the issues, and Robb basically looks like Bill Clinton without Hillary. Chuck asks where Hillary's been - she's been hiding out for weeks. Tony says the last time the American public saw her, Hillary was blaming the American public for rejecting her health care plan, and this didn't present a very positive image of her. Chuck notes that in his German-speaking house, Hillary is referred "Das Weibstuck." Tony hopes that this doesn't get out on the air, but remarks that the other problem with the Clintons going out on the campaign trail is that nobody shows up to watch them. When Bill Clinton went to campaign for his brother-in-law Hugh Rodham in Florida, he got at best 500 people instead of the 5,000 he expected; the 500 that showed up include two busloads of senior citizens and 250 people who paid $1,000 to talk to the President for a minute. Now, of course, Clinton is going overseas to "campaign," and Tony thinks this will be good for Clinton personally, given that foreign policy trips make him look Presidential. However, Democrats in the U.S. will still get pounded because their problems aren't due just to Clinton but to the policies they've been pursuing for years. Phone Marie from Cincinnati, OH Marie says the news media is talking a lot about the voter anger, as if this is an irrational anger, with the whole nation having "collective PMS." The press in its arrogance doesn't understand this anger is based on Democratic policies, and Tony says this is why the Democrats have chosen "the people are stupid" as their campaign slogan. This approach, though, defies common sense - will the people vote for someone who tells them that they are stupid? Marie adds that Rep. David Mann (D-OH) is in big trouble in his re-election race, and Tony says Mann is running ads that try to make it appear that he voted against Clinton at every point. Marie says Mann at first did stand up to Clinton; he voted against the 1993 Budget Deal, but when he started getting frozen out he played ball. However, Mann is dropping in the polls, so the Republican might actually get in. Tony also thinks that it can't be emphasized enough that the Democrats are running a campaign of denial, trying to dump their past policies, pretending that they are not what they really are. *BREAK* Items o Sometimes people wonder if society and government have gone totally nuts, and it's stories such as the following which only help fuel such notions: Garrett Redmond, a Half Moon Bay, CA school board trustee, wants to eliminate homework because it's "inherently unfair." Some kids, after all, have more time than others to spend on homework, plus not everyone has a computer or a good place in which to work. Redmond complained as follows: "We have students who can tap into the Internet and CD-ROMs in their own bedroom, and have a vast array of information at their fingertips. But the unfortunate people who live in hovels with the entire family sharing one or two rooms - how is that kid supposed to do their homework?" This guy has therefore proposed that the Cabrillo Unified School District abolish homework. To make his case for this, Redmond has even claimed that homework is contrary to "family values" - according to his logic, kids can spend up to five or six hours on their schoolwork which means "goodbye to any time to spend with their parents." Tony points out, though, that parents can always help their kids with their homework (unless they're Bill Clinton and are unable to help Chelsea with her seventh-grade math homework). This argument about homework takes fairness to the extreme, claiming in essence that some kids are smarter than others. However, what's most unfair is to have schools that say it's okay to be a moron and where kids get an "A" for doing nothing at all. Sooner or later these kids are going to end up somewhere, such as a job, where they'll find they can't measure up. Kids have to be taught subjects, and they have to be encouraged to reach high standards. It is things such as this official's intention to eliminate homework which are driving parents to choose homeschooling or private schools. If anything, Tony and his wife are looking forward to when their current two-year-old starts school and begins coming home with some schoolwork - this will mean that they'll finally learn how to use the home computer, not to mention they'll be spending time with their child, helping out with the schoolwork. o Equal housing laws issued by the Department of Housing and Urban Development now make it illegal to use certain words in home ads. For example, you can't use the term "adult," "bachelor," any religion such as Christianity, "couple," "exclusive," "family," "handicapped," or "ideal for" because such terms are "exclusionary" and "discriminatory" against one group or another. In addition, you can't mention that a place is near a place of worship or schools, you can't use "non-smoker," "senior citizen discount," and many, many other terms. You can't mention the view an apartment has because it would offend blind people. You can't mention a place is near jogging trails because it could offend disabled people, and best of all, you can't mention "master bedrooms" because that will offend those whose ancestors were once slaves. Obviously, people are looking for ways that they can be offended, and this at times seems to turn the nation into a country of complete crackpots. These HUD restrictions, though, are right in line with how it's trying to restrict the free speech rights of those who would dare to protest the organization's housing plans. Tony, though, thinks that political correctness has gone to the extremes, so he hopes that next time someone complains about being offended by this or that minor point, people say something to offend those whining complainers. *BREAK* Items o Another example of government insanity is happening in Mount Shasta, CA where the government is trying to steal tens of thousands of privately owned acres by claiming that this land is sacred to Native Americans. A coalition of Native Americans has declared that the entire mountain is sacred and should be turned over to them, without regard for those who own and are using the land. The National Historic Preservation Act is being used for this purpose, and it's really creating a new set of "Indian Wars," with Indian groups being used as pawns of the socialists who want to destroy private property. o A recent story in the papers claimed 3.1 million people in 23 cities are exposed to a cancer risk because they are drinking water tainted with herbicides. However, these cancer risks are so small as to be negligible. The actual herbicide levels in the water mean that people are 42,000 times more likely to die from a heart attack or heart disease, 3,400 times more likely to die from pneumonia, 2,000 times more likely to be killed in an auto accident, 1,300 times more likely to die of a homicide, 300 times more likely to die from an ulcer, 80 times more likely to die from tuberculosis, and 10 times more likely to get struck by lightning. It's being proposed that cities put in enormously expensive filtering systems to protect people from this "danger," which is, at best, one-tenth as likely as being struck by lightning. This kind of regulation has driven local politicians nuts and is inspiring a new states right movement that is rejecting these federal mandates and burdens. Yet Secretary of the Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, Attorney General Janet Reno, and others recently held a meeting to discuss what to do to stop the states rights movements, but the people aren't going to tolerate such moves. o It seems that people are scared of any sort of pain and that pain should be avoided at all costs. This has resulted in situations such the first televised mercy killing which happened on Dutch TV last night; in a documentary "Death Upon Request" an Amsterdam man suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease was given a lethal injection, with his wife saying afterwards it was all for the better. It is illegal to kill someone in the Netherlands without their permission, but evidently if you give the okay, your death can be televised. In a similar vein, a man has pleaded no contest to homicidal manslaughter for giving his suicidal wife a gun with which to finish the job. The man's son said his father was "motivated by love." Another man who helped his 88-year-old terminally father commit suicide has been charged with manslaughter. And a Florida man who gave a loaded gun to a despondent friend was sentenced to 23 months probation and 150 hours of community service. Tony knows the pain that can occur with the terminally ill, yet there seems to be such a aversion to any pain that society is going in the direction of killing people who might not want to die. Those in the Netherlands have even started discussing putting people to death because their health care costs are too high. It seems people can get so phobic about pain that they forget about the dignity of life. Phone Gayle from Clifton Park, NY Gayle has the Republican ad about their contract in the new TV Guide, and its first item is the balanced budget amendment. However, as Rush as pointed out many times, while a balanced budget amendment would limit spending by government, all Congress has to do to spend more is raise taxes. Tony says he doesn't support the balanced budget amendment for a number of reasons, such as how it would hamper the prosecution of war. More importantly, though, what has to happen is that real limits must be placed on spending, using legislation such as Hancock II, which he mentioned earlier. Gayle adds that the immigration issue is a really hot one right now, but she wants to know why American citizenship is given to everyone who is born in this country. Plus, there are a lot of illegal aliens who work very hard even though they aren't citizens, while many citizens are on welfare. Perhaps able-bodied citizens should lose their voting rights for a length of time while they are receiving public assistance. Tony says this idea basically was defeated during the Civil Rights battles - you no longer have to own property, be able to read, etc. in order to vote. What perhaps should be done is to figure out what to do with those immigrants who are supporting themselves in America and who are contributing to society. *BREAK* Tony notes that if anyone wants to order the book "When Should the Watchdogs Bark?" which he's mentioned on today's show, they should try calling directory assistance to find the phone numbers for the following two places: o The Center for Media and Public Affairs in Washington, DC (area code 202) o The University Press of America in Lanham, MD Phone Colleen from Youngstown, SD Colleen homeschools her own children but disagrees with Tony somewhat about homework. If the kids are in the schools for seven hours a day, what's left for them to do at home? The reason that kids get homework is because the schools are wasting time teaching kids about condoms and other extraneous things. So she's not against homework per se, but she does think that time within the school day could be better used. Phone Edward from Neptune, NJ Edward supports a balanced budget amendment, but thinks something that is needed even more is a constitutional amendment which would simply state the following: "Since the federal government is a creature of the states, the Congress shall levy no spending requirement on the states or their supportive governments without providing the funds to meet that requirement." Tony says this goes straight to the heart of the mandate issue, which is how the federal government imposes mandates on the states without giving them the money to do these things. Edward says this amendment would stop how the federal government forces the states to spend their money on federal programs. Tony notes that this is one reason why state budget deficits have gone up in recent years while the federal deficits are going down - the federal government is forcing the states to pay for its programs, and this isn't fair. Phone Rick from Baldwin, NY Rick first says that he used to own a farm in West Virginia, and he was grateful for the animals he had to butcher, but he was also respectful for the vegetables he ate. A basic respect for life means understanding the meaning of death and how death makes it possible for others to live. This is true not just with food but with other issues such as the death penalty. As to the Republicans' Contract with America, Rick notes that some state governments are larger than many of the governments of foreign countries. It doesn't make any sense to send taxes to Washington, just so that those monies can be sent back, minus the federal government's cut. There is a lot of duplication between government agencies, so it would make more sense to end a lot of the federal programs so you could keep the money at home, spending it via local agencies which are more responsive to local needs and which understand the local problems. Tony agrees, and adds that this is why government has to be directly responsible to those involved and why the federalism supported by the founding fathers is making a comeback. *BREAK* The News of the Weird column reported that U.S. News and World Report cited a survey complaining that taller people control too much of the world's resources. Thus, one San Diego researcher thinks that America should concentrate on controlling children's diets to make them shorter, with an "ideal adult" being only five feet tall, weighing 110 pounds. This, of course, would mean that Robert B. Reich is a god. Tony ends the show again plugging his PBS special, noting that it focuses on those Americans who want to roll up their sleeves to make America work. It is heartening to see that Americans still believe their system can work, so he would encourage everyone to go out and help make it work. Tony also thanks everyone who made today's show possible, including the ABC Radio News Network in Washington which not only provided studio facilities for him and Bo Snerdley, but also a steady diet of fat-filled foods, high-sugar muffins, and far too much espresso. He thanks Rush Limbaugh, the EIB Network, and everyone else, including all of today's callers. Tony remarks that he always learns something when he hosts the show, which is one reason why he is willing to guest host (not to mention he's very interested in building his career). Rush, of course, will be back on Monday, but thanks to Rush's farsighted thinking, tonight's TV show will be a new one, not a repeat.