Gore, Bush talk taxes, finance in first debate
■The two candidates met in
the first of three debates that
will shed light on their
differing policy goals
By Sandra Sobieraj
Associated Press Writer
BOSTON — Vice President Al
Gore and Texas Gov. George W.
Bush clashed over tax cuts,
Medicare prescription drug bene
fits and campaign finance Tuesday
night in their first debate of the
fall, a pivot point in the closest
White House contest in a genera
tion.
Combative from the outset. Gore
charged that his rival’s tax plan
would “spend more money on tax
cuts for the wealthiest 1 percent
than all of the new spending he
proposes for education, health
care, prescription drugs and na
tional defense all combined.”
But Bush, standing a few feet
away on a debate stage at the Uni
versity of Massachusetts, said
Gore’s economic plan would offer
tax cuts only to the middle class.
“Everybody who pays taxes ought
to get relief,” he said. At the same
time, he said, Gore’s blueprint
would produce “dramatically”
bigger government with 200 “new
or expanded programs” and
20,000 new bureaucrats.
“It empowers Washington,”
added the governor, who hastened
to tell a national viewing audience
he was from West Texas — not the
-—-1
nation’s capital. Over and over, he
accused Gore of “fuzzy math.”
Gore and Bush met for the first of
three presidential debates over the
next two weeks, each man seeking
advantage in a race so close that poll
after poll shows them within a point or
two of one another. Their vice presiden
tial running mates, Democrat Joseph
Lieberman and Republican Dick Ch
eney. debate Thursday in Kentucky.
Jim Lehrer of PBS was moderator,
operating under strict rules negoti
ated in advance by the Gore and
Bush camps. It was, he said at the
outset, the first of three 90-minute
debates between the two major par
ty rivals — a format that exclud
ed Ralph Nader and Pat
Buchanan, who are running as mi
nor party candidates.
Outside the hall, dozens of pro
testers knocked over police barri
cades and blocked a road leading to
the debate hall to protest the exclu
sion of Buchanan and Nader, who
was turned away at the door.
Inside the hall, the audience
Iieeded Lehrer’s admonishment to
remain silent.
In a reprise of his acceptance
speech at this summer’s Democratic
National Convention, Gore said it
was important to stand up to special
interests, pharmaceutical compa
nies among them. “ Big drug compa
nies support Governor Bush’s pre
scription drug proposal,” he said.
“They oppose mine. ”
Bush made a sour face when he
heard that, and in his next breath of
fered a swift rebuttal.
“I’ve been standing up to big Hol
lywood and big trial lawyers,” he
shot back, mentioning two groups
that have lavished campaign dona
tions on Gore and Democrats.
Stepping onto the podium a few
minutes before the debate began,
the vice president blew a kiss in the
direction of his wife, Tipper, a re
minder of the embrace they shared
on stage at the convention six weeks
ago. Gore and Bush shook hands
twice, once before debating and
then afterwards.
Each man came equipped with a
refrain.
Debate Schedule
There will be two more presidential
debates and one vice-presidential
debate in the next two weeks.
Presidential debate #2:
Wednesday, Oct. 11, Wake Forest
University, Winston-Salem, S.C. *
Presidential debate #3:
Tuesday, Oct. 17, Washington
University, St. Louis, Mo.
Vice-presidential debate:
Thursday, Oct. 5, Centre College,
Danville, Ky.
SOURCE: www.cspan.org
For Bush, it was the accusation
that Gore was practicing “fuzzy
math” with his attacks, sometimes
rendered as “fuzzy Washington
math.”
For Gore, it was a loud, audible
sigh, meant to convey profound
skepticism over Bush’s claims
about the economy, prescription
drugs and other issues.
c.UIj
/? 5 \>X
We roast the finest
(P eo Ifees from around
the world to
bring you the
BEST COFFEE ANYWHERE!
13th & Kincaid, next to Taylor’s.
010169,
1/2 Price
Latte
vv/ flavor ol choice
offer expires 10/31/00
Limit one coupon per customer.
I /2 Price
Fruit
Smoothie
offer expires 10/31/00
Liniil one coupon per cusloine
010161
Check your Pulse,
the Oregon Daily
Emerald's
entertainment
section, every
Thursday.
Campus Icon "Frog"
has a Pulse.
Do you have one?
Pulse
I T
RETIREMENT INSURANCE MUTUAL FUNDS TRUST SERVICES TU I T I 0N FINANCING
While TIAA-CREF
invests for the long term,
it’s nice to see performance
like this.
TIAA-CREF has delivered impressive results like these
by combining two disciplined investment strategies.
In our CREF Growth Account, one of many CREF vari
able annuities, we combine active management with
enhanced indexing. With two strategies, we have
two ways to seek out performance opportunities—
helping to make your investments work twice as hard.
This approach also allows
us to adapt our investments
to different market
conditions, which is
especially important during
volatile economic times.
EXPENSE RATIO
CREF GROWTH
ACCOUNT
INDUSTRY
AVERAGE
0.32% 2M
CREF GROWTH ACCOUNT3
26.70
1 YEAR
AS OF 6/30/00
27.87'
5 YEARS
6/30/00
m
26.60
SINCE INCEPTION
4/29/94
Combine this team approach with our low expenses
and you'll see how TIAA-CREF stands apart from
the competition. Call and find out how TIAA-CREF
can work for you today and tomorrow.
Ensuring the future
for those who shape it.SM
1.800.842.2776
www.tiaa-cref.org
For more complete information on our securities products, please call 1.800.842.2733, ext. 5509, to request prospectuses. Read them carefully
before you invest. 1. TIAA-CREF expenses reflect the waiver of a portion of the Funds' investment management fees, guaranteed until July
1, 2003. 2. Source: Morningstar, Inc. 6/30/00, tracking 939 average large-cap growth annuity funds. 3. Due to current market volatility, our
securities products' performance today may be less than shown above. The investment results shown for CREF Growth variable annuity reflect
past performance anr^are not indicative of future rates of return. These returns and the value of the principal you have invested will fluctuate,
so the shares you own may be more or less than their original price upon redemption. • TIAA-CREF Individual and Institutional Services, Inc.
distributes the CREF and TIAA Real Estate variable annuities. • Teachers Personal Investors Services, Inc. distributes the Personal Annuities
variable annuity component, mutual funds and tuition savings agreements. • TIAA and TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Co., New York, NY, issue
insurance and annuities. • TIAA-CREF Trust Company, FSB provides trust services. • Investment products are not FDIC insured, may lose
value and are not bank guaranteed. © 2000 TIAA-CREF 08/03