THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, November 7, 1996 TAG: 9611070014
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A18 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: 77 lines
For Bob Dole and the rest of the politically vanquished, the 1996 elections are mercifully over.
But for Bill Clinton, a Republican Congress, and the nation at large, Tuesday's results are a beginning, not an end. Four years are left for building the oft-mentioned ``bridge to the 21st century,'' and there is major work to do on the structure.
What Tuesday's results seem to say, once again and more loudly than ever, is that American elections are won in the middle. Beneath all the clamor and vitriol, there is a ballast to the electorate that does not long abide excesses on either the right or the left.
When Clinton slipped too far in the direction of big government during his first two years in office, he was chastened by the election of a Republican Congress. When that majority overstepped its mandate, the nation whittled its margins and told it, in effect, to shape up.
On Tuesday, the voters were unwilling to trust the bridge-building to either party. They said with their votes that they want balance. They want fiscal sobriety blended with compassion. They want each party to keep a watchful eye on the other.
What the nation also requires is a cooperative effort to tackle major, looming problems. There are at least three areas where Democrats and Republicans should work rapidly and in tandem to address concerns that threaten to cripple progress in a new century.
First is the enormous and politically touchy task of reining in the costs of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Those programs already consume more than a third of the federal budget, and the figure threatens to soar as the nation ages.
It is time for the demagoguing of this issue to stop. Neither party wants to erase the enormous gains that have been made by seniors in recent decades. But there is a limit to what the nation can spend.
Politicians must quit trying to scare the voters, and voters must stop deluding themselves. A fix will not be painless. Some rationing of health care may be required. The fee-for-service model will give way to HMOs. Co-pays will rise. Automatic cost-of-living adjustments will have to shrink. To balance so many competing interests, a bipartisan effort is the best hope.
Second, if any message resounded this year, it is that the financing of elections must be reformed - now. Neither party occupies any high moral ground on this issue; both have fed at the trough of monied interests, foreign and domestic. That must end. The integrity of our electoral system is at stake.
Third, the nation's leaders must stay focused on the widening gap between rich and poor in this country. While it is less than clear what government can do to narrow that gap, attempting to ensure that opportunity is not lost for children at the lower end of the scale must be a national priority.
The electorate approaches a new presidential term with surprising optimism. Polls now show a majority of Americans feeling positive about the future. That's a dramatic turnaround from a few years ago. But two prospects endanger this hour of good feeling.
In the waning days of the presidential campaign, economic figures were released that showed that growth slowed to 2.2 percent in the third quarter. Bob Dole was quick to call it ``disastrous news for American workers and businesses.''
That characterization was a bit over the top, but there's no question the slow- motion boom of the Clinton years can't continue forever. Sometime during the next four years, a recession is likely. A stock-market correction will probably arrive. And a serious slowdown will have serious consequences.
One reason the deficit has declined is the halcyon economic times we've been experiencing. Revenues up. Demand for government services down. Inflation at bay. Unemployment at record lows.
But recessions reverse all that. Suddenly, as growth slows, sales dip and workers are laid off, tax revenues shrink and demand for government services increases. Deficits can explode under such circumstances.
The second danger is that a second Clinton administration may implode, brought down by scandal.
Both concerns argue forcefully for the president and Congress to make a fast start toward addressing the difficult structural problems that still exist. They should use this window of opportunity before it closes.
KEYWORDS: PRESIDENTIAL RACE U.S. ELECTION U.S.
RESULTS ANALYSIS by CNB