POLITICAL WRAP

June 9, 2000
		Excerpts from a speech by Texas Gov. George W. Bush in Knoxville, Tennessee. A speech by Vice President Al Gore Analysis by Shields & Gigot

Online Special: Election 2000 Online Special: An Interview with George W. Bush Online Special: An Interview with Al Gore June 3, 2000: Shields and Gigot on the presidential campaign, the president's European trip, and Gov. George W. Bush's record on the death penalty May 26, 2000: Oliphant and Gigot political fundrasing, permanent trade relations with China. May 12, 2000: Shields & Gigot on China trade, George Bush and Rudy Guiliani May 5, 2000: Shields & Gigot on gun control and Social Security proposals April 28, 2000: Shields & Gigot on the Microsoft case, the presidential race March 7, 2000: Shields & Gigot discuss Super Tuesday results. Special Emphasis Debating the Election 2000 agenda Browse the NewsHour's coverage of politics and campaigns.	JIM LEHRER: Governor Bush was in Knoxville, Tennessee, yesterday. GEORGE W. BUSH: Today I want to talk about the way we conduct the nation's business. Many Americans believe that Washington's way of doing things just isn't working, that government's purposes are too often forgotten, and opportunities too often squandered, resulting in too few results. There's too much argument in Washington, and not enough discussion; there's too much polling, and not enough decision-making. (Applause) There's too much needless division, and not enough shared accomplishment. There's not enough final acts and resolutions and lasting achievements. There's enough blame to go around for everybody. I do not dismiss the serious disagreements that are part of the political process, but the reality is that Americans look upon the spectacle of Washington, and they do not like what they see. They know this isn't the way the world's greatest power should conduct its affairs. I agree with them. It's time for a change. (Applause)
	Reforming the budget process
	GEORGE W. BUSH: There are some practical steps we can do to change Washington. First, the budget process -- here's what I propose: I propose that the federal budget be passed by both Houses of Congress and signed by the President into law. As it is now, the President and Congress work separately on their own budget proposals. Only very late in the year do the two branches begin working together on the details. Often their separate budgets are just a prelude to battle. A joint budget resolution signed by the legislative branch and the executive branch would start the process, the beginning of the process, would put it on the right footing, encouraging cooperation and early agreement on the fundamentals. I also support a law putting the entire budget and appropriations process of the federal government on a biannual basis, as is done in my state and 20 other states. (Applause) If the discord in Washington never seems to end, this is partly because the budget process never seems to end. Next, I will address the longstanding source of public irritation and outrage, the habit of pork barrel spending. It's often said that one politician's pork is another's vital project, one district's corporate welfare another district's vital federal investment; but what we need is a more objective definition of "vital." This confusion is a source of too much waste and haggling and bargaining and ultimate resentment in our nation's capital. We've all heard examples of wasteful spending. There's a list goes on, such as the $250,000 to research caffeinated chewing gum; $750,000 for grasshopper research. Examples come every year, and the process, though, never really seems to change. I support the establishment of a bipartisan commission to eliminate pork throughout the entire federal government. (Applause) Such an idea needs a presidential push, and that's what I intend to give it. This panel will submit to Congress a list of all the spending projects deemed frivolous and unnecessary. The Congress will then cast a simple up or down vote - there would be no amendments, no back scratching, or no logrolling.
	Ending "politics as combat"
	GEORGE W. BUSH: Above all else, we must call a truce to the "politics as combat," where differences of principles give rise to the unprincipled attacks on character. And a good place to start is in the nomination and confirmation process. The President and the Senate have a joint responsibility. The President must be prompt in submitting his nominations, and the Senate prompt in acting on them. Starting next January, I will make the prompt submission of my presidential nominees a top priority, and I will ask the Senate to act on each nominee I submit within 60 days. I ask this to both - (Applause) - I ask both Republicans and Democrats to follow this standard, regardless of who may be elected next November. Public service is an honorable calling. I view it as an honorable calling, and there are many now serving in Washington or in Tennessee who view it that way as well, but their voices are easily drowned out by the din of battle. Instead, the agenda is determined and a tone has been set by the loud, the aggressive, the contentious. This should not be the spirit of Washington as we go into the 21st century.