·Voting for Gore (11.7.2000) ·Down the Stretch: Settling on Gore Almost Certainly (10.31.2000) ·After The Final Debate: Gore's Strength Tips Balance Farther In His Direction (10.18.2000) ·After the Second Debate: Holding Steady (but only Slightly) for Gore (10.13.2000) ·After the First Debate: Tipping Ever so Slightly Toward Gore (10.5.2000) ·Introduction (10.2.2000) Bill is 79 years old and is a semi-retired episcopal priest. He is married with five children and nine grandchildren. In 1992 he voted for George Bush and in 1996 he voted for Bill Clinton. abortion, estate tax, education In mid life he changed vocations from custom tailoring to the episcopal priesthood.

My name is Bill Baker. I am a semi-retired Episcopal priest. And I've lived several places, but we've lived in St. Louis, Missouri longer than we've been anywhere for a good while.

My political background goes back to-- well, growing up as a child in Tennessee, and my father was a Democrat in eastern Tennessee. And that was-- in those days, Tennessee itself was pretty Democratic. But eastern Tennessee was Republican.

After World War II-- I had a feeling that Republicans, in those days were more looking at states' rights, instead of big central government. And so, therefore, I switched over. And finally, I did register as a Republican.

Unfortunately, I got into a business-- Not unfortunately-- I was happy to be in the business. But unfortunately, I usually say, I got religion, and I went to seminary.

I don't see religion being an issue in politics. A person's belief and their faith is theirs. It's not something we should be questioning.

The Supreme Court, it does bother me, the abortion issue as far as feminine rights. Because I don't want to see the reversal of women being able to have what they need for themselves. That is very much an issue.

I have been working with a retirement center doing a current events kind of session with the people there. And I want them to tell me what they've been reading. I like to have them really be up to date on what's going on in the world.

People are now bringing clips and so forth, so that they can talk about it, or little notes they make to themselves about something that's hit them in the news.

And so we discuss those things, and I ask them questions, and other people will do the same thing. And they're very, very bright. Very, very bright individuals.

One of the issues that they bring to the meeting is education, strange as it may seem; concerned about education in the schools. Probably because some of them have grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

I think Reagan was a good President. I think Lyndon Johnson did a good job. I was-- I was impressed with-- with Lyndon. Franklin Roosevelt, I felt-- and that's why I voted for him, when I was first voting. And, in recent years, I think Clinton's done a pretty fair job, but I think that, unfortunately for him, his personal life got in the way.

The one thing that might have me vote for George W. Bush would be I feel we've had, now, two terms with the Democrats. That would weigh partly. The abortion issue is still there. And if I get a clear picture of that, that would muddy up the water for George W.

I think Gore has changed for the better, from the beginning of this campaign to now. He was really a wooden kind of a guy. But I have to-- I have to see more. I have to know more and see-- They're so close on everything except the abortion issue that I'm-- I don't know which way I'm going to fly when I get into the booth.

·Voting for Gore (11.7.2000) ·Down the Stretch: Settling on Gore Almost Certainly (10.31.2000) ·After The Final Debate: Gore's Strength Tips Balance Farther In His Direction (10.18.2000) ·After the Second Debate: Holding Steady (but only Slightly) for Gore (10.13.2000) ·After the First Debate: Tipping Ever so Slightly Toward Gore (10.5.2000) ·Introduction (10.2.2000)