To celebrate President George W. Bush’s first 100 days in
office, let’s conduct a modest thought experiment, shall we?
Imagine, if you will, that you were whisked out of the
country on November 7, 2000, as the outcome of the
presidential election hung in the balance.
Imagine that for the past six months, you’ve had no
access to any news source. No newspapers. No TV. No internet.
No political discussion with friends.
Now, imagine that on Sunday, April 29 — exactly 100 days
after the new president was inaugurated — you were plunked
down in front of a television as the usual crew of
talking-head pundits debated the new administration’s
record.
If those pundits didn’t mention the president’s name,
would you know whether Bush or Gore had won the election?
“What a foolish question!” most Republicans and
Democrats will sputter. “Bush and Gore are as different as,
well — Bush and Gore. Their records after 100 days would be
so utterly and so radically different that no one could
confuse them!”
Really? If that is the case, take this quick 12-question
quiz to see how different the Bush administration has been
from the could-have-been Gore administration:
1) If elected president, which one — Bush or Gore —
would boost spending for Bill Clinton’s AmeriCorps program
by $282 million?
[ ] Al Gore
[ ] George W. Bush
ANSWER: George W. Bush. Some conservatives had predicted
that Bill Clinton’s “domestic Peace Corps” program would
be quickly abolished, but, instead, Bush has requested a
funding increase of $282 million. [Source: USA Today, April
10, 2001]
2) Which one would continue the Clinton administration’s
lawsuit against tobacco companies?
[ ] George W. Bush
[ ] Al Gore
ANSWER: George W. Bush. Not only is the Bush administration
not ending the legalized extortion against the tobacco
companies, Attorney General John Ashcroft boasted that the
Justice Department plans to spend as much as Janet Reno did to
proceed with the suit. [Source: The Washington Times, April
27, 2001]
3) Which one would increase federal spending on elementary
and secondary education by a whopping 72%?
[ ] Al Gore
[ ] George W. Bush
ANSWER: George W. Bush. Although Republicans had previously
promised to abolish the federal Department of Education, Bush
requested $18.6 billion more in spending for elementary,
secondary, and vocational education — a 72% increase.
[Source: USA Today, April 10, 2001]
4) Which one would maintain the so-called “Gore Tax”
— a hidden $2.3 billion-a-year levy on telephone bills, used
to wire schools to the Internet?
[ ] George W. Bush
[ ] Al Gore
ANSWER: George W. Bush. Three years ago, conservatives
blasted the “Gore Tax” as an unconstitutional tax, since
it was imposed by the Federal Communications Commission. But
instead of repealing it, the Bush administration has been
working to halt any attempts to limit it. [Source: Cato
Institute Daily Commentary, April 9, 2001]
5) Which one would request a 3.6% pay hike for all federal
workers?
[ ] Al Gore
[ ] George W. Bush
ANSWER: George W. Bush. The average federal civilian
employee already makes $50,000 a year — but Bush doesn’t
think that’s enough. His pay-hike proposal would increase
federal wages even faster than inflation. [Source: The
Washington Post, April 10, 2001]
6) Which one would impose by White House decree the Clinton
administration’s medical “privacy” rules — which give
control of Americans’ medical records to the government?
[ ] George W. Bush
[ ] Al Gore
ANSWER: George W. Bush. After Clinton proposed his
so-called “privacy” rules, the U.S. Department of Health
& Human Services was flooded with 24,000 letters opposing
them. In response, Bush ordered the HHS to disregard the
public comments, and implement the rules immediately. [Source:
The Wall Street Journal, April 13, 2001]
7) Which one would boost spending on the Corporation for
Public Broadcasting by $10 million?
[ ] Al Gore
[ ] George W. Bush
ANSWER: George W. Bush. For years, conservatives have asked
why the federal government funds a television network with tax
dollars, since tens of thousands of free-market stations
compete for listeners. Bush’s response was to request a $10
million funding increase. [Source: USA Today, April 10, 2001]
8) Which one would bar development on privately owned
wetlands, and promised environmental policies that will
“continue and complete the work of [the Clinton]
administration”?
[ ] George W. Bush [ ] Al Gore
ANSWER: George W. Bush. Here, surely, there’s a
difference between Bush and Gore! Not as much as you might
think. Not only did Bush refuse to overturn a Clinton-era ban
on wetlands development, he boasted he would continue the
Democrat’s environmental programs since “this is the way
environmental policy should work.” [Source: Syndicated
columnist Robert Novak, April 26, 2001]
9) Which one would vow a “renewed commitment” to
enforcing America’s 20,000 gun laws, and budget an
additional $158 million for that purpose?
[ ] Al Gore
[ ] George W. Bush
ANSWER: George W. Bush. And you thought Al Gore was
anti-gun? Attorney General John Ashcroft said there was “no
question” the Bush administration needs a “renewed
commitment” to enforce America’s myriad anti-gun laws, and
has requested $158 million more for that purpose. [Source: The
Washington Times, April 27, 2001]
10) Which one would spend an additional $46 billion on a
new federal program to give low-cost prescription drugs to
seniors?
[ ] George W. Bush
[ ] Al Gore
ANSWER: George W. Bush. During the campaign, both Bush and
Gore promised to dramatically increase the role of the federal
government in the prescription dug business. The cost to
taxpayers of Bush’s program: $46 billion over five years.
[Source: Associated Press, April 27, 2001]
11) Which one would delay any effort to privatize Social
Security retirement accounts for younger workers by deferring
it to a federal commission for more study?
[ ] Al Gore
[ ] George W. Bush
ANSWER: George W. Bush. As a candidate, Bush made the
partial privatization of Social Security a cornerstone of his
campaign. But as president, he has drop-kicked that potential
hot potato to a federal commission for “study.” [Source:
Associated Press, April 27, 2001]
12) Which one would give the IRS more money so it can hire
4,000 additional tax collectors?
[ ] George W. Bush
[ ] Al Gore
ANSWER: George W. Bush. At Congressional hearings in 1998,
Republicans harshly criticized the Internal Revenue Service
for mistreating taxpayers and running roughshod over the law.
Three years later, Bush has proposed a $400 million budget
increase for the agency. [Source: USA Today, April 16, 2001]
Shocked by the answers? Perhaps you shouldn’t be, since
President Bush made it clear — even during his days as a
candidate — that making the federal government smaller, less
expensive, or less intrusive was not on his agenda. Given
that, is it a surprise that he is governing like Al Gore?
In fact, after looking at the record of President Bush’s
first 100 days, there’s really only one thought experiment
question left to ask: Why was the outcome of the 2000
presidential election so fiercely contested — since it seems
to have made no real difference who won?