Al Gore Supports Smaller, Smarter Government that Promotes Choice and Change

"Together, we took a government that was out of control and brought it under control. Now, it is time to put the American people in control. I'm for a smaller, smarter government that serves people better, but offers real change and gives more choices to our families. A return to big government would be as wrong for our economy as a return to big tax cuts for the wealthy." -- Al Gore

Al Gore has a vision for a "smaller, smarter government that serves people better, but offers real change and gives more choices to our families." To expand prosperity for all families, Gore would build on his record to reduce the size of government, pay down the national debt, cut taxes for middle-class families and invest in health care, education, a clean environment and a secure retirement. George W. Bush would endanger the nation's hard-won prosperity, using government to reward the wealthiest Americans through a massive, budget-busting tax cut.

Gore supports a smaller and smarter government that promotes choice through initiatives like a real Patients' Bill of Rights that empowers patients to choose their own doctor and a voluntary prescription drug benefit for everyone on Medicare that allows seniors to choose their doctor and pharmacy. Gore would create change by reducing the size of government to its lowest level in 50 years, devoting two-thirds of the budget surplus to debt reduction and moving more government services online. Since Bush has been governor of Texas, the state has hired more bureaucrats and now employs more workers than the state of New York.

Gore has worked to reduce the size of the federal government to its smallest size since the early 1960s. He led the Administration's reinventing government initiative that has helped cut the number of federal employees by more than 300,000. Gore fought for the 1996 welfare reform act that reduced the scope of government and cut the nation's welfare rolls by more than half. Although Bush promises to reduce government, under him, Texas government spending increased at twice the rate of the federal government.

CHANGES TO REDUCE GOVERNMENT, EXTEND PROSPERITY
Gore would make important changes to help reduce the size of the federal government and extend prosperity to all families.

To develop a smaller, smarter federal government, Gore would:

• Shrink the size of the government spending to its smallest share of the economy in 50 years;
• Add no one to the ranks of those who do work for the federal government;
• Devote two-thirds of the unified surplus to debt reduction to keep interest rates lower;
• Ensure Internet business can grow free of regulations, tariffs or discriminatory taxes;
• Put more government services online; and
• Pay civil service managers based on performance.

Gore would balance the budget and pay down the debt each year to keep interest rates low to help families afford mortgage payments and car and student loans. His plan to eliminate the debt by 2012 would free capital to encourage investment and promote economic growth. Bush does not prioritize debt reduction and supports the tax-cut and spend policies of the 1980s that built record deficits and ballooned the debt. His massive tax cut for the wealthy, combined with the transition cost of Social Security and his other spending proposals, would overspend the surplus by $1.1 trillion.

EXPANDED CHOICE TO SUPPORT FAMILIES
Real Patients' Bill of Rights:

• Gore would fight for a strong, enforceable Patients' Bill of Rights that empowers patients to choose their own doctors and gives medical decisions on treatment and preventative care back to patients and their doctors.
• Bush supports a plan backed by the insurance industry that would leave 135 million Americans without guaranteed protections.

Voluntary prescription drug benefit for all seniors

• Gore would fight for voluntary prescription drug coverage that would allow everyone on Medicare to choose their own doctor and get their medicines from the pharmacy of their choice.
• Bush supports a plan backed by the drug industry that would leave out millions of seniors and force many into health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and private insurance plans.

Charter schools

• Gore would invest in education to triple the number of charter schools so parents can choose to send their kids to a better school. Gore's education plan would turn around failing schools so students are not stuck in crumbling classrooms with unqualified teachers.
• Bush supports a voucher plan that gives up on public education, siphoning taxpayer money to fund private institutions. His ignores half of all students stuck in failing schools.

Family tax cuts for the middle class

• Gore would cut taxes for the middle-class families who need tax relief the most -- helping them pay for college if their children choose to go, helping them afford child-care if both parents choose to work, and helping families afford long-term care so parents can choose to live in their own homes as they grow older.
• Bush supports a $1.6 trillion tax cut, almost half of which is targeted to benefit the wealthiest one percent of Americans.

Retirement Savings Plus accounts

• Protecting Social Security's guaranteed benefit for today's seniors and future generations, Gore would offer younger workers a new choice for retirement savings. Gore's new Retirement Savings Plus accounts would provide government incentives to encourage couples to save and invest tax-free for retirement.
• Bush has admitted that he would drain $1 trillion of the Social Security Trust Fund into private accounts for younger workers, but he has also promised the same money to seniors for their benefits.