Al Gore Will Make the Responsible Choices to Extend Prosperity for All

"On November 7th, we face one of the biggest choices America has faced in half a century -- a choice as fundamental as prosperity itself. Will we make the right choices and the right investments to keep our economy growing, or will we bust the budget and shortchange the future for a massive tax cut for the few?" -- Al Gore

Through the final weeks of the campaign, Gore has delivered a series of major speeches to discuss the role of government, education, the new economy and health care. Next week, Gore will discuss big choices on energy security and the environment as well as family tax cuts.

BIG CHOICES ON THE ROLE OF GOVERNMENT

• Gore supports a smaller and smarter government that promotes choice through initiatives like a real Patients' Bill of Rights and a voluntary prescription drug benefit for everyone in Medicare. 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. He would eliminate what is in effect the third largest government spending program -- interest payments on the national debt.

• Although George W. Bush promises to reduce government, under him, Texas government spending increased at twice the rate of the federal government. Since Bush has been governor of Texas, the state has hired more bureaucrats and now employs more workers than the state of New York.

BIG CHOICES ON EDUCATION

• Gore will fight to bring about major change in education. His comprehensive plan would raise standards for every child by creating smaller, more disciplined classrooms with highly qualified teachers. He would promote choices for every family with expanded pre-school, more charter schools and tax-deductible college tuition.

• Bush offers families a hollow education plan that fails to put any new teachers in the classroom and drains needed money from public schools by forcing states to offer vouchers for private schools. His massive $1.6 trillion tax cut is targeted to benefit the wealthy and leaves few resources to invest in education.

BIG CHOICES ON THE NEW ECONOMY

• Gore will make the right choices to unlock the full potential of the new Internet economy. He will fight for the largest-ever tax credit for research, keep government out of the way, invest in education and skills training and protect privacy online. His economic plan would eliminate the national debt and its interest payments, while offering middle-class tax cuts. Debt reduction will help keep interest rates lower, fueling investment, innovation, and growth.

• The American Academy of Actuaries has released a new study, which definitively states that George W. Bush's economic plans would return the nation to deficits and "make it all but impossible to eliminate the publicly held national debt."

BIG CHOICES ON HEALTH CARE

• Gore will expand health care choices for families with 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 move step-by-step toward health coverage for all by providing access to quality, affordable health insurance to all children and millions of adults by 2005.

• Bush does not support a strong, national Patients' Bill of Rights. His pharmaceutical industry-backed prescription drug plan leaves out millions and would raise premiums, forcing many seniors into HMOs. As governor of Texas, Bush prioritized large tax cuts and an "emergency" tax cut for big oil companies over children's health coverage, and fought efforts to expand health insurance to 220,000 low-income Texas children. 1.4 million of the nation's 11 million uninsured children live in Texas.