"DANGERS OF A BUSH PRESIDENCY
>
> For political reasons, Gore has chosen not to emphasize the dangers of a
Bush presidency. He's touched on some of them, ignored others, and generally
played them down, for fear of alienating large blocks of voters.
> Nevertheless, the dangers are very real. Here are a few of them:
>
> 1. The overthrow of Roe vs. Wade. With Bush's first appointment to the
Supreme Court, this becomes a certainty, not just a possibility. We will be
back to the era of coathanger abortions, unlicensed abortionists and the
criminalization of large numbers of women, particularly teens and the poor.
> We can also expect a whole population of babies who are unwanted, unloved
and uncared for.
> 2. The unlimited proliferation of hand guns and assault weapons. Bush's
position coincides with the aims and programs of the NRA. The only gun bill
Bush has promoted exempts gun manufacturers from lawsuits over the
consequences of their sales. Guns will be as available to children and
criminals as they are now.
>
> 3. An ultraconservative Supreme Court. Bush has said that his
appointments to the Supreme Court would be in the mold of Scalia and Thomas,
who interpret the Constitution literally, opposing abortion (because it's not
mentioned in the Constitution - Scalia), federal pollution control, legal
protection for religious minorities, age and sex anti discrimination laws,
campaign spending reform and laws against sexual harassment. They would
weaken the right of workers to strike and bargain collectively, allow the
destruction of endangered species on private lands, restrict the power of
local government to protect the environment and limit the rights of disabled
persons against unreasonable and arbitrary institutionalization.
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> 4. Diminished social security benefits. The Bush plan, which takes $1
trillion out of social security and gives it to individual taxpayers to
invest, could make money for smart investors, but the vast majority of people
stand a good chance of losing all that money, leaving them with a fraction of
their social security.
>
> 5. Large-scale environment damage. Bush has already proposed opening part
of
the Alaskan national refuge to the oil companies. He has no effective plans
to protect any of our national resources. He says he's proud of being an oil
man, and one can assume that no environmental or aesthetic considerations
will protect a national park or preserved area. He's also oblivious to the
undisputed dangers of global warming. ("we need more information," he said at
the debates.)
>
> 6. Unrestricted industrial pollution. Bush opposed the Clean Air Law in
favor of a plan devised by the polluters. He plans no effective action
against any form of industrial pollution. Understandably, his state ranks
first in pollution in the nation. Federal agencies have classified 2/3 of
the air Texans breathe as dangerous to humans.
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> 7. A weakening of the separation of church and state. Bush has made it
clear he favors teacher-led Christian prayers in public school (even in the
presence of Jewish and Moslem children, for example), the posting of the 10
Commandments in schoolrooms, and federal backing for organized religion
(vouchers for religious schools, for example.) He has allied himself with
militant Christians who oppose the teaching of evolution, who want to ban
"unchristian" books such as Huckleberry Finn and Catcher in the Rye, who
oppose any scientific research based on fetal tissue, who would dismantle the
National Endowment for the Arts (Bush strongly favors censorship of the
arts), and who would cripple the United Nations for supporting the attempts
of overcrowded countries to limit their population.
>
> 8. The end of affirmative action. These programs are more than an attempt
to help minorities. They have become a symbol of the nation's commitment to
equality and civil rights. Bush opposes them.
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> 9. Inadequate representation of the U.S. on the world stage. Bush has
never pretended to know much about foreign affairs. His response to all
questions of foreign policy is to leave it to the experts, like Cheney and
Powell (neither of whom have diplomatic experience.) But as president, he
will have to deal with intricate questions of foreign policy, trade,
economics and human rights with other heads of state, face-to-face. He has no
experience in these matters and is not qualified to handle them.
>
> 10. The unacceptable cost of a token tax cut. Bush's tax cut will take a
trillion dollars from education, defense, health, Social Security and other
programs and give token income tax reductions to the vast majority of
Americans, with no reductions whatsoever in payroll taxes.
>
> 11. A note to Nader supporters. The one and only effect of the Nader
candidacy is to siphon off votes from Gore. If enough people note for Nader,
Bush will be elected and all the dangers Bush represents will come to pass. A
vote for Nader is a vote for Bush."
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