Clinton -- friend of the working woman
by Larry Elder
Jewish World Review /Oct. 2, 1998/12 Tishrei, 5759
jewishworldreview.com
A COALITION OF 15 FEMINIST and civil rights groups
recently descended on Capitol Hill. The issue? Why,
the protection of our beleaguered president, of course.
Leave him alone! Stop the impeachment process! Bill
Clinton's been good for women!
Patricia Ireland, president of the National Organization
for Women, said, "On balance, women have had an
ally in the White House. If this reactionary campaign
succeeds, the unfinished agenda of women on
equality, in Social Security, pay equity, child care, anti-poverty remedies,
minimum wage, Medicare, real campaign-finance reform ... will continue to
languish in Congress."
My, my. What about the preservation of
baseball as we know it? Post-Bill
Clinton, will we still get good cable
reception? When we pick up the phone,
will we still get a dial tone? At one time,
what was good for General Motors was
good for the country. According to the
gang of 15, whatever's good for Clinton
is good for the country. For, without
Clinton, we face mass starvation, riots
in the streets and a run on fresh New
York steaks. Stop the madness!
Let's examine some of NOW's points.
Day care. Most parents arrange day care through an informal network of friends
and family. Most simply don't trust private day care given its uneven quality and
expense. Government measures to "improve the quality" of outside care will add
to its expense and decrease availability. Cutting taxes will free up more family and
friends for day care availability.
Minimum wage. Nobel laureate Milton Friedman called minimum-wage laws
perhaps the most "anti-black" laws on the statute books. He notes, as have many
researchers, that minimum-wage hikes destroy entry-level work for the most
needy -- teens, minorities and female secondary wage earners.
HMO reform. Let's back up for a minute and discuss the HMO phenomenon. The
government already pays for 50 percent of our health care.
Before the Medicare Act of 1965, the length of a hospital stay had increased just
threefold in the previous 20 years. After Medicare, however, a typical stay in a
hospital bed increased eightfold over the next 20 years -- easily outpacing
inflation.
Lawmakers then sought to stem the dramatically over-budget price tag of
Medicare. They imposed guidelines. But many doctors and hospitals found the
guidelines too stingy and either ordered unnecessary and duplicate tests and
procedures or shifted costs onto the private sector to recoup the difference. This
only increased costs.
Enter the HMO. Many solo or small practitioners, like small hamburger/hot-dog
stand operators, take more time and provide more service. HMOs enhance profits
by imposing uniform standards and procedures, and by streamlining overhead,
such as personnel costs and billing procedures. The result: more efficient but
less personalized service. But remember, the impetus behind HMOs remains
reining in medical costs, a situation made worse than through government
intervention.
Fairness in pay. Please. Women and men who do the same work, with the same
qualifications and experience, make the same money. President Clinton points
out that women make 75 cents on the dollar, as if women did exactly the same
work for their 75 cents. If so, companies (run by greedy capitalists, right?) would
simply hire the less expensive women and fire the more expensive men,
pocketing the difference. Why doesn't this happen?
The government assumes private-sector indifference to the wants and needs of
its employees. But in the real world, to attract and retain good workers,
employers must institute policies and create an atmosphere to keep workers
happy. For some employers, this means an on-site day-care center. For others, it
means allowing good ol' Rosie six months off, with pay and benefits, to care for
her ailing mother. After all, the company does not want to lose her. Does the
government need to tell the employer to do that which is in his own best interest?
On equality. Presumably, NOW means Clinton's, uh, demonstrated respect and
concern for women. Really. According to the independent counsel's report, the
president called Monica Lewinsky a "stalker." The president's aide, James
Carville, said of Paula Jones, that if you drag a $100 through a trailer park, you
never know what trash you get.
And, in his grand jury testimony, the president called Kathleen Willey -- who said
he groped her -- a liar, which meant he was also calling her a perjurer. He also
called Gennifer Flowers a liar, only to later admit before the grand jury a sexual
relationship with her. And he allegedly placed his longtime secretary, Betty
Currie, in harm's way by involving her in the retrieval of gifts the president had
given to Monica Lewinsky, gifts under subpoena.
And, according to the Linda Tripp tapes, Monica Lewinsky allegedly asked the
president why he refused to settle in the Paula Jones case, he replied, I can't,
there would be "hundreds."
William Jefferson Clinton. Friend of the working woman. Go "figure." |
