Edition: U.S. / Global

THE 2000 CAMPAIGN; Exchanges Between the Candidates in the Third Presidential Debate

Published: October 18, 2000
(Page 6 of 16)

MR. GORE -- High school. I mentioned before that the local communities are having a harder time passing bond issues. Traditionally if you've been involved in a campaign like that, you know that the parents with kids in school are the ones that turn out and vote. It's ironic that there are now, there's now a smaller percentage of the voters made up of parents with children than ever in American history because of the aging of our population.

But at the same time, we've got the largest generation of students in public schools ever. More than 90 percent of America's children go to public schools. And it's the largest number ever this year and they'll break the record next year and every year for 10 years running. We've got to do something about this.

And local -- it's not enough to leave it up to the local school districts. They're not able to do it. And our future depends upon it. Look, we're in an information age. Our economic future depends upon whether or not our children are going to get the kind of education that let's them go on to college. And again, I want to make it possible for all middle-class families to send their kids to college and more Pell grants for those who are in the lower income groups also.

And then, I want to make sure that we have job training on top of that and lifelong learning. But it all starts with the public school teachers. My proposal gives $10,000 hiring bonuses for those teachers who are -- who get certified to teach in the areas where they're most needed. Now, accountability? We basically agree on accountability. My plan requires testing of all students. It also requires something that Governor Bush's plan doesn't -- it requires testing of all new teachers, including in the subjects that they teach.

We have to start treating teachers like the professionals that they are, and give them the respect and the kind of quality of life that will draw more people into teaching, because we need a lot more teachers.

MR. LEHRER -- Governor Bush, two minutes.


I have been a governor of a big state, I've made education my No. 1 priority. That's what governors ought to do. They ought to say this is the most important thing we do as a state. The federal government puts about 6 percent of the money up. They put about -- you know, 60 percent of the strings where you got to fill out paperwork. I don't know if you have to be a paperwork filler-outer, but most of it's because of the federal government.

What I want to do is to send flexibility and authority to the local folks so you can choose what to do with the money. One size does not fit all. I'd worry about federalizing education if I were you. I believe strongly that the federal government can help; they need to fund Head Start. We need to have accountability. The vice president's plan does not have annual accountability -- third grade, fourth grade, fifth grade. We need to demand on results.

I believe strongly in teacher protection act, like I mentioned. I hear from teachers all the time about the lawsuits and the threats, respect in the classroom. Part of it's because you can't control the classroom. You can't have a consequence for somebody without fear of getting sued under federal law. So I'm going to ask the Congress to pass a teacher protection act. So I believe in flexibility. I believe in a national reading initiative for local districts to access with K through 2 diagnostic testing, curriculum that works -- phonics works, by the way. It needs to be a part of our curriculum. There needs to be flexibility for teacher training and teacher hiring with federal money.

The federal government can be a part, but don't fall prey to all this stuff about money here and money there, because education is really funded at the local level -- 94 percent comes from the local level.

MR. LEHRER -- Vice President Gore, is the governor right when he says that you're proposing the largest federal spending in years?

MR. GORE -- Absolutely not. Absolutely not. I'm so glad that I have a chance to knock that down. Look, the problem is that under Governor Bush's plan $1.6 trillion tax cut, mostly to the wealthy. Under his own budget numbers he proposes spending more money for a tax cut just for the wealthiest 1 percent than all of the new money that he budgets for education, health care and national defense combined.

Now, under my plan we will balance the budget every year. I'm not just saying this, I'm not just talking. I have helped to balance the budget for the first time in 30 years, paid down the debt. And under my plan in four years as a percentage of our gross domestic product federal spending will be the smallest that it has been in 50 years. One reason is, you know the third-biggest spending item in our budget is interest on the national debt. We get nothing for it, we keep the good faith and credit of the United States. I will pay down the debt every single year until it is eliminated early in the next decade. That gets rid of the third-biggest intrusion of the federal government --

MR. LEHRER -- So --

MR. GORE -- -- in our economy.

Now because the governor has all this money for a tax cut mostly to the wealthy, there is no money left over so schools get testing and lawsuit reform --

MR. LEHRER -- Time.

MR. GORE -- -- and not much else.

MR. LEHRER -- Governor, the vice president says you're wrong.

MR. BUSH -- Well, he's wrong. Just add up all the numbers. It's three times bigger than what President Clinton proposed. The Senate budget committee --

MR. LEHRER -- Three times -- excuse me -- three times --

MR. BUSH -- -- bigger than what President Clinton proposed.

MR. GORE -- That's in an ad, Jim, that was knocked down by the journalists who analyzed the ad and said it was misleading.

MR. BUSH -- Wait a minute. May I answer --

MR. LEHRER -- Go ahead.

MR. BUSH -- My turn?

MR. LEHRER -- Yes, Sir.