Bill Clinton: “That's great. I haven't seen it, but let me say what we've attempted to do is to show what it would take to pay for the…”

“That's great. I haven't seen it, but let me say what we've attempted to do is to show what it would take to pay for the Republican contract. I mean, in typical Republican fashion, just like they did in the eighties, they made all these wild promises and never said how they'd pay for it. Now, they've promised big tax cuts, big increases in defense spending and Star Wars and a balanced budget. And the House Budget Committee did an analysis and said that if they did that, that the only way you could keep that promise is to cut Social Security about 2,000 bucks a year and to cut Medicare about 1,800 bucks a year, because that's what's in the rest of the budget. And if they say they're not going to do it, then what they're saying is they're not going to keep their promise. Instead, they're going to give a tax cut to the wealthy, explode the deficit, start shipping our jobs overseas, and put us right back in the same hole we were in when they had office the last time. So they cannot have it both ways. They can't go out here and give the American people a trillion dollars' worth of promises and say, ``I'll tell you how I'm going to pay for this after the election.'' That's what they're trying to do. It's a scam. It's a bunch of easy promises. Our approach is to challenge the American people, to say, ``Okay, we're going to give you the educational opportunities you need, we're going to make this Government work for ordinary people to support families again; as with family leave and immunizations for little kids, and we're going to get the economy going again. And now you've got to make the most of your lives.'' We're not going to give you a bunch of promises that can't be kept, that will only put this country back in the hole again. I think when the American people understand both what we have done and what they're offering, that we're going to be in much better shape. Health Care Reform Mr. Newbury. Of course, the State of Rhode Island has been very much involved in the health care reform proposals with Senator Chafee and of course, Ira Magaziner. Now, when health care comes back on the table in the spring, what input can we expect from these gentlemen?”