Monday, January 12, 2004

Election 2004 Coverage
Candidate Spotlight: Wesley Clark

Clark in Arizona

The Arkansas native, West Point graduate, Rhodes Scholar, and decorated Vietnam veteran certainly looks good on paper. He also looks good on TV, hence his stint as a commentator for CNN. Clark has a Masters Degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics from his Oxford days, and his detailed policy proposals reflect it. His website features innumerable quotes from past superiors attesting to Clark's pristine character.

However, the media made much of his past support of Republican Presidents. What kind of President would the former General be?

Interestingly, the General and former NATO Supreme Allied Commander does not emphasize national security on his website.

Citing the erosion of most Americans' income, rising college tuition costs, 3.8 million more people without health insurance, and 546,000 more children in poverty, Clark promises to turn this all around by 2008.

Job Creation and Balancing the Budget
Clark puts Job Creation at the top of his national to-do list, which sounds sensible enough. What's more, it makes Clark sound a bit more liberal than Howard Dean, who in the past has said balancing the budget would be his top priority. Clark puts dealing with the deficit at #2.

While balancing the budget is important, enabling the vast majority of Americans to earn a decent living should always be the nation's top priority. Plus, with the broad-based middle class earning more, tax receipts will go up and the economy will run more smoothly.

The Environment
Clark, interestingly, stakes out a surprisingly staunch position on the environment, calling for strict regulations on the pollution coming from electric power plants. The Bush Administration has been trying to rollback current regulations on these plants. Clark calls for the use of domestic technologies and "market-based approaches to meet air pollution challenges with innovative, job-creating solutions."

Still, it's commonplace for Democrats to talk tough with regard to the environment during campaigns, and then ignore it or implement face-saving solutions while in office. Despite what Clark says, if elected and dealing with a Republican Congress, we could expect only minor adjustments to the current level of environmental regulation.

College Assistance
Clark is big on helping kids afford college: he proposes a $6000 college grant, provided to any student whose parents make up to 100,000, attributable to tuition at any public or private college.

Raise Minimum Wage and Expand EITC
As part of his plan to raise incomes, Clark, like other candidates, says he will raise the national minimum wage to $7, up from the current $5.15 per hour, "in steps". He would also expand the Earned Income Tax Credit.

Expand Health Coverage
Clark promises to extend health care to 30 million Americans, though he would do this largely by using tax credits. However, if you are living paycheck to paycheck, paying for expensive coverage up-front and only getting a tax credit at the end of the year, it may not be a feasible option for many people. Ideally, the amounts should be deductible directly from a person's payroll tax, just like it is done for people who receive insurance from their employer.

Raise Taxes on the Well-To-Do
Clark would raise taxes (reverse the Bush tax cuts) on families with incomes $200,000 and greater to pay for his job-creation and other initiatives. He wants to invest $40 billion in homeland security programs, as a dual program of protecting America and creating jobs.

National Security
On National Security, Clark focuses on Iraq and Al-Qaeda specifically, as well as what he considers our damaged international relations with allies. "a new curtain has descended - not between America and its enemies, but between America and its friends," he said in a speech to the Council of Foreign relations last November, "Simply put, this Administration is wrecking NATO - and thereby doing incalculable damage to our security and well being."

Internationalize Iraq Force
On Iraq, Clark recently wrote in the Harvard Crimson that "the political administration of Iraq should be put in the hands of the international community, so that all nations will start to help."

We know that Republicans in Congress would put up a stiff resistance to many of Clark's plans. Would they let him raise taxes on the wealthy to pay for his $40 billion homeland and economic security plan? His health care plan? Unfortunately, if any of the Democrat candidates win against Bush in 2004, they will face a tough situation with the Congress.

Stand-offs and painful compromise will be the order of the day.

Of Clark's proposals, he might make headway on job creation and in reducing the deficit, since the former will be an investment in Homeland Security and the latter fiscal discipline, both ostensibly appealing to Republicans - or at least tough for them to resist politically.

But he might fail with regard to raising taxes, forcing him to cut spending somewhere if he wants to balance the budget. The question is, what programs would Clark cut?

Most likely, Howard Dean is in a better position, being a doctor, to do something about America's problematic health care system.

Clark carries with him the national security bona fides. But it's tough to say how committed he is to his own proposals, having not held elected office. He may just be trying to get elected. His past support for Republican Presidents throws doubt on this question.

Despite an initial media boost, Clark's candidacy has yet to catch fire. He has also chosen to stay out of Iowa, which will permit Dean - whose campaign already has the spotlight, the energy, the grassroots support, and the money - to get a head start.

~ David M. Fine

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Related Links

The Mill's coverage of Election 2004

The Mill's Candidate Bios