October 18, 1996
For further information regarding the following Election `96
stories, please call Ellie Shick or Ann Marie Deer Owens at
(615) 322-2706.
CLINTON RAIDS THE CENTER ON EDUCATION: Bill Clinton has managed
to stake out Republican as well as Democratic positions on education, leaving
Bob Dole with little but private school vouchers to call his own. However,
Clinton even has his own school choice plan - public charter schools. In
addition, Clinton's proposal for tuition tax credits historically has been
a Republican idea. What is perhaps the most striking difference between
Clinton and Dole on education, the fate of the U.S. Department of Education,
may turn out to be a non-issue. If the Department of Education is ever abolished,
as Dole advocates, most of the programs would be folded back into the Department
of Health and Human Services.
Source: James W. Guthrie, professor of public policy and education
at Vanderbilt University's Peabody College and director of the Peabody Center
for Education Policy.
RELIGIOUS RIGHT ALREADY HAS IMPACTED ELECTION The religious right
movement has played a significant role in the presidential election because
it, more than any other single group, determined the direction and shape
of the Republican platform and its anti-abortion plank. That plank has created
a difficult political problem for moderate Republicans such as presidential
nominee Bob Dole. Most voters link the party's anti-abortion plank with
Dole, even though he has not publicly emphasized the constitutional amendment
to prohibit abortions. At the same time, the religious right, which should
support Dole, is not wildly enthusiastic about him because they feel he
has not stated his case on abortion with sufficient fervor. Hence, Dole
is getting heat from both sides on this issue, and that may at least partially
explain why he has had trouble developing campaign momentum.
Source: Joseph C. Hough, dean of the Vanderbilt University Divinity
School.
FIRST LADY BASHING Too often First Ladies are subjected to the
age-old tradition of insisting that a woman be considered either "Saint
or Sinner." In ancient Greece, Penelope waited faithfully for her husband
to return after the Trojan War while Clytemnestra murdered hers upon his
arrival. In Christian lore, Eve is the mother of all trouble, while mother
Mary is a blessed virgin. Categorizing people is convenient because then
we don't have to make an effort to see them as human. Strong women such
as Hillary Clinton and Elizabeth Dole deserve better. True humanity is always
complex.
Source: Professor of Classics Susan Ford Wiltshire, author of "Greece,
Rome and the Bill of Rights."
NATION'S FIRST PRESIDENT: BEWARE PARTY POLITICS In his farewell
address 200 years ago, George Washington decried an emerging feature of
American government: party politics. The political unity the nation experienced
during the Revolutionary War had been replaced by full-blown political factionalism
during Washington's administration. Washington believed the solution lay,
in part, in the virtue and morality of the American public and the character
of those elected. Washington's fears came true -- party factionalism is
rampant and spin doctors make a mockery of political discourse and public
character.
Source: Assistant Professor of Communications Sean Patrick O'Rourke,
who teaches courses in American public address.
POWER "SEESAW" IN CONGRESS: Regardless of whether the
Democrats or Republicans control Congress after the upcoming election, neither
party is likely to have a large or durable majority. One of the reasons
for the "seesaw" balance of power between the two parties is that
the South has become more diverse. Despite Republican gains, the South will
not be a strictly one- party region in Congressional elections. The increased
competition between the two parties in Congress may force more coalitions
to pass legislation.
Source: Bruce Oppenheimer, professor of political science at Vanderbilt
University.
-VU-
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