George Bush for president

Maine voters need only to look only at the current record-setting stalemate over the budget in Washington to conclude that the current climate in the nation’s capital must be changed. This chronic impasse and the inability of government to function above partisan bickering demand a leader who values honesty and cooperation, one who can pull the nation together with a positive vision. That person is George W. Bush.

The presidential campaign has been a dead heat for months despite the fact that a sitting vice president, in office during the longest economic expansion in U.S. history, is running against a governor whose own party expressed doubts about him as late as the primaries. George Bush has performed so well in recent months for many reasons. But the most important is that he has expressed faith in the American public to make smart, compassionate decisions about their own lives without the constant oversight of the federal government. Call it the grown-up campaign vs. Al Gore’s lecturing-to-children campaign.

The governor has broad themes that resonate with the public and recognize that in all areas of policy, a diversity of views usually makes legislation stronger rather than watered down, that the harsh stands of the left and right ultimately collapse, that the perfect must not become the enemy of the good. In Texas, he has displayed this more-encompassing approach on such issues as education and health care and by reaching out to minorities traditionally identified as steadfast Democrats. Having a Republican governor appropriate their constituencies and themes infuriates Democrats, of course, but it merely shows that Gov. Bush has kept a close eye on White House strategies in recent years.

And like President Clinton, Gov. Bush has gained the support of Wall Street by indicating his willingness to let the Federal Reserve continue to act in ways that contribute to keeping the economy humming. Not that all of the governor’s fiscal policies add up: His plan to use the surplus to continue with debt reduction, cut taxes broadly and allow private investments in Social Security cannot be accomplished simultaneously without a big jump in the size of the surplus. However, Mr. Gore’s plans don’t add up particularly well, either, especially if Medicare reform is thrown in.

But it is no sin for either candidate to toss out ideas that cannot all be accomplished at once. The governor’s Medicare plan, for instance, starts with a program called Immediate Helping Hand that covers the full cost of prescription drugs for seniors with incomes at or below 135 percent of poverty, then establishes a framework that over the next four years will be filled in to provide Medicare choices for all seniors. The plan was based on the Bipartisan Commission on the Future of Medicare and already has support from both parties. Vice President Gore, on the other hand, plans to dump a huge amount of new money into a failing program that rapidly is becoming archaic.

Gov. Bush has been general in his plans precisely because he knows they must be open to debate to become adopted; Mr. Gore spells his plans out exactly, indicating that he would have Washington do things his way or face confrontation. Which is the more likely approach to end eight years of gridlock?

Not all of the positions taken by Gov. Bush are worth celebrating. His cavalier responses to concerns about Texas’ use of the death penalty, his state’s poor environmental record and his stand against abortion rights are areas of concern. As important as these issues are, however, Mr. Bush has demonstrated in speeches and during the debates that he is committed to administering the duties of the presidency in a serious and thoughtful way, even if that means ultimately disappointing some factions of his supporters.

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Maine may have a unique perspective on the presidential race based on the shocking behavior of Vice President Al Gore in during the Ice Storm of 1998. With power out in large parts of the state during those dark winter days, Mainers heartily welcomed Mr. Gore, who promised support and comfort in Maine’s hour of need. But the vice president will be forever remembered for grabbing hold of a power line and giving it a pull before being reminded that even the brilliant among us succumb to the force of electricity. He let go of the line and left shortly after … and Maine officials spent the next 18 months trying, with only partial success, to pry natural-disaster money from the Clinton administration. Without making too much of the incident, it might be summarized like this: The vice president talked great, acted silly, then failed to follow through.

Neither Maine nor the nation needs four more years of that. Instead, George Bush represents an honest chance to restore integrity to the office of president and civility between the White House and Congress. He offers the promise that the nation can grow together beyond the divisive politics of the day and into a more mature, more hopeful future.