PRESS RELEASE
October 7, 1996

STATEMENT BY JOE LOCKHART
NATIONAL PRESS SECRETARY

In a campaign flashback, Bob Dole is warning people of a Democratic plot to scare senior citizens about the effects of his economic scheme on Medicare. Senior citizens have a right to be scared.

In 1994, Bob Dole chastised Democrats for telling Americans about a Republican plan to cut Medicare. He accused the President saying, "In a state of near panic, President Clinton and Vice President Gore are resorting to scare tactics. They’re falsely accusing Republicans of secret plans to cut Social Security and Medicare benefits ..." (Radio address, Federal News Service, 11/5/94) Yet after Republicans took control of Congress, what did Bob Dole do? In 1995, Bob Dole and Newt Gingrich tried to cut Medicare, offering a budget that would have reduced Medicare by $270 billion to pay for $245 in tax cuts. It’s 1996 and Bob Dole has proposed an economic scheme that doubles the tax cut bet to $548 billion. What will Bob Dole do to pay for it?

They say "history repeats itself" and since Bob Dole won’t tell the American public what he will cut to pay for his scheme, Americans must let "history be their guide."

###