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BACK TO POLITICAL PLAYBOOK Other Resources Welfare Reform Opinion from the Urban League Opinion from the Heritage Foundation Prayer in Public Schools: A Clarifier from the Ontario Centre for Religious Tolerance Interfaith Alliance: Why They Oppose Any Change of the First Amendment Affirmative Action: A Rally for Affirmative Action, supported by "Angry White Guys" A.A.A.A.: Home Page of The American Association for Affirmative Action

Social Issues on Capitol Hill, Part 2 Posted July 23, 1996 With Bob Dole and the Republican Congress limping toward next month's Republican national convention, the party is struggling to put together a few political victories to brag about on the campaign trail. For now, in Congress it's 'on with the campaign' -- and thus, on with the social issues. Having recently passed a red-meat conservative bill that denies recognition for gay marriage, Congress is grappling with still more bills that press sensitive social buttons, and which could have important implications for the 1996 campaign. But the stories of these three bills illustrate how internal politicking has wounded the Congressional Republican agenda. For instance, Republicans still aren't sure if they want their welfare bill to pass; their school prayer amendment has been stalled for more than a year because of a brawl over what it should say; and they've decided a once-celebrated affirmative action bill should be quietly swept under the carpet. To learn more about these bills, read on: WELFARE REFORM Nuts and Bolts: One last effort is underway to bridge the political gap between Congress and the White House on reforming the nation's welfare system. Bill Clinton, most Republicans, and many Democrats have been calling for major changes in federal programs that support the poor across America. Legislation currently under consideration would end the guarantee of federal aid for the poor that has existed since the Great Depression, and would hand over control of welfare programs to the states in the form of "block grants." Among the bill's other provisions: States would be limited to providing five years or less of welfare benefits to individuals, although the bill contains no penalties for a state's failure to comply, and states could exempt 20 percent of their caseloads. Welfare recipients would be required to work within two years or lose their benefits, and states would be required to have 50 percent of their caseloads working by 2002. But the definition of "work" remains vague, and again there are no real penalties for failure to comply. The House version would cut about $30 billion from the growth of the food stamp program over six years, and limit food stamp benefits to able-bodied adults without dependents to three months between the ages of 18 and 50 unless they are working. States would be given wide leeway for their own welfare reform experiments. But unlike previous bills Congress has sent to Clinton, this one is not coupled with cuts in the Medicaid program, which provides health care to the poor and disabled. Clinton has vowed not to sign cuts in Medicaid. The welfare bill itself has also been softened, as Democrats have fought to add some $4 billion to child care programs and limited cuts in school lunch and foster care programs. Nevertheless, while reformers argue the bill will end a culture of dependency among the poor and save $61 billion through 2002, almost everyone agrees that this bill will increase the number of children living in poverty. According to the Clinton administration, as many as 1.5 million more children will slip below the poverty line. Status: The House approved the latest measure, 256-170, on Thursday. Thirty Democrats voted for the bill. The Senate also approved it Tuesday, 74-24. Whether Clinton will sign the bill remains uncertain, and depends on the form of the final bill. Inside Scoop: The politics of welfare reform have become intensely complicated as the 1996 electoral endgame unfolds. In 1992 Bill Clinton put a pledge to "end welfare as we know it" at the heart of his presidential campaign. But welfare reform took a back seat as Clinton first focused on his failed effort at health care reform. Then, the Republican revolutionaries took control of Congress, and made grandiose pledges to stuff a drastic welfare overhaul in the faces of Democrats. Clinton refused to sign a first welfare bill he felt was too harsh, and declared he could not approve Republican cuts in Medicaid. Now, both Clinton and the GOP are torn. Clinton feels compelled to live up to his commitment to welfare reform, but doesn't want to sign a bill that is too harsh or that might bleed liberal support. Republicans are faced with the spectre of accomplishing virtually nothing in their vaunted "revolution," but don't want to hand Clinton bragging rights on more legislation that he might take credit for. Nervous about a Clinton advantage, the Dole campaign is reportedly unhappy with the new reform effort. SCHOOL PRAYER AMENDMENT Nuts and Bolts: A proposed amendment to the Constitution designed to support organized public school prayer has assumed high priority in the closing weeks of the 104th Congress. But the final language of the proposed amendment, which has long been the subject of debate within the GOP, is still being argued among Republicans in Congress, who are split into two camps: The first, led by Rep. Jim Istook, R-OK, seeks wording that explicitly calls for student-sponsored prayer and denounces government discrimination against religious expression and would allow the display of religious symbols in public places. The second, led by Rep. Henry J. Hyde, R-IL, argues for language which does not specifically mention the words "God" or "prayer" and instead focuses on guaranteeing religious persons or groups equal access to government benefits. Although House Speaker Newt Gingrich predicted after the 1994 election that such a bill would pass by July 1995, an earlier attempt by this congress to pass an amendment was stalled when the competing camps could not agree on the bill's language. Previous proposals have met with stiff resistance from opponents charging the amendments assail the constitutionally-mandated separation of church and state. Status: House leaders have said they will begin hearings on the amendment next week in the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution. Bill Clinton does not support such an amendment. Inside Scoop: The new school prayer emphasis is partly intended to boost the Dole campaign by offering a core-conservative social issue that could draw back some religious conservatives alienated by Dole's recent moderation on issues like abortion. House Republican leaders are planning to put the bill on a "fast track" to speed its path to a vote. In addition to helping Dole, leaders like Gingrich and House Majority Leader Richard Armey are making good on a pledge made last year to the Christian Coalition that the bill would see a vote. The difference over language has made for a dramatic clash between Istook, a second-term firebrand, and Hyde, the Judiciary Chairman and one of the party's most revered elders. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION Nuts and Bolts: A bill introduced in Congress last year by then-Senator Bob Dole would prevent the federal government from granting any preference based on race, color, national origin or sex when making decisions about federal contracts, employment or other programs. Dole has since distanced himself from the bill, and the Republican leadership has withdrawn its support, turning instead to a more limited measure. That bill, sponsored by Rep. Jan Meyers, R-KS, would be limited to addressing government contracts only. It would end programs giving preference in the awarding of $5.8 billion in contracts to "disadvantaged" -- in practice, minority -- businesses. Of the 6,000 businesses awarded contracts last year by the Small Business Administration program the bill targets, all but 32 were minority-owned. Status: The broader bill has been stalled in the House Judiciary Committee. It is unlikely to be considered by either the House or Senate this year. The Meyers bill will be taken up by the Judiciary Committee shortly. Inside Scoop: Although doing away with affirmative action was all the political vogue in the GOP when the bill was introduced by Bob Dole last year (and cosponsored by Rep. Charles Canady, R-FL), public support for such measures has waned. Particularly sensitive to a "gender gap" which shows him lagging far behind Clinton among women voters, Dole has said little about the issue on the campaign trail. While the affirmative action programs targeted in the discarded bill have largely benefited white women, the Meyers bill almost exclusively impacts minorities.