#1: IMPROVING

THE HEALTH-

CARE SYSTEM

WHAT PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH SAYS: “We must reform

health care in America. We must build a modern, innovative health-care system that gives patients more options and fewer orders [to follow] and strengthens the doctor-patient relationship.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: Last year, the president signed a law that allows as many as 1 million of the 43.6 million uninsured Americans to put money into a tax-free health-savings account, according to Treasury Department estimates. He’s also begun a five-year plan to fund health-care centers in underserved communities.

WHAT SENATOR JOHN KERRY SAYS: “I have a health-care plan

that covers nearly 95 percent of all Americans.”WHAT HE PROPOSES: A program allow-ing Americans to buy into the same health-care plan available to members of Congress; he will also extend coverage to 95 percent of Americans, including every American child. Kerry also advocates reform that would eliminate fraud and abuse in the health-care system and make prescription drugs more affordable by cutting administrative costs and allowing Americans to legally buy drugs imported from Canada.

In our August Gallup Poll, you told us your six top concerns

this election year. Here’s a take-to-the-voting-booth summary of

where both candidates stand

BY TARA MCKELVEY

“I will put our government

and legal system back

on the side of women.”

SENATOR JOHN KERRY

“The econo-my is getting stronger. And the policy we passed is good policy.”

PRESIDENTGEORGE W. BUSH

Which

CandidateHas Got Your Back?

PRESIDENTIAL *marie claire vote for your future: election 2004

28 MARIE CLAIRE * OCT 2004

REVFINAL

MC-O-143

BU

SH: R

EUT

ERS/

CO

RB

IS. K

ERRY

: J. S

ULL

IVA

N/G

ETT

Y I

MA

GES

. SIL

HO

UET

TES

: P.J

. RIC

HA

RD

S &

D. K

AU

P, B

OT

H G

ETT

Y I

MA

GES

YOUR CONCERN

#2: PREVENTING

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

WHAT BUSH SAYS: “Women and children are facing dangers in this

country, and they need strong allies.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: Allocated more than $295 million for antitrafficking pro grams—many focused on sex trafficking—here and abroad. However, despite making October National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, Bush slashed funding for the Violence Against Women Act by $16.2 million in his 2004 fiscal-year budget.

WHAT KERRY SAYS: “As president, I will put American government and

our legal system back on the side of women. I will stand up for their security, ensure their safety, support their rights, and guarantee their dignity.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: Kerry cospon-sored the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, which has provided more than $1 bil-lion for battered-women’s shelters, hotlines, and other resources in the last 10 years.

#3: IMPROVING

THE EDUCATION

SYSTEM

WHAT BUSH SAYS: “This society of ours must challenge what I’ve called

the soft bigotry of low expectations. That means when you lower the bar [and] when you don’t believe in the human potential of a person, you’re likely to get lousy results.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: His No Child Left Behind program sets standards in read-ing and math for grammar-school children (but lack of funding has made implementing the program difficult in some states).

#4: IMPROVING

THE ECONOMY

WHAT BUSH SAYS: “The econo-my is getting stronger. We have

overcome a lot. And the policy we’ve passed is good policy.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: Bush has en-acted tax cuts, increased the child tax credit to $1000, and reduced the marriage penalty so that couples are not forced to pay higher income taxes than singles. His budget com-mits $23 billion for government job training and employment-assistance programs.

WHAT KERRY SAYS: “It’s time to give our schools the resources and

our teachers the respect they deserve—and to give every child in America the best pos-sible start in life.”WHAT HE PROPOSES: Kerry’s “New Bar-gain for America’s Children and Teach ers” would recruit 500,000 teachers over the nextfour years and double federal resources for teacher quality with a commitment of $30 billion over the next 10 years.

WHAT KERRY SAYS: “[The Bush] administration says this is the best

economy of our lifetime. They say this is the best we can do. They’ve even called us pessi-mists. Well, I say the most pessimistic thing you can say is that America can’t do better.”WHAT HE PROPOSES: To create 10 mil-lion new jobs, reform the tax system, and repeal tax cuts for families earning more than $200,000 per year. He also favors ad-ditional tax credits for middle-class families.

#5: BETTER JOB ADVANCE-MENT FOR

WOMEN

WHAT BUSH’S TEAM SAYS: One of his campaign spokespeople, Sharon

Castillo, said in WomensENews of Bush’s overall economic plan: “The agenda is one that empowers women.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: Bush has sup-ported Women’s Entrepreneurship summits (sponsored by the Department of Labor). In addition, he has been praised for appointing numerous women to top positions in his administration.

WHAT KERRY SAYS: “We need a stronger America, where women can

get better jobs and higher wages—and finally get equal pay for equal work.” WHAT HE PROPOSES: As the former chair and current ranking member of the Senate Committee on Small Business & Entre preneurship, Kerry has supported ini-tiatives for women-owned businesses, such as the Boston-based Center for Women and Enterprise.

#6: FIGHTING

TERRORISM

WHAT BUSH SAYS: “Our great challenge is to protect the American

people. Our great opportunity is to advance the cause of justice and human dignity and freedom all across the world.”WHAT HE’S DONE SO FAR: Waged war on Afghanistan and Iraq. He has also proposed a $379.9 billion budget for the Department of Defense and plans to increase intelligence spending by $2 to $3 billion.

WHAT KERRY SAYS: “Those who seek to lead have a duty to offer a clear

vision of how we can make Americans safer, more trusted and respected in the world.”WHAT HE PROPOSES: He believes that NATO should play a key role in restoring peace in Iraq, freeing up 20,000 American troops. He also believes the U.S. should work with coalition partners to secure peace in Afghanistan. B

USH

SIL

HO

UET

TES

, FR

OM

TO

P: P

.J. R

ICH

AR

DS

(2);

M. D

ILA

UR

O; L

. FR

AZ

ZA

; P.J

. RIC

HA

RD

S, A

LL G

ETT

Y I

MA

GES

. KER

RY S

ILH

OU

ETT

ES, F

RO

M T

OP:

D. K

AU

P; P

.J. R

ICH

AR

DS

(2);

S. J

AFF

E; D

. KA

UP,

ALL

GET

TY

IM

AG

ES

30 MARIE CLAIRE * OCT 2004

REVFINAL

MC-O-144

YOUR CONCERN