budget would reform the program to run better, and cheaper, by allowing it to grow at 6% yearly, instead of the current 10%. While both parties agree on premium hikes for beneficiaries, this is a touchy subject for the 38.1 Million elderly voters on Medicare in 1996 (Rubin 1221). Medicaid, another volatile program, would be cut $182 billion under the GOP proposal. This would entail placing a cap on the program’s spending, and passing control of it to the individual state governments. For an estimated 39 million low-income people on Medicaid in 1996, the GOP plan cuts the program far more than Clinton’s proposed $98 billion cut. Social Security is another program being cut. The government has already reduced the outlay for seniors 70 and younger who are on the program, but Republicans want more by increasing the eligibility for Social Security from 62 to 65 for early retirement, and 65 to 70 for standard retirement (Henderson 60). Smaller cuts included $11 billion in student loan reductions, $9.3 billion in labor cuts, $10 billion eliminated from public housing programs, and several other numerous disaster relief programs cut (Rubin 1222). The GOP also wants to eliminate programs initiated by Clinton like the National Service initiative, summer jobs, Goals 2000, and Americorps. Also, by terminating unnecessary farm programs, and cutting others by $12.3 billion, Republicans hope to cut the yearly $6 billion that the Federal Government spends on direct subsidies to farmers. Agricultural policies were also reformed and embedded into budget-reconciliation bills (Hosansky 3730).Clinton’s Budget: Clinton’s budget only surfaced after he vetoed the budget passed by Congress, and included shallower cuts, with little or no reform toentitlements. This plan was supported by most Democrats and was used as an alternate to a gutsy GOP budget. Clinton repeatedly trashed theRepublican’s efforts to make cuts on prog...
