The Michigan Daily - Friday, September 9, 1994 - 15 .White House weighs plan for tax cuts, citing election pressures President Clinton hopes to thwart congressional Republican plan for tax cuts, may bolster National Service program funding I The Washington Post WASHINGTON - Under elec- tion-year political pressure, the Clinton administration is weighing whether to dust off its proposal for a middle-class tax cut - an unfulfilled *campaign pledge that the White House says is still on the president's list of things to do "when the time is right." According to congressional and administration sources, White House aides have begun to restudy the tax-cut idea in the last few weeks, largely in response to pressure from congressional Democrats who hope to to counter a broader Republican tax-cut proposal ;xpected to be announced Sept. 27. ! White House aides caution that the president himself has not yet ad- dressed the issue, and that opinion among senior advisers is divided. But all insist that any tax cut would have to be offset by spending cuts or increased taxes in other areas to en- sure that any cut would not undercut the deficit reduction program passed by Congress last year. 10 "Not imminent, not likely," said -" w - one administration economic official of the tax-cut idea, pointing out that the Treasury's tax policy office has yet to be consulted as part of the discussion. But some political aides, antici- pating that Democrats could lose large numbers of seats this fall at the hands of tax-cutting Republican opponents, say they want to have a Democratic counterproposal at the ready. "This is an issue most economic people would hope would not come up," said one key congressional aide, "but I don't think we have the luxury of simply ignoring it." On Tuesday, the White House did nothing to silence the tax-cut chatter, which had surfaced in several news reports and opinion columns. White House spokesperson Dee Dee Myers said a middle-class tax cut has always been something the president wanted to do "when the time is right." Ad- ministration aides expect that if the president decides to go ahead with a tax cut, it would be included as part of the next year's budget and unveiled only after the November congres- sional elections. "To rush in now with a last-minute tax cut would be viewed by everyone as nothing more than political pan- dering," said one White House aide, who spoke on condition that his name not be used. "We'd get killed. It would look terrible." Republican strategist William Kristol agreed. "If he tries to do this now, before the election, it will be viewed as clever for about two days," said Kristol. "It would alienate the deficit hawks within the party but won't do much to win him voters." Democratic congressional leaders also are reluctant to get into an elec- tion-year bidding war with Republi- cans to see which party can offer a bigger tax cut. The last time that sort of competition happened, in 1982, it marked the beginning of the rapid rise in the federal budget deficit. Later this month, Republican can- didates from across the country are expected to gather on the Capitol steps to endorse a united platform for this fall's campaign. It is expected to in- clude not only a middle-class tax cut targeted to families with children, but also a cut in capital-gains taxes on the profits made by investors when they sell stocks and bonds. Some of the cuts would be offset by unspecified reductions in federal entitlement pro- grams for the poor and elderly. Although the Democrats are only beginning to study possible tax-cut proposals of their own, advisers say one likely approach would involve some form of tax credit or additional deduction for each child in middle- income households, worth about $300 a year per child in tax relief. That is essentially the same proposal put for- ward by Clinton in his 1992 cam- paign manifesto, Putting People First. Administration aides stress that such a middle-class tax cut, which could cost up to $15 billion a year. This would be offset by closing tax loopholes used by the wealthy or cor- porations, or by reducing domestic spending in other areas. Outside economists this week said such a proposal would have little im- pact on the economy. "As long as it's paid for, it's pri- marily not an economic matter," said Benjamin Friedman, a Harvard econo- mist who has studied the impact of government budget policy on the economy. "At that point what you're really doing is rearranging the tax burden or readjusting budget priori- ties, which are social and political issues, not economic." Senior White House aides are clearly of two minds about the tax cut. While the idea has unmistakeable political appeal, a number of eco- nomic advisers said that if there is any money to be squeezed out of domes- tic spending and closing tax loop- holes, it ought to be funneled to the administration's "investment agenda," which even the president complained had gotten short shrift in last year's budget compromise. Among the administration's in- vestment priorities are increased fund- ing for school-to-work programs, worker retraining programs and a more rapid expansion of the commu- nity service program to be launched at the White House Monday. Other aides say any available funds should be directed to reducing the federal deficit even further, particu- larly in 1996 and beyond, when cur- rent projections show that the deficit will begin to rise again unless federal health costs are not reigned in. The deficit hawks are likely to find allies on Wall Street and among economists inside and outside the administration. "If you have ways to raise addi- tional resources, my priority would be further deficit reduction rather than throwing it away on tax cuts," said Charles Schultze of the Brookings Institution, a Washington-based re- search organization. If the administration decides the funds aren't available for a middle- class tax cut, it could opt for less expensive options, such as expanding the scope of tax-free individual re- tirement accounts for savers and in- vestors - an idea long favored by Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen. Classified study suggests pattern of sexual, racial harassment within CIA AP PHOTO oiling Stones lead singer Mick Jagger performs during the MTV Video Music Awards at New York's Radio City Music all last night. The band was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Jackson-Presley and Letterman-Madonna pairs highlght MTV Video Music Awards NEW YORK (AP)-R.E.M. won four MTV Video Music Awards and Werosmith took three, including video of the year, during last night's pro- gram that opened with Michael and Lisa Marie Presley-Jackson making their first live TV appearance as hus- band and wife. Nirvana copped the art direction and alternative music prizes, and upon getting the second award, Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl referred to *nger Kurt Cobain's suicide earlier s year: "It would be silly to say it doesn't feel like something's missing. I think about Kurt everyday." Later in the show, bassist Krist Novocelic introduced a special video montage shown as apaean to Cobain's work. Aerosmith also won the group as e11 as the viewers' choice award for ryin'," while the dance and R&B awards went to "Whatta Man" by Salt-N-Pepa, featuring En Vogue. And Counting Crows were selected best new artist for "Mr. Jones." Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were voted best male video for "Mary Jane's Last Dance" and Petty himself took home the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award for his overall ca- er. As the 11th annual program went on the air, the announcer intoned: "Please welcome Mr. and Mrs. Michael Jackson." Out walked the newlyweirds - and Jackson welcomed everyone to the show as his smiling bride looked on. "I'm very happy to be here. And just think, nobody thought this would st"Jackson said, then planted a big ss on his wife to the squealing delight of the crowd. They kept it in the family for night's first award. Jackson's sister, Janet, snagged the female video prize for "If." She resisted any temptation And the winners are --" The Washington Post WASHINGTON - A classified 1992 CIA study has found that half the agency's white female case offic- ers reported experiencing sexual ha- rassment and more than half the Black respondents reported racial harass- ment at the agency, according to a court filing by a case officer who is suing the agency for discrimination. The "Glass Ceiling" study, which has never been publicly released, found that women case officers toler- ated harassment by male colleagues "in order to be accepted," according to excerpts included in the suit. It also discovered "the general perception that those who complain about such behavior are most likely creating ca- reer advancement problems for them- selves," the court documents showed. The study also found that "repris- als (against women) seem to go un- checked." The study was undertaken in part by a panel of CIA female case officers who work in the operations directorate which is responsible for covert activities, including espionage. The plaintiff in the lawsuit, who uses the pseudonym "Jane Doe Thomp- son," was a member of the "Glass Ceiling" panel and one of the few case officers who by 1986 had reached the GS-15 level. "Thompson," who from 1989 to 1991 was chief of the CIA station in Jamaica, used excerpts from the "Glass Ceiling" study to bolster her claims of discrimination against the agency. Those began after she filed a complaint against her male deputy in Jamaica who had beaten his wife and whose behavior she contended was affecting his work performance. The CIA has denied "Thompson's" allegations of dis- crimination, first in an internal Equal Employment Office report and cur- rently in a fight against her lawsuit in federal court, but agency officials over the past two years have reacted to the Glass Ceiling Study by taking some steps to remedy the situation it uncov- ered. "This (Glass Ceiling Study) has been a major initiative," CIA public affairs director Kent Harrington said yesterday, "and we believe we are turning the situation around." He singled out "diversity on pro- motion panels, a more rigorous and open promotion and assignment pro- cess, a leadership development pro- gram and mentoring program," all of A source familiar with the statistics said there was 'a significant difference in promotion between men and women and the chance it was caused by other than gender was less than 1 percent.' which are geared to improve the per- formance and promotion of women and minorities. "It's ongoing," Harrington said, and being run and monitored by the agency's executive committee under CIA Director R. James Woolsey and other top managers. Harrington said the Glass Ceiling Study itself remains classified because it designates breakdowns of employee categories, not because the informa- tion uncovered itself is secret. The Glass Ceiling Study found a substantial numberof women believed "the agency environment is not sup- portive of them," and recommended making "managers aware of the per- vasive fear that employees have re- garding filing grievances and making complaints without reprisal." "Thompson" tied that attitude to her own situation claiming that disci- plinary and administrative actions she took against her deputy and three other male subordinates in Jamaica led them to make "malicious allegations against me to the (CIA inspector general) on the basis of my sex ... They tried to slander me with insinuations based on areas where women are vulnerable to the most meager accusations: sexual promiscuity and inebriated behavior." CIA inspectors general who in- vestigated "Thompson" and found merit in the allegations against her, said they talked to other individuals besides the former subordinates who made the original charges, internal agency documents showed. "Thompson" also used the Glass Ceiling Study to cite discrimination against women when it came to pro- motions to higher grades within the agency. The study found women "are not recognized by the (operations) direc- torate at the same pace or to the same degree as are ... men," according to the "Thompson" complaint. The study also said, "White males have traditionally been given the ca- reer-making assignments." As of 1991, the study found that women comprised 40 percent of the workforce at CIA but only held 9 percent of the Senior Intelligence Service (SIS) positions. Harrington said that number had grown to 12 percent this year. Video of the Year:- Aerosmith, "Cryin'." Male Video: Tom Petty and the- Heartbreakers, "Mary Jane Last Dance." Female Video: Janet Jackson, "If.." Group Video: Aerosmith,"Cryint." Rap Video: Snoop Doggy Dogg, "Dogg Dogg World." Dance Video: Salt-N-Pepa with En Vogue "Whatta Man." Metal-Hard Rock Video Soundgarden, "Black Hole Sun." Alternative Music Video: Nirvana, 'Heart-ShapedBox," New Artist in a Video: -e Counting CrowS, "Mr. Jones." R&B Video: Salt-N-Pepa with En Vogue, "Whatta Man." Direction:- R.E.M., "Everybody Hurts." Choreography In a Video: Salt-N-Pepa with En Vogue, y "Whatta Man." Special Effects: Peter Gabriel, "Kiss That Frog." Art Direction: Nirvana, "Heart-Shaped Box." Editing: R.E.M., "Everybody Hurts," Lesbian Gay Bisexual Programs Office & Major Events/ Division of Student Affairs present Video from-a Film. Cinematography: Bruce Springsteen, "Streets of R.E.., "Everybody Hurts." Philadelphia" from Breakthrough: "Philadelphia." R.E.M.,,"Everybody Hurts." The presenters of the rap prize - which went to Snoop Doggy Dogg's "Doggy Dogg World" - injected some politics into the affair. With Flavor Flav's gyrating help, Chuck D averred that rap was no fad - as some people suggested - and that it offers a political forum. Chuck D said the United States had its own political prisoners and they should be freed. Among those he named: former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson, who's serv- ing time in an Indiana prison for rape. More boos than cheers arose from the audience. Special UM Student Ticket Price with current 763-TKTS D at Michigan Union Ticket Office ! !1# !"ii! i!!'1lOi" 'il.f i i,:!llr! ,i'ir.i.l;i ! "Oi!! 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