laking i their stands By Yael Kohen and Hanna LoPatin * Daily Staff Reporters Presidential candidates agree that the low political participation rate among young peo- ple is startling, but each one is looking for his own way of con- necting with a, d e m o g r a p h i c many analysts have described as alienated. Higher educa- tion, affirmative action and abor- tion are issues important to the 18 to 25-year-old4 age group that politicians have attempted to tack- le. As Republicans and Democrats battle it out in state primaries and cau- cuses to secure their party's nomi- nation, reinstitut- ing civic engagement has been widely discussed. Although low student participation has been portrayed as a relatively new phenomenon, it has been a problem for well over a decade. When asked why students today tend to be apathetic towards politics, University assistant political science Prof. Margaret Howard said, "Right now? How about forever? "It's a transition period of your life," Howard said. "If you're a full-time student, you put on blinders to everything else." Voters between the ages of 18 and 25 have lower turnout at the polls than any other demo- graphic, Howard said. Usually not until set- tling down with a job and a family does someone take an interest in participating in the "story of America." With Tuesday's Michigan Republican prima- ry in a position to determine the fate of White House hopefuls George W Bush, John McCain and Alan Keyes and the March 11 Democratic caucus approaching, some candidates are bringing the issues of higher education, affir- mative action and abortion to the table. The high prices of higher education makes attending college an unreachable dream for many lower-income families and their children. Higher education Although the GOP candidates have rarely focused their discussions on higher education, each has mildly addressed the issue by tagging it to their broader fiscal policies. Last year the Clinton administration announced a $3 trillion surplus in the federal budget, leaving the candidates to battle out the best way to spend - or save - the surplus. But Republicans and Democrats have bumped heads over where to funnel the surplus funds espe- cially in terms of education. Howard said she attributes this to the fact that while Republicans push for the local- ization of school control, Democ- rats tend to push for more federal regulations. Vice President Al Gore recently endorsed Clin- ton's $31 billion proposal to increase accessi- bility to higher education. The plan includes a $30 billion Col- lege Opportunity Tax Cut that would give families up to $2,800 in tax cuts or credit on up to $10,000 in tuition payments. The plan also includes $1 bil- lion to provide funds to increase Pell Grants, Work Study and other grant programs. Former New Jersey senator Bill Bradley has not announced his stance on Clinton's proposal, McCain's proposed tax cut is not nearly as large as that supported by Bush. The Arizona Arizona Senator Republican Abortion: Pro-life except in cases of rape, incest and when the life of the mother is in danger. Affirmative Action: Believes racial and ethnic diversity is important. Higher ed: Supports equal Bradley cam- paign spokes- woman Kristen Ludecke said. Bradley has made student loans his main focus for higher e d u c a t i o n access, she said. In addition to the College Opportunity Tax Cut, Gore proposed a senator has made it paying off the $5.6 trillion national debt. McCain has not developed a formal higher education plan, but he does support increasing access to colleges and universities, McCain's Michi- gan Campaign Chair John Schwarz said. McCain who supports an increase in the Pell Grant, wants to make a policy that offers "as open access as possible to higher educa- his fiscal priority to begin Texas Governor Republican Abortion: Pro-life except in cases of rape, incest and when the life of the mother is in danger. Affirmative action: Opposes the uses of quotas and racial preferences. Supports "affirmative access" Higher ed: Tax cuts and increase in Education Savings Accounts for more tuition money to be put aside. Taxes: $486 billion cut. AP PHOTO access for all Americans. national tuition Has backed the Pell Grant savings plan and other education during a cam- financial incentives. paign swing Taxes: $86 billion cut. through south- eastern Michi- AP PHOTOg an last w eek . f Gore's plan expands upon current programs to allow parents to invest in their child's higher education free of state taxes for in-state schools. He would like to see these investments free from federal taxes as well, Gore spokesman Douglas Hattaway said. The proposal would per- mit students to choose The M schools from all partici- Republica pating states, Hattaway said. Gore also proposed When: Tuesday,?7 creating a special sav- ings account for higher Where: MihiganJ education and job train- Alice Uoyd ing, Hattaway said. Bursley Res Meanwhile, Bradley's East Quadi proposal would allow stu- Mary Marki dents to pay back loans at South Quad a percentage based on their future income. Who: Texas Gov. "It's a very important Arizona Set step that would allow FOrmeramt students to choose a career according to desire," Ludecke said. The M Bradley's "Teach to Democrat Reach" program would give scholarship money When: March and loan forgiveness to people teaching in "high- Where:Michigan U need areas" - specifical- ly rural and inner-city t :VicePrsd schools - and who have set expertise in subjects for r which teachers are scarce. Republicans have focused on differing priori- ties that would in turn affect higher education. Bush has made cutting taxes his top priority. The Texas governor has proposed a $483 billion tax cut, claiming that with such a surplus it is time tion," said Schwarz, a Republican state senator from Battle Creek. McCain has backed the establishment of var- ious other programs, such as the lifetime tuition tax credit and the HOPE scholarship which allows students to claim a tax credit on higan ~ educational expenses. PrryAffirmative .m. to p.m. action ln Affirmative action is esid nce Haanother higher educa- dence Hall tion policy in the Bsldence Hall national and local spot- y Residence Hall lights, as some universi- tesidence Hall ties across the country, including the University eorge W. Bush of Michigan, have had ,John McCain their admissions poli- ssador Alan Keyes- cies challenged. Bush announced his support for a Texas plan 8hia to eliminate affirmative C Uaction from colleges and universities and Lam. implement the Texas 10 Percent Plan, which he onhas termed "affirmative access." A i r M This plan admits high school students in the top 10 percent of their graduating class into the school of their choice. "Every single person has a fair shot," Bush's national campaign spokesman Scott McClel- ,. iba. America great." Bush's brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, is trying to rid the state of affirmative action through his One Florida Ini- tiative. Both Bradley }y, and Gore have come out to pub- licly decry the Florida gover- nor's efforts. Bradley "must cast a net as wide as possible," Ludecke said. Gore is com- mitted "to con- tinuing to expand opportu- nities for every- body, and a ff i r m at i v e action is a way to do it," Hatt- away said. Abortion Although many debate whether abortion should be a political issue at all, it has grabbed the atten- tion of many voters and caused much heated debate among the candidates themselves. Ludecke said she believes that a Republican in office could potentially.change the status quo with. the reversal of Roe v. Wade. "There are a lot of things at stake in this elec- tion," Ludecke said. The next president must be "a Democrat with a commitment to pro-choice con- sistently through the years." Both McCain and Bush have come out as pro- life supporters who have declared exceptions in cases of rape, incest and danger for life of the mother, but they have not discussed their inclina- tions to name pro-life judges to the Supreme Court. Although McCain has declared himself to be pro-life, Schwarz said McCain "would not propose or support to repeal Roe v. Wade." McCain "oppos- es abortion personally," Schwarz said. Bush was forced to come out on his anti-abor- tion stand by magazine editor Steve Forbes in last month's GOP Presidential Debate at Calvin Col- lege in Grand Rapids. Forbes, who dropped out of the race last week, challenged Bush to affirm that he would only appoint pro-life Supreme Court justices and choose a pro-life running mate. Bush announced that he is in fact pro-life but declined to commit himself to a pro-life running mate and anti-abortion justices. Tension among Democrats has heated up as well, with the two candidates sparring over their past abortion policies. Last month Bradley attacked Gore, claiming that the vice president's past stances have not always been pro-choice. Of Bradley, Ludecke said, "He is the only Democratic can- didate who has been pro-choice his entire candida- cy." But Hattaway said despite the attacks, there is no difference between the two Democrats on the abortion issue. Bradley is creat- ing distinctions that don't exist," Hattaway said, adding that the National Abortion Reproduction Rights Action League, a premier pro-choice organization, endorsed Gore on Tuesday. "Women are quite aware that this is the most pro-choice administration," Hattaway said, refer- ring to the Clinton White House. Vice President Democrat Abortion: Pro-choice in all cases. Alt ..l MM7+ 1. AI A.... to return the money to the taxpayers, Bush's Michigan campaign spokes- woman Geralyn Lasher said. By lowering income taxes, Al irmiveAction: Bush's proposed Firmly believes it cut would allow expands opportunities. taxpayers to put Higher ed: Supports aside more money and expands Clinton's for college tuition college opportunity and paying off stu- tax-cut program dent loans, Lasher said. Taxes: Targets tax relief In an effort to to lower classes and make higher educa- intends to spend budget tion more afford- surpluson debt and able, Bush has saving social security. proposed an increase the Educa- tion Savings Accounts from $500 to $5,000. This increase would allow families earning up to $150,000 to withdraw $5,000 tax-free for educa- tional purposes. Ian said. McClellan said1 mative action because he does not believe in quotas, saying they accentuate differences and cause hostilities among all races and ethnic back- grounds. But not all Republicans are opposed to affir- mative action. McCain would not repeal the use of affirma- tive action poli- cies at public universities, Schwarz said. "He looks at affirmative action Bush is opposed to affir- Bill Bradley Former N.J. senator Democrat Abortion: Pro-choice and claims to be the only can- didate to be consistently so. Affirmative action: Decries anti-affirmative action measures. Higher ed: Proposes to make participating colleges free from federal taxes. Taxes: Aims to lower taxes for the lower and middle classes. AP PHOTO as a good policy and fait 0 0 accompli in the fate of this country," Schwarz said. "This is the most diverse society in the world and its one of the things that makes Students critical to 0 0 winning race By Jeremy W. Peters Daily Staff Reporter Political leaders on campus will admit that motivating students is not always easy. Even at a school as politically active as the Uni- versity, students can be fairly apathetic to the electoral process. In an attempt to rally students for their cause, campus leaders for the presidential campaigns have made their presence visible through activities including a candidate fair and a debate among representatives from the candidates' student organizations. But do groups like these actually have an effect on student voter turnout? Traditionally, the number of students who "n actually vote is very low. Any cam Political science emeritus Prof. Samuel would be Eldersveld, a former Ann Arbor mayor, con- ducted research in the early 1980s that turn away revealed only about 6 percent of undergradu- ate students vote. af pnthusi enthusiasm a student can bring to a campaign," he said. "The per- son who mobilizes the student population will win because 90 percent of them don't vote." This is something of which campus political leaders are well aware. Students for Gore co-Chairman Michael Masters said it is dif- ficult to recruit students but maintains he is committed to the cause. "It is difficult in general to get people interested, but because of the caliber of the candidates people have been interested. I have run across actions ranging from 'how many hours a day can I work' to 'no thanks, I'm late for class,"' he didate foolish to K the kind Jasm a said. Masters said more than 150 people are on the Students for Gore e-mail list. Students for McCain co-Chairman Trent Thompson said he is pleased with the num- ber of students who have come to him asking to join the Arizona senator's campaign.