1992 Democratic Presidential Primary

How to fight for America's economic future and win.


A call to economic arms.

Paul Tsongas' plan to restore America's economic greatness includes the following:

• Target capital gains reductions to encourage long term investment.

• Longer corporate horizons (semi-annual earnings reports, director liability limits) to promote invest­ment and growth.

• Invest in education of our children and training of America's work force.

• Build Labor-Management cooperation to improve productivity and quality.

• Fight unfair trade prac­tices including dumping of products and limitations on American product sales.

• Increase funding for the National Science Foundation and for applied research.

• Start thinking and buying like economic patriots.

When it comes to vision, leadership and taking a stand - Paul Tsongas wrote the book. lt's an 85-page road map for America's future.

"You remember when America was the envy of the world. Our industrial might and standard of living were admired and copied around the globe. And you know how times have changed.

"Now, after 11 years of Ronald Reagan and George Bush, the record speaks for itself:

• Falling wages. In 1980, our workers earned the highest wages in the world. Now
America ranks 10th.

• Foreign ownership of industry. Nearly 20% of American manu­facturing is now owned by foreign interests. In Japan and Germany, less than 3% of manu­facturing is foreign owned.

• Foreign owned commercial real estate includes not just Rockefeller Center, but nearly 50% of dowtown Los Angeles, and 40% of downtown Houston.

• Declining financial strength. In 1980, 2 of the 3 largest banks were American. Now, the largest American bank is ranked 21st.

• Tripling the national debt. U.S. debt has tripled since 1980, to $3.2 trillion, making us the largest debtor nation in history.

"Today, America's greatness is under attack. We need a battle plan to strengthen our economic base, better educate our children and preserve our social fabric.

"There is no reason why the United States should not be the pre-eminent economic power on earth. What we lack is the leadership. The response from Washington has been to ignore difficult economic realities. The result has been crushing debt
and the inability to compete in the global marketplace. That means an erosion of our standard of living, fewer jobs and lower pay. It is a concession of defeat.

"It's time to fight back. I want to be the economic Paul Revere. I intend to sound the alarm that America must change its national policies to compete. As a recent report concluded, 'in order to live well, a country must produce well.'

"As I learned first hand, adversity tests character. Facing the chal­lenge is the tradition of America. It can also be the source of our hope.
 
"I offer a challenge to our nation. We can loosen the stranglehold of special interests that has paralyzed Washington. We can unleash the spirit of America. We can leave a legacy of hope for our children.
 
''We can secure our future. America can once again be the world's number one economic power."

"We need leadership that embraces a higher vision. That leadership is not in Washington. It is in the hearts and soul of our people. I want to deploy that leadership to meet the challenges that face us."

Paul Tsongas Announcing
for President, April 30, 1991

"Eminently and unusually sensible."
— William Raspberry
Washington Post

"...a compassionate, thoughtful, pragmatic man of low-key intensity, integrity and intelligence."
— Boston Globe Editorial

"He's doing something few other candidates have been willing to do... he's out there with a coherent set of ideas."
— Ray Locke
Tampa Tribune

"The only Democrat unafraid of President Bush's poll ratings ..."
— Albuquerque (NM) Journal Editorial

"...his message could ignite the 1992 presidential campaign into a powerful debate on the country's future."
— Christopher Matthews
San Francisco Examiner

"The only candidate in a number of years to have a sane, reasoned blueprint to rebuild a national economy ravaged by foreign competition..."
—  Eric Woolson
Waterloo (Iowa) Courier
 

Education
 
"America in the '90s will rise or fall on the quality of our schools. The entire community must become involved in the schools. Everyone should know what the inside of today's classroom looks like.

'We have terrific role models. John Akers of IBM has become a national spokesman for education. IBM employees contribute time to run innovative programs.

"And what better model than Bill Cosby? He stresses education on his television program and he has donated $20 million to Spelman College.

"In the Senate I wrote the law which provided matching grants for business/ education partnerships. This has meant improved science and engineering education – a key to economic competitiveness.

"Our President should be the Principal-in-Chief. Education must be an overriding priority."

Energy
 
"The best way to honor our troops who served in the Persian Gulf is to make sure that they, and their children, will never have to fight there again. Yet the energy policy recently proposed by the president would increase our consumption of Gulf oil in the coming years, inevitably drawing us into danger once again.

"With the right incentives, we've proven we can conserve oil. In the Senate I wrote and passed legis­lation that spurred the development of solar energy. Republican admin­istrations, though, have turned their backs on promising energy alternatives. They are making us more dependent on foreign oil at a time when our well-being, and the well-being of our children, depends on achieving energy independence."

Environment
 
"As co-author of the Alaska Lands Act, which protected millions of acres of pristine wilderness, I am proud of my environmental record – and dismayed by our present lack of leadership. Two Republican administrations have retreated from environmental leadership, ignoring global warming and promoting offshore drilling in critical fishing waters. Economic growth built on depletion of our environment is tragically short­sighted. An aggressive plan of environmental protection is the soundest investment we can make in our future.

"America should lead the world by example, on global warming, conservation of forests, clean air, clean water and clean industry."
 
Paul Tsongas.
New ideas to meet the toughest challenges.

As a Peace Corps volunteer in Ethiopia, Paul Tsongas raised funds and built a dormitory so students from distant towns could attend high school.

Elected on a reform slate, he cleaned up corruption in county government.

He was the first Democrat in this century to win his district's seat in Congress.

In Congress, Paul was one of the first to champion solar energy and other alter­native energy sources.

He wrote and negotiated legislative pro­visions which guaranteed the loans that saved Chrysler Corporation and hundreds of thousands of jobs.

Paul authored and led the fight for the Alaska Lands Act – "the conservation bill of the century" – setting aside more than 100 million acres in parks and other preserves for future generations.

Paul Tsongas chaired the first Congres­sional hearings on global warming.

He wrote the Homeless Relief Bill and added funds for the homeless to the Jobs Bill. 

Paul Tsongas coauthored the Export Trading Companies Law, which helps U.S. companies sell more abroad.

In Lowell, he pulled together the private-public partnership that revitalized the city. It became a national model for urban rebirth.

He authored the High Technology Morrill Act, providing federal grants to business/ education partnerships to promote science and engineering.
 
In an oft-quoted speech in 1980, he challenged Democrats and liberals to find new solutions to economic problems.

Paul was an original cosponsor of the Small Business Innovation Research Act which provides research grants to small business.

In 1989 he initiated the Cape Cod Commission to control growth and protect the environment of one of America's most cherished landscapes.

"Anwar Sadat and Menachem Begin had the courage to break with the past and look for new solutions."
—Sen Paul Tsongas, Foreign Relations Committee, 1983.

 
Education/Career
 
Foley, Hoag & Eliot, 1985 -

U.S. Senator, 1979-1985

U.S. Representative, 1975-79

Dartmouth College, B.A. 1962

Peace Corps, 1962-64

Yale Law School, L.L.B., 1967

Deputy Asst. Atty. General, 1969-70

Lowell City Council, 1969-72

County Commissioner, 1972-74

Boards of Directors:
(Partial Listing)

Yale University, Boston Edison, MIA Com, Wang Labs, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, and the Recycling Advisory Council

Chmn., Massachusetts Board of Regents of Higher Education, 1989-91
 
Yes, I want to help Paul Tsongas spread his Call to Economic Arms.

By volunteering in my state.

By contributing $250   $150   $100   $50    $__other

This is not a tax deductible contribution.

Please make checks payable to the Tsongas Committee, P.O. Box 4504, Boston, MA 02101

Authorized by the Tsongas Committee.

Tel. (617) 422-0100

Photo contributors: James Higgins, Lowell Sun

Printed on recycled paper.

[union bug]


Coming home to the family.
Back in the swim.

Paul and Niki, with Ashley, Molly and Katina at home in Lowell.

Niki: "In every campaign, there was a clear sense of purpose. There was determination and faith. Paul never lost a race.

''We were always aware of the pressures of public life on the family. A normal family life was important. Leaving the Senate — coming home — was really recognition that more time with the family was needed. Paul's health made it more urgent. Running for President was a family decision. A unanimous one. We have faith that Paul can make a great contribution. With our help, of course."

Paul: "At first I tried to avoid dealing with cancer. I resented my doctors' tough attitude. But their hard nosed, no-margin-for-error approach saved my life. Avoidance makes dealing with problems more difficult. It's true for problems we face individually. And also true for problems we face as a country.

''Today, I have no sign of cancer. My doctors say I'm in better shape than most people my age.

"If you think it's tough to take on a President with a 90% rating, try being 50 years old and having your picture taken in a Speedo bathing suit. Now, that's courage."

Paul resumed competitive swimming last year. This spring he competed in the YMCA National Masters' Tournament in Indianapolis.

"When I was growing up we all worked in the fam­ily business, a dry cleaners in Lowell, Massachusetts. My father worked twelve hours a day, six days a week, 51 weeks a year. By any fair standard this workload should have brought him a fair reward. It didn't. Industry was leaving the city and no matter how hard he worked, the forces of Lowell's eco­nomic decline were too much to overcome.

"I will never forget that lesson. Today, I see similar signs across America. I cannot sit back and watch our economic position decline, while our politi­cal leadership acts as if nothing is wrong. The American people are ready for an honest and forceful response to our problems. "

— Paul Tsongas on growing up in Lowell