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 HelloReturn to index of stories... |
Hello. I'm Allison McNair. Welcome to NH Outlook. |
| Intro Budget Wrap Return to index of stories... |
Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. But first, a quick look at Thursday's big vote in the State house. After two months of hearings and debates, the House of Representatives has passed a budget. It contains no new taxes - as called for by Republican leadership and the governor. But opponents say the budget will cut services to the state's neediest people. Richard Ager has this report. |
| Intro Sen. John Sununu Return to index of stories... |
While the state budget moves on to the senate, questions about the national economy and how are we going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. But we began our conversation by asking the former congressman what it's been like to become part of the US Senate. |
| Sen. John Sununu Return to index of stories... |
Ally: While the state budget moves onto the senate, questions about the national economy and how we're going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with Republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. We began our conversation by asking the former Congressman what it's like to become part of the US Senate. Sen. Sununu: Well, that's a great question, I think it's in the eye of the beholder. It's a little bit different for everyone. One of the things we were told about during the orientations process is , well things move a little bit more slowly in the Senate. And there' s a lot of truth to that. The biggest single difference are the rules. In the house you have a pretty well-structured set of rules that are designed to give a lot of power to the majority and a lot of power to the speaker of the house. The senate rules are in some ways just the opposite. They're designed to give power to the minority. And in particular, to give a lot of power to individual senators. So as a result, things do move more slowly. There's more time allotted for debate. Ally: Is that a good thing as far as you're concerned? Sen Sununu: I think it is a good thing. It is a hot topic of debate and discussion though, especially when you have a senate that is so closely divided 51/49. And I'm sure it was a topic of discussion with the democrats when they were just barely in the majority as well. Because, it can be frustrating. A given piece of legislation gets a lot of time for debate. It makes the committee work more important. Because if you bring a bill to the floor, without working out a lot of the differences, you'll be stalled on the floor. You won't be able to complete work on it, and frankly, the leadership - democrat or republican - would be reluctant to let such a bill on the floor in the first place, if they don't have a clear path for getting differences resolved. So, the committee work becomes more important. A chairman wants to work out differences to the best of their ability while the bill is still in committee. That means the hearings are more substantive and the bill mark ups are more give and take on either side. Ally: Now you're a member of several committees, give us a run down if you would, and I know chair of one. Sen Sununu: Well, I'm on the banking committee, which has jurisdiction that you might expect - financial services, banks, capital markets, insurance to a certain extent as well. Commerce committee, which has a very broad jurisdiction. The chairman of that committee is John McCain, no stranger to people here in NH. The foreign relations committee which deals with all state department issues, diplomacy, approval of nominations for ambassadorships in key state department posts. And I'm also on the Government affairs committee, chaired by Susan Collins our neighbor from Maine. And finally, I'm on the joint economic committee. My subcommittee chairmanship is on part of foreign relations. It's called international operations of terrorism and we have jurisdiction over a lot of the US operations overseas, embassies, embassy security, counter-terrorist measures that are being undertaken overseas, protection and security of those embassies, and also our participation and involvement in the United Nations. Ally: And how do you see our embassies around the world? Are we in pretty good shape as far as security goes, in preventing any acts of terrorism doing any harm? Sen. Sununu: No, we're not in great shape. But it's a shortcoming that's been recognized, there's been a strong program put in place, even before September 11th. It was a construction program and security program led by a former general in the army whose done a good job of scooping the problem, number one, they rate every embassy on a set of criteria involving security and access, set back from the road, other things that you might, would be common sense when it comes to keeping people safe. They grade all these embassies, and then they've come up with a program for the short term security improvements, and also long term construction. This year we'll allocate I think close to a billion and a half dollars for new embassy construction and security renovations. And this will be a continuing process. They're about a quarter of the way through these embassies, but they are making good progress, and it's something that our committee has kept fairly close watch on. Ally: We're hearing now instead of War in Iraq or War with Iraq, post Iraq reconstruction. Who do you think should be responsible for that? Sen. Sununu: Well, the word reconstruction I think has been thrown about just a little too much, because it can mean different things to different people. There are a number of different efforts that have to be undertaken in parallel in order to ensure long term stability in Iraq. The first is a humanitarian effort, and that is ongoing, it really began as soon as parts of Iraq could be certified as just being secure. The port of Um Qasar being the first area where they could finally bring ships with humanitarian supplies into port, and then rely on the existing NGOs, Non Governmental Organizations to distribute that food, that medicine, that humanitarian relief. We've heard about and read about problems in the hospitals, in some cases that were looted, in other cases that didn't receive the funding and support that they needed under the previous regime. So, one of the first points of focus will be getting that humanitarian assistance into place. And here, the United Nations will play a very important role restarting the food for oil program, working with the world food problem, which is probably the premiere humanitarian food distribution network in the world, the high commission for refugees that will deal with displaced persons and the like. So that's the humanitarian side. Second, is true reconstruction, where it's required. We should emphasize the fact that the United States spent more money than any country in history trying to minimize the loss of civilian life and the destruction of purely civilian structures. So the rebuilding and reconstruction effort, we would hope, would be less than if we had just gone in in an indiscriminate way during the fighting. But we do have to get the power back on, we have to make sure the water stations and access to safe drinking water is as broad as it could possibly be. So there are engineering groups, military, you know army corp of engineering groups in place now getting those facilities restarted, and they're working very closely with existing civil experts, those that ran the utilities and the power infrastructure before to help get those pieces of infrastructure back on line. The third area of course is the government. That process began earlier this week with a conference in Nazaria, where all parties were invited. |
| Sununu Part 2 Return to index of stories... |
Ally: Not all came though, right? Sen. Sununu: Not all came, no, but that's a democracy. If someone wants to insist that they don't like the process, or they don't like others that are involved, they're free not to participate. But it was a very broad group, different religions and ethnic groups, different regions of the country were all represented, and they signed onto a broad accord of principles. A respect for the rights of minorities, respect for all religions, the role of women, prominent role for women in society, a rule of law a justice system that works. Those are basic principles that will be central to having a strong stable representative government in Iraq. That's the beginning of the process, not the end by any stretch. There will be a series of continued discussions and forums around the country leading to the Iraqi people choosing a representational government in the months ahead. Ally: President Bush would like to see sanctions lifted as soon as possible. Something crossed the wire today that said the UN is not in a hurry, that they want to make sure that there are no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq before they lift those sanctions. What's your reaction to that? Sen. Sununu: I think the decision point on whether or not to lift sanctions, should be made based on the regime itself and the kind of government that is in place. The regime, Saddam Hussein's regime, has been destroyed and eliminated. It certainly is no longer a threat, they are in the process of choosing a representational government and I think the president's point, and I agree with it, is that those successes and achievements in and of themselves should be enough to lift the sanctions to allow for the most rapid possible redevelopment and reconstruction of the infrastructure for the Iraqi people. Ally: What kind of role do you see for the UN. You mentioned humanitarian efforts, do you see it extending beyond that? Sen. Sununu: At this point, I don't think they've defined a role for themselves that would extend beyond the humanitarian effort. I think the coalition partners, including the United States and Great Britain have a responsibility to help ensure and establish stability. We have the responsibility, those coalition partners have the responsibility, to ensure that these key pieces of infrastructure are operational, are back on line, in order to prevent any further degradation of the humanitarian situation. And I think they have a responsibility to at least see that the process through which the Iraqi people choose their government, it is effectively protected, in other words that there is a secure environment in which these different ethnic groups and religious groups and societal leaders that aren't tainted by having been associated with the previous regime, can make that electoral process, democratic process work. Ally: Some people see that our action, our war in Iraq, really was a change in US foreign policy, we were seen as the aggressor, preemptive action. Now, we're hearing concerns over Syria. Do you see us doing the same there? Sen. Sununu: No, I don't. And I don't necessarily agree with the characterization that it was a purely preemptive action. This was an enforcement action, an enforcement of existing United Nations Security Council resolutions that had been passed and put in place over a 12 year period, 18 different resolutions. Resolutions that committed to very serious consequences if there weren't full compliance, unlimited cooperation with the inspectors to ensure that there weren't weapons of mass destruction in place in Baghdad, in place in Iraq that would threaten the stability of the region, and the security of the United States. Iraq refused to comply with those security council resolutions, and the coalition that was put together with the leadership of the United States, effectively enforced that commitment to disarm Saddam Hussein. So I look at it as a process of enforcement, and not just as sort of a preemptive effort by the definition that's often used. Ally: Well, if we don't find weapons of mass destruction, will that make a difference as to whether we should have gone in or not? Sen. Sununu: Well, I think we need to wait and see clearly what is and isn't discovered, the extent and scope to which these programs were undertaken. We do know that there were efforts and programs to develop these weapons in the past, not just chemical and biological but nuclear as well. These programs moved in fits and starts, there was action to curtail the nuclear program. The UN certified that there weren't any semblance of a nuclear program back in 1995, then it turned out in 98 that that wasn't the case. I think that it's the right thing to wait until we've had an opportunity to look at these different suspect sites, to interview scientists, and to really determine the level and scope of the programs. But there's no question in my mind, that the Iraqi people are far better served with the removal of Saddam Hussein and his regime, and that the stability in the region will be far better served if the new government there is representational, representative of the various peoples in Iraq, if it is committed to quality under the law and the rule of law, and if it no longer poses a threat to its neighbors as Saddam Hussein has in the past. Ally: And does it matter at this point if Saddam Hussein at this point, is dead or alive? Sen. Sununu: No, I don't think it matters. I would like to know. I think they'll be an effort through our intelligence organizations and those on the ground in Iraq to find out, to get the answer to that. Because getting the answer will probably help us to identify other people that might have important information regarding past abuses or the weapons programs of the Bathist regime. But I don't think it necessarily matters to the long-term success of the new government in Iraq, and I don't think it matters necessarily to ensuring greater stability in the region and greater security for the United States. Ally: This is costing us a lot of money, and will continue to be there for a while. Is this a time do you think for us to say we should implement tax cuts. That's something that was voted for in the budget blueprint by the senate? Sen. Sununu: Well, the argument and the rationale for a growth package, is to help encourage job creation in the United States, help encourage greater levels of economic growth. We could pretend that the economy is strong, that it's operating fine, that we don't need to take any further steps, but I think that would be a mistake. If you talk to people here in NH, you talk to people around the country about their concerns, the economy is very high on that list, arguably it's number one on the list, even above the concerns of… Ally: What do you hearing from people? Sen. Sununu: Just this, people are concerned about the economy. The economy is slow, we don't see things picking up, we feel like we're holding our own but we're nervous, we're worried. There's a lot of uncertainty overseas and we're worried that it will spill over into the economy and as a result, drag the economy down even further. So there's a constant concern about job creation and economic growth out there. It's the right thing to put together a legislative package that will do the most to encourage that economic growth and job creation. How do you do it? I think you've got to focus on giving businesses incentives to make new investments in technology and equipment and productivity and their businesses. That's what the president's package attempts to do. It triples the amount that small businesses in NH can expense for those purchases in new equipment and technology and expansion. It cuts the personal income tax rates which is important to small businesses in NH and across the country, because there are 120,000 entrepreneurs and small businesses that are taxed at the personal rate. So they're paying at a top rate of 40 percent, when IBM or some other large corporation is paying at a top corporate rate of 35 percent, where's the fairness in that? So, he attempts to level the playing field, give small businesses an incentive to invest, and get rid of the double tax on dividends, which isn't fair. You shouldn't tax dividend income twice, we shouldn't tax any income twice. And will make a difference in the economic growth. |
| Sununu Part 3 Return to index of stories... |
Ally: You will get the argument, don't you sometimes, that gee, it's the wealthy that pay the most in taxes, so they're going to be the ones that benefit most. As far as dividend income goes, who is it that's getting dividend incomes? Sen. Sununu: Well about half of the recipients of dividends are senior citizens, and in fact retirees receive about half of all dividends that are paid. So it's anyone with a retirement account, with an IRA, with a 401k, with a pension. They're receiving dividends, the value of their stocks or equities are dependent on the valuation in the markets, and we can all see where those have been recently. If you get rid of the tax on dividends, you will see stock market and equity valuations increase 8 percent, 15 percent, 20 percent, somewhere in that range. That's basic economics, that by getting rid of that extra layer of taxation, you increase the value of those investments. I think again, that's good for our economy, that's good for anyone with an IRA or 401k, but we get back to the issue of economic growth. The reason to do this is because we're concerned about the economy and we want to encourage a greater level of economic growth. And if you want to do something about the deficit, there are two factors here. One is revenue collection, which is driven by that growth level. And the other is controlling the growth in government spending. And I think the president's budget has been very responsible in addressing both concerns. Ally: And what about the Concord Coalition, and I'm sure you saw that in the New York Times, of which Senator Rudman, Republican is a member of. In the letter that they wrote it says, "It is neither fiscally nor morally responsible to give ourselves tax cuts and leave future generations with an even higher tax burden." Sen. Sununu: This is obviously something on which I and the coalition members and former Senator Rudman respectfully disagree. I don't view it as giving ourselves tax cuts. First of all, we've got to remember this is money that individuals or business or workers, earn. They create this wealth, they create this money, they earn the paycheck and then we take from that paycheck in taxes. So we're really deciding how much we're going to take from them in taxes. We're not necessarily giving them something that we, the government owns in the first place, it is their money. And we have to decide about policies that may or may not encourage economic growth, and I think a growth package is important. Ally: But if the tax cuts are spread out over 10 years, are we really going to see any quick fix? Sen. Sununu: Well, the president has proposed to actually accelerate some of the rate reductions that I mentioned, that's really an acceleration of tax relief that's already signed into law. I don't like this idea of tax relief disappearing after 10 years, that's like telling someone we're going to give you lower taxes today but we're going to raise them on you in 10 years. So if we make a decision about lowering the taxes, or changing the tax code, ti should be a permanent change so that people can plan for the future and make good investment decisions, make good business decisions, and good savings decisions. Ally: So where do we get the money then to take care of this growing deficit and to pay for reconstruction of Iraq? Sen. Sununu: Well, we put forward a war supplemental as you know that was signed into law by the president last week. If you want to deal with the deficit, I come back to the issue, the two most important factors are economic growth, because that will affect more than anything else how much you collect in revenues. And the short falls we're seeing today aren't the result of the 2001 tax cut, the 2001 tax cut has resulted in the reduction of about 40 billion dollars in revenue collections over what was originally projected. The economic slow down has resulted in a short fall of 150 billion dollars, so we've got to focus on encouraging economic growth and control the growth in government spending. Those two factors more than anything else are what affect our deficits. Ally: We had votes in various community school districts regarding actually, saying that we are not going to participate in any unfunded federal mandate relating to No Child Left Behind, the House also voted overwhelmingly to say the same. Are we going to end up here in NH paying to implement No Child Left Behind? Sen. Sununu: Well, one response to that is, to be very direct and say what unfunded mandate are you talking about? Ally: Well I'm speaking specifically, I'm asking you with No Child Left Behind, are we going to be… Sen. Sununu: Well my question to those that decry this as a huge unfunded mandate is to say, what unfunded mandate are you talking about? Now, they'll talk about the testing requirement, now that's certainly a requirement that we set high standards for our schools. And there is funding, I think between 3 and 400 million dollars nationwide that has been provided for testing, improvement in testing and standards where the standards aren't good enough. Now, I think the impact on a state like NH, where we have some pretty good tests that are in place, pretty good standards, should be minimal. I don't know of any other broad unfunded mandates that are associated with No Child Left Behind, and I think that this concern to the extent that it's out there has really been driven by lobbying groups inside the beltway, inside Washington… Ally: What lobbying groups though? Sen. Sununu: National Association of School Administrators in particular, they work through their network all around the country to get a letter writing campaign… Ally: And why wouldn't they want this? Sen. Sununu: What they're focused on is the old liberal formula of get more money, more money, more money - that that's the answer to all these problems. And of course if money alone solved our education concerns and problems in America, then the best schools in the country, best public schools in the country would be in Detroit, in Washington DC, in New York City, but we all know that they're not, because money isn't the answer. Accountability, and quality teachers and parental involvement, those are the key ingredients in having strong and successful public schools. So there's always going to be a lobby inside the beltway in Washington, that says no no, the answer is just more money, the answer is more money. And the president put out a budget that increased education funding 5 percent this year, and of course liberals said, no, that's not enough, we want 8 percent or 10 percent. And if he had put out a budget that increased education funding 8 percent, they would have said no, we want 12 percent or 15 percent. WE've increased education funding to historic levels over the last 6 years. We've increased special education funding to its highest level ever, it had another billion dollar increase this year. And if we want to talk about unfunded mandates, that's where we should focus our time and attention. Special education is the largest unfunded federal mandate on the books right now. I recognized that coming to the budget committee six years ago working with Charlie Bass, who had been focused on the issue before I was focused on the issue. Senator Gregg, even before that, and working together as a delegation with a lot of other members of congress, we've increase that funding for special education. And it will continue to be my top priority for education, moreso than just trying to create new federal programs, let's try and take care of the ones that are already on the books. Ally: Well, Senator John Sununu, I want to thank you have much for joining us on Outlook. Sen. Sununu: Thank you very much, I enjoyed it. |
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That's it for this edition of our program. For all of us here at New Hampshire Public Television, I'm Ally McNair. Thanks for joining us. We'll see you next time on New Hampshire Outlook. |
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Tonight on New Hampshire Outlook. It's our Friday Edition as journalists from around the Granite State discuss the week's top stories. Tonight at 10pm on New Hampshire Public Television. |
| key: State Politics / Government Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 4/17/03 22:00 HOST: Allison McNair Length: 2:00 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. But first, a quick look at Thursday's big vote in the State house. After two months of hearings and debates, the House of Representatives has passed a budget. It contains no new taxes - as called for by Republican leadership and the governor. But opponents say the budget will cut services to the state's neediest people. Richard Ager has this report. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Richard Ager NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Rep. Neal Kurk\Chair, House Finance Cmte, Rep. Larry Emerton\R - Goffstown, Rep. Rogers Johnson\Majority Whip, Rep. Mary Jane Wallner\D - Concord |
| key: National Politics / Government Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 4/17/03 22:00 HOST: Allison McNair Length: 22:30 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. While the state budget moves on to the senate, questions about the national economy and how are we going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. But we began our conversation by asking the former congressman what it's been like to become part of the US Senate. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Allison McNair NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Sen. John Sununu\R - New Hampshire |
| key: State Politics / Government Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 4/17/03 22:00 HOST: Allison McNair Length: 22:30 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. While the state budget moves on to the senate, questions about the national economy and how are we going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. But we began our conversation by asking the former congressman what it's been like to become part of the US Senate. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Allison McNair NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Sen. John Sununu\R - New Hampshire |
| key: War / Veterans Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 4/17/03 22:00 HOST: Allison McNair Length: 22:30 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. While the state budget moves on to the senate, questions about the national economy and how are we going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. But we began our conversation by asking the former congressman what it's been like to become part of the US Senate. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Allison McNair NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Sen. John Sununu\R - New Hampshire |
| key: Education Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 4/17/03 22:00 HOST: Allison McNair Length: 22:30 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. While the state budget moves on to the senate, questions about the national economy and how are we going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. But we began our conversation by asking the former congressman what it's been like to become part of the US Senate. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Allison McNair NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Sen. John Sununu\R - New Hampshire |
| key: Economy / Business Return to index of stories... |
NEW HAMPSHIRE OUTLOOK Air Date/Time: 4/17/03 22:00 HOST: Allison McNair Length: 22:30 minutes In this edition of New Hampshire Outlook, NHPTV's nightly news magazine, Why doesn't the Federal budget have a line item for the war on Iraq? How will the US pay for it? What other incentives are in the federal spending plan? We'll have answers to those questions and more in a moment, when we bring you a conversation with US Senator John E. Sununu. While the state budget moves on to the senate, questions about the national economy and how are we going to fund the war in Iraq are on the minds of many. We had a chance to sit down with republican Senator John Sununu to talk about some of the challenges our country is facing. But we began our conversation by asking the former congressman what it's been like to become part of the US Senate. PRODUCER/REPORTER: Allison McNair NAME OF PARTICIPANTS: Sen. John Sununu\R - New Hampshire |
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