A clear, nonpartisan statement of the problems America faces on the
eve of a new century, and practicable proposals for restoring the
nation's fiscal and moral health. Former assistant secretary of
state Abshire (Preventing World War III, 1988) and his journalist
collaborator set the stage with the ramshackle state of the union -
pandemic drug abuse, seemingly intractable federal deficits,
homelessness, and violent crime, among others. They then take a far
longer look at what could and should be done to retrieve the
situation. Focusing first on Washington's inability or reluctance
to balance its budgets, the authors urge replacing the current
12-month spans with two-year fiscal cycles, cautioning, however,
that it will take time to make judicious cuts and gain control of
entitlement programs. Moving on to Capitol Hill, they recommend
ruthless restructuring of the committee system, an outcome that
could curb the claims of importunate constituencies upon the public
purse. Abshire and Brower also seek fundamental reform of the
regulatory process, tort law, and the Internal Revenue Code,
stumping, inter alia, for the so-called USA (Unlimited Savings
Allowance) Tax to encourage investment as well as thrift, eliminate
inequities, and impose levies solely on consumption. With
government thus reinvented, the authors offer a thoroughgoing
social agenda; its key features include school choice, an end to
value-free curricula, incentives for the states to develop
innovative health-care/welfare programs, and pointed reminders to
the black middle class that it can't afford to let demagogues speak
for inner-city residents. Abshire and Brower close with a
we-are-family plea for community and a paean to accountable
leadership, from grassroots meeting halls to the Oval Office. A
tough-minded platform for renewal of a superpower that has not in
recent years been living up to its still considerable potential.
(Kirkus Reviews)
Putting America's House In Order: The Nation as a Family is a call
to action for the leaders of this generation to endow their heirs
with the kinds of values, prospects, and prosperity that has
sustained the American family, personally and nationally, for two
hundred years. The authors' proposals are specific. They range from
ways to reach a zero deficit budget to substituting a tax code that
favors savings, investment, and growth. They also delineate the
elements of leadership-local, state, and national-that are
necessary to meet America's greatest challenge since the winning of
the Cold War. There is a feeling among the electorate that
something is terribly wrong with America and its leadership. This
perception defines one of those rare moments when sustained change
is possible at the local, state, and national levels. But change
demands bold action. Taking their cue from the courageous
Strengthening of America Commission, chaired by Senators Sam Nunn
and Pete Domenici, the authors lay down a comprehensive blueprint
including: a 7-year write-down to a zero deficit budget; strict
caps on the growth of non-Social Security entitlements; and the
substitution of a tax code that favors savings, investment, and
growth. The authors also call for a process of deregulation that
develops innovative market approaches through careful and inclusive
dialogue. Abshire and Brower call for the experiments underway in
our states and localities, to summon the creativity of the American
business revolution. They put forth a cogent analysis of the
leadership problem in our public life and the need for character,
strategic direction, and vision. And ultimately, it is the idea of
the American family, personally and nationally, to which the
authors turn for the ideas that animate these changes and to define
those who will be the enduring beneficiaries. In short, they urge a
reemphasis on the ^Iunum^R in our national motto, ^Ie pluribus
unum.^R
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