Free Republic

Sunday Oct. 6, 2002; 2:09 p.m. EDTLautenberg Retracts Promise for 21 Debates A spokesman for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Frank Lautenberg has retracted Lautenberg's promise, offered just yesterday, that he would meet his Republican opponent Doug Forrester for 21 debates in different New Jersey counties before Election Day. Asked whether his boss intended to honor the 21-debate pledge, Lautenberg spokesman Tom Shea told WABC Radio's Steve Malzberg, "Absolutely not." "We'll do debates," Shea explained. "The voters of the state will have plenty of opportunities to hear the two candidates. Twenty-one debates in 21 counties with only 30 days left...

President Bush endorsed tax changes intended to help small investors recover from recent losses and feel better about the stock market. At his Waco, Texas, economic forum, Mr. Bush seized on two ideas floated by Charles Schwab, chairman of San Francisco investment-services firm Charles Schwab Corp.One idea would increase the amount of losses individual investors can take as tax deductions to $20,000 from $3,000. The other would reduce the so-called double taxation of stock dividends, to encourage chief executives to pay more in dividends and worry less about their companies' share prices and quarterly earnings.Although Mr. Schwab wasn't specific, the...

Senator Criticizes Bush Administration for Lack of Answers on AmtrakBy Laurence Arnold Associated Press WriterPublished: Mar 14, 2002 WASHINGTON (AP) - Sen. Ernest Hollings, pushing a plan to dramatically increase federal funding of Amtrak, criticized the Bush administration Thursday for offering no concrete opinions about the future of the passenger railroad. "What do you all want to do?" Hollings, D-S.C., asked Deputy Transportation Secretary Michael Jackson, after Jackson presented the Senate Commerce Committee with 10 questions on the future of passenger rail. When Jackson said the administration looks forward to a dialogue with Congress, Hollings - the committee's chairman -...