The following are President George W. Bush's and Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry's responses to issue questions posed by The Associated Press.
Budget\nQ: Can the U.S. government achieve a balanced budget this decade?
Bush: "My administration inherited a recession and that was followed by the shock of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which produced budget deficits. My highest priorities are to protect America from future attacks and to restore economic growth. While we have increased defense and homeland security funding, my administration has a record of spending restraint. During my administration, we have reduced the rate of growth for non-security discretionary spending from the 15 percent growth rate in the last budget year of the previous administration to less than 1 percent in my 2005 budget. My 2005 budget contains detailed plans for pro-growth economic policies and spending restraint that will cut the deficit in half in five years."
Kerry: "We've suffered record deficits under George Bush as the size of government has exploded, and that's why I stand by a sensible plan that will cut the deficit in half in my first term, while investing in economic growth and investing in workers. To restore fiscal discipline I will repeal Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy, cut excesses in government and implement the McCain-Kerry Commission on corporate welfare to cut special tax loopholes and pork barrel spending projects."
Military Draft
Q: Do you rule out a draft over the next four years?
Bush: "Yes. I am committed to keeping participation in the United States Armed Services voluntary. Recruitment and retention rates remain strong, and the military has not had any problem maintaining a capable force. We will not have a draft so long as I'm the president of the United States. In order to win the war on terror, we must ensure that our troops are highly skilled and specialized, and that they are trained and equipped to successfully complete their missions. The all-voluntary army allows us to create the strong, capable and skilled force that we need, which is why the all-voluntary army is working superbly. My pledge to our military is that they will have what they need to fight and get the job done. Our enemies need to know that we are determined, and any effort to test us will draw a strong response. We are transforming our military so that we can meet any test with all the might of this great country."
Kerry: "I oppose reinstating the draft, and I am committed to an all-volunteer military, and I'll have a foreign policy that brings allies to our side to share the burden around the world. George Bush has effectively used a back-door draft of our National Guard and reserves, and used a 'stop-loss' policy to extend tours of duty, delayed retirements and prevented enlisted personnel from leaving the service. I will fight to relieve the burden on our troops, while modernizing our military to meet new threats. I have a plan to expand the all-volunteer active duty Army by 40,000 soldiers. Not by draft, and not to increase the number of soldiers in Iraq, but to add new volunteer soldiers trained and ready to meet new threats and relieve the strain on our troops. My plan will bring more of our soldiers, guardsmen and reservists back home to their families and get them time for the new training they need"
