December 14, 1999
Web posted at: 12:31 a.m. EST (0531 GMT)

DES MOINES, Iowa (CNN) -- Republican presidential candidates decried violence in America, problems with health care and campaign finance abuse Monday night at a debate here, but they largely rejected any notions of a major role for the federal government in solving any of those problems -- or a host of others discussed during the event's feisty, freewheeling 90 minutes.

"I think the best accountability for people who break the law is jail, certain jail," Texas Gov. George W. Bush said when asked about strict gun control laws. Bush and the other candidates took a tone of strict accountability for all -- including criminals, government officials and those who set U.S. international policy -- throughout a debate that featured more direct confrontation than past forums.

Bush, Arizona Sen. John McCain, magazine publisher Steve Forbes, Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch, former ambassador Alan Keyes and conservative activist Gary Bauer converged on the Civic Center of Greater Des Moines on Monday night for the last major Republican forum prior to the holidays. The night's debate followed lines similar to those seen in the CNN-sponsored Republican debate in Phoenix last week, but some careful staging and a little flexibility in rules and time limits led to a more candid, open exchange.

The result was more direct conversation and conflict between the candidates -- particularly between Bush and McCain, who had demonstrated restraint and solidarity in Phoenix and in Manchester, New Hampshire, earlier this month. Monday night, the two removed their gloves for a few brief moments, and sparred over tax relief.

"You've called my tax plan excessive," Bush said to McCain. McCain replied that an overhaul of any massive program run by the federal government would not be plausible until the current campaign finance system is turned on its head.

"The American people really need to get their money back," McCain said, adding that the way to do that would be "take government back from the special interests."

The two moderators -- John Bachman of Des Moines television station WHO and NBC's Tom Brokaw -- walked around the stage and approached the candidates directly. The candidates were rarely cut off by strict time limits, allowing them to strike a conversational tone.

McCain, for example, went after a sacrosanct Iowa topic -- federal subsidies for ethanol, a controversial gasoline substitute made from corn, the farm state's biggest crop.

"I'm here to tell you the things you don't want to hear as well as the things you want to hear," said McCain, who is not running actively in Iowa and trails Bush in most national polls. He said the subsidy should end, and other candidates would agree "if it weren't for the fact that Iowa is the first caucus state."

"I'd support ethanol whether I was here in Iowa or not," Bush responded to loud applause.

The Texas governor spent much of the night taking direct and difficult questions from the moderators and other candidates. For example, when Bauer asked Bush about the abortion stance of a potential running mate, Bush said the most important issue was whether that vice president would be adequately qualified for the job.

"I'm going to ask you a simple 'yes or no' question," Bauer said to Bush. "I'm going to ask you if you will commit tonight to naming a pro-life running mate."

Bush jumped at the chance to answer the question. "I'm not going to name a vice president," the Texas governor said. "I'm going to name a president," Bush continued, intimating that his choice for the nation's second highest post would be groomed to take over when the days of a Bush administration drew to a close.

Bauer, speaking to reporters just before he left the Civic Center for the night, said he had given Bush "36 hours notice" that the question was coming, and he wasn't at all satisfied with the tone of Bush's answer.

"The fundamental question for us is -- is my party serious when it talks about being pro-life?" Bauer said. "We're finally getting down to the central issues of this campaign."

Bush also targeted Steve Forbes on abortion, saying Forbes, a supporter of moderate New Jersey Republican Governor Christie Todd Whitman, was by association soft on the issue. Whitman has endured longstanding criticism for her vocal support of the constitutional right to obtain an abortion, and for her efforts to shoot down a New Jersey state law prohibiting a procedure opponents refer to as "partial birth abortion."

"I've raised money for pregnancy crisis centers, while my friend Steve Forbes was raising money for Christie Todd Whitman," Bauer said.

Forbes did not respond to Bauer during the debate, choosing instead to gear his response as a barb at Bush. Speaking to reporters after the debate, Forbes surprisingly slammed Bush for not committing to take "a firm stand on appointing conservative judges (to the Supreme Court)," and to naming a conservatively minded vice president.

"We learned tonight where Governor Bush stands," he said. Forbes was pushed by journalists to explain his connections to Whitman and her agenda, and replied that though he supported her in many respects, he was instrumental in the New Jersey legislature's overturning of the Whitman veto of the state's so-called partial birth abortion bill.

Coerced pledges seemed to be the order of the evening. When McCain tried to extract a pledge from Bush to reject so-called soft money -- the unlimited political-party-building funds that come from business and labor -- Bush refused, saying such an action would ensure Democratic control of the government. "I think that's unilateral disarmament," he said.

"It would hurt the Republican Party," Bush said emphatically.

Monday's lack of formality made it easier for the moderators to skip or ignore candidates, and Forbes appeared to suffer at times from the format. For example, the debate was nearly 15 minutes old before Forbes was given the opportunity to answer a question -- after Bush had twice answered queries.

Bush, on the other hand, appeared to receive more attention than past debates, and did not exhibit some of the rolling of eyes and apparent discomfort that had caused grumblings in past performances. He did have some awkward moments -- when asked about a philosopher-thinker who had influenced him the most, he said "Christ" and, when asked why, at first said the answer should be self-evident.

"...Because he changed my life," Bush said.

But for the most part, the format appeared to put Bush more at ease.

Concerns that a culture of violence is capturing the minds and hearts of America's youth were raised by several candidates, and were covered extensively at the beginning of the event. Many of the six hopefuls used this week's Time magazine article of the videotapes made by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold -- the perpetrators of the horrific Columbine High School massacre -- as a springboard for their calls to action.

"There is a pernicious influence grabbing hold of our children," McCain said. "These boys spoke of a particular video game, and a character in that video game. That should chill us all."

"There's an insensitivity to life in our society today," said Hatch, who said teen-agers "learn how to rape, they learn how to murder, they learn how to treat other human beings wrongfully" because of violent media influences, including films and video games.

Several candidates talked of problems with the federal Medicare system, particularly concerns about whether it would cover prescription drug costs in the future. "We're asking senior citizens to make a choice between their health and their income," said McCain. "Medicare is probably the most difficult challenge we face in the next century, because it has a lot to do with other things besides money."

International affairs also took up a substantial portion of the evening, particularly U.S. trade and defense policies toward China.

"I don't think the question is whether China should belong to the World Trade Organization. I believe the question is whether the United States should belong to an organization that violates every constitutional principle," said Keyes.

The very mention of China's entry into the WTO sparked a series of sharp exchanges, with Bauer saying the Chinese would not play the United States for "suckers" anymore under a Bauer Administration, and Bush arguing forcefully that the regulation and scrutiny of China's trade practices would result in a more even playing field for all.

Most agreed that the U.S. could not afford to deal with the Chinese as it has since the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. "We have to let China know what the rules of engagement are," Forbes said. "If you lay down firm rules, then I believe you can have a relationship."

The early skirmishes for the GOP nomination have been fought largely before party activists, with candidates trying to make bigger impressions in the relatively higher-profile campaign debates. This was the last debate involving all six contenders before the campaign year 2000 actually dawns.

The Iowa debate was sponsored by the state Republican Party, which distributed some 2,400 tickets to party faithful to view the event live.

Former Reagan Administration adviser Lyn Nofziger, a Forbes loyalist, said late Monday night that after the first of the year, the Republican slate would clear out quickly.

"We going to be looking at a three-man race," Nofziger told CNN. "And (the Forbes campaign) is going to have to make use of this opportunity, because during the holidays, nobody is going to be paying any attention to us. And when I say that, I mean us, collectively."

Monday, December 13, 1999

• At Iowa debate, GOP candidates agree on problems but disagree on solutions
• S.F. mayor's election a choice between two liberals
• Poll: McCain beats Gore in head-to-head match-up
• Des Moines Register: Challengers attack Bush on eve of debate
• Bauer blames Bush for lost opportunity in Louisiana
• Barbara Bush says son sometimes should just not answer questions
• Hearing could determine if Tripp case goes to trial
• McCain bucks chorus of criticism against Bush
• Customer satisfaction with federal agencies rated
• GOP rivals find lessons in early debates
• Strategist relishes role in Washington state tax revolt
• Clinton has flu, cancels Houston trip
• Bradley's tax proposal led to reform, and some pain

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