A Flurry Of Activity: Clinton's Second-Term Agenda

By James Carney

WASHINGTON (TIME, Jan. 26) -- The White House has spent the past few weeks rolling out proposals that the President will feature in his State of the Union address next week. The highlights:

Balance In 1999

With the deficit shrinking faster than predicted, Clinton promises to submit a balanced budget for 1999, three years ahead of schedule

COST: Free, thanks to the economy

PRO: Allows Clinton to look like a fiscal conservative even as he calls for new spending

CON: Adds to the let's-spend-the-surplus fever already spreading through Washington

PROSPECTS: A sure bet; House Speaker Gingrich had the idea before Clinton

Expand Medicare

Clinton would allow anyone between the ages of 62 and 64 to buy into the program early and give those from 55 to 62 without jobs or insurance the same option

COST: $2 billion to $3 billion in temporary "loans" over five years if, as the Administration promises, the plan is "self-financed" by premiums

PRO: Helps ease baby boomers' preretirement anxiety

CON: Could become another budget-busting entitlement

PROSPECTS: Republicans may grumble, but this will pass unless they can convince the public that it's Big Government again

Improve Education

Clinton will call for more money to hire thousands of new teachers, build new schools and repair old ones

COST: A total of $15 billion over five years

PRO: Overcrowded classrooms and dilapidated school buildings have become national issues

CON: An expensive Washington remedy for a problem many Americans consider to be local

PROSPECTS: With Republicans trying to get right on education, a compromise is likely

Provide More Child Care

The plan doubles the number of children receiving child-care subsidies to 2 million and increases child-care tax credits for lower-income families

COST: $21.7 billion over five years

PRO: It speaks to soccer moms everywhere

CON: Should the feds really be messing with child care?

PROSPECTS: Can you say gender gap? Republicans can't wait to jump on this bandwagon

Develop the Peace Corps

Clinton, in nod to J.F.K., wants to nearly double the Peace Corps to 10,000 volunteers

COST: $48 million a year

PRO: Expands a practical program that no longer suffers from the naive idealism of its early years

CON: Nonessential, so why now?

PROSPECTS: With some prominent corps veterans in Congress, this should sail smoothly

Cover Date: January 26, 1998

• "You Should Not Expect A Miracle"
• A Flurry Of Activity: Clinton's Second-Term Agenda
• No Habla Espanol: Bilingual Education
• The Big Face-Off: Jones v. Clinton
• Smoke Gets in Your Aye: The Tobacco Settlement
• Clash Of Faiths
• Clinton's Last Campaign