Spring Break
Chafee speaks with students about election
Stephen Greenwell
Issue date: 10/5/04 Section: News
- < prev Page 2 of 2
Chafee added that Congress should be pushing automakers toward producing more fuel- efficient cars.
"I drove my Toyota hybrid here this morning and I love it," he said.
Chafee said he felt President Bush has let the budget deficit grow too large. "I don't know what the conservatives are thinking," he said. "They haven't cut government spending at all."
According to Chafee, the proposed cuts by President Bush were repealed because they concern issues in states favorable toward him, such as farm subsidies and defense contracts.
"They all came back because they're Bush states," he said.
On the subject of gay marriage, Chafee was willing to let the courts decide the issue, but stated that he personally accepted it.
"If they want to have a union and call it marriage, I think that's okay," he said. "They're in love."
The stability of the Supreme Court after new appointments by the next president worried Chafee. "Even if you're republican, you have to be concerned about the upheaval that will occur," he said.
The "dwindling moderate voice" in the Senate was also a concern of the senator. "Gravity is pulling power toward the conservative south," he said. "There's a balance between being a team player and doing what's right."
Chafee viewed the moderate Republican governors in six of eight northeast states as a positive sign. "There's hope in the party. Everything is not going to right wingers," he said.
Despite being liberal on many issues, Chafee said that he did not plan on changing his party affiliation even if the Republican Party continued to drift to the right. "I enjoy being a Rhode Island republican. We're reformers," he said.
When asked about health care problems, Chafee said he didn't have any easy answers. "80 percent of health care costs are devoted to the last three months of a person's life," he said. "People are living longer and longer, which is good, but it's very expensive."
Commenting on last Thursday's presidential debate, Chafee said that President Bush appealed to his political base.
"The president has got the swagger," he said, adding that he was also impressed by how Senator John Kerry handled questions on world leaders.
Chafee graduated from Brown in 1975 and worked for seven years horseshoeing in Canada before starting his political career running as a delegate. Originally, he went from door-to-door in his district for support.
"I think they were just happy I wasn't trying to sell them vacuum cleaners or change their religion," he joked.
Chafee was elected mayor of Warwick in 1990, becoming their first republican mayor in 32 years. He served four consecutive terms.
When Chafee's father John passed away in 1999, Governor Lincoln Almond appointed him Chafee interim senator. He defeated current URI Vice President of Administration Robert Weygand in the 2000 election.
"I drove my Toyota hybrid here this morning and I love it," he said.
Chafee said he felt President Bush has let the budget deficit grow too large. "I don't know what the conservatives are thinking," he said. "They haven't cut government spending at all."
According to Chafee, the proposed cuts by President Bush were repealed because they concern issues in states favorable toward him, such as farm subsidies and defense contracts.
"They all came back because they're Bush states," he said.
On the subject of gay marriage, Chafee was willing to let the courts decide the issue, but stated that he personally accepted it.
"If they want to have a union and call it marriage, I think that's okay," he said. "They're in love."
The stability of the Supreme Court after new appointments by the next president worried Chafee. "Even if you're republican, you have to be concerned about the upheaval that will occur," he said.
The "dwindling moderate voice" in the Senate was also a concern of the senator. "Gravity is pulling power toward the conservative south," he said. "There's a balance between being a team player and doing what's right."
Chafee viewed the moderate Republican governors in six of eight northeast states as a positive sign. "There's hope in the party. Everything is not going to right wingers," he said.
Despite being liberal on many issues, Chafee said that he did not plan on changing his party affiliation even if the Republican Party continued to drift to the right. "I enjoy being a Rhode Island republican. We're reformers," he said.
When asked about health care problems, Chafee said he didn't have any easy answers. "80 percent of health care costs are devoted to the last three months of a person's life," he said. "People are living longer and longer, which is good, but it's very expensive."
Commenting on last Thursday's presidential debate, Chafee said that President Bush appealed to his political base.
"The president has got the swagger," he said, adding that he was also impressed by how Senator John Kerry handled questions on world leaders.
Chafee graduated from Brown in 1975 and worked for seven years horseshoeing in Canada before starting his political career running as a delegate. Originally, he went from door-to-door in his district for support.
"I think they were just happy I wasn't trying to sell them vacuum cleaners or change their religion," he joked.
Chafee was elected mayor of Warwick in 1990, becoming their first republican mayor in 32 years. He served four consecutive terms.
When Chafee's father John passed away in 1999, Governor Lincoln Almond appointed him Chafee interim senator. He defeated current URI Vice President of Administration Robert Weygand in the 2000 election.
