Thursday, April 13, 2000 Older Editions

Andover goes to Washington

By Rebecca Lipchitz

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As Andover voters prepare to scrutinize the budget, prioritize sidewalks, and vote on proposals for new schools and a public safety center, some decided to find out where Andover and Massachusetts fit into the national agenda.

U.S. Rep. Marty Meehan (D-Lowell) invited constituents to Washington, D.C. last Thursday to ask the experts what they plan to do about education, health care, and the national debt.

Joe McManus, CEO of Lawrence General Hospital and resident of North Andover, asked Donna Shalala what can be done about the "imbalance" of power given to HMOs.

Shalala, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, said the federal government has little authority to regulate HMOs and may not want it.

"I'm not sure that's what we need," she said, adding the government is encouraging alternative arrangements like PPOs (preferred provider organizations).

She cited the top issues in health care today as the need to pass the patients' bill of rights and the president's proposal to create a prescription-drug benefit for Medicaid patients.

When asked how the government could control the price of drugs, Shalala said the challenge is to pay less for drugs without quashing a "dynamic" research industry.

The U.S. government often overpays for the cost of drugs while other countries have negotiated discounts, she said.

While the audience of more than 200 enjoyed an intimate setting with some of the country's top policy makers, Shalala took a few extra steps to get familiar with the audience, by walking around the room as she spoke without a microphone. She addressed audience members directly in answering questions.

Andover residents, including Theresa Murphy, Meehan's mother-in-law and principal of the Shawsheen School, Hank and M.J. Powell, Charles and Elizabeth Daher, former Senator John O'Brien and his family, and Bob LaRochelle of Andover Strategies attended the conference in the Canon building near the country's capital.

Speakers featured at Meehan's 7th Annual Legislative Issues Seminar included Shalala, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Henry Shelton, House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.), U.S. senators John Kerry and Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), and Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.)

Speakers also included a host of media personalities, most of whom were asked if George Bush or Al Gore would be president after the next election.

Television journalists Sam Donaldson and Cokie Roberts each weighed in on the media and electoral politics.

Donaldson said television has changed the nature of politics so that people wonder less if they agree with a candidate on the issues, and more if they appreciate a personality.

"I'm afraid sizzle is what's so important," Donaldson confessed earnestly, firmly holding the podium. He told of meeting world leaders throughout his career, from the fascinating to the dull, from Yasser Arafat to King Abdullah, and the chance to discuss the most pressing affairs of the world.

But in America today, Donaldson said, "The question is, 'Do we like him?'"

Television journalist Cokie Roberts declared the Starr Report one of the "funniest documents ever written," including a quote from President Clinton responding to a complaint from Monica Lewinsky the he doesn't call her any more.

"'Every day can't be sunshine,'" the president reportedly said, according to Roberts, who repeated the line with a mocking grin.

Roberts agreed that the upcoming presidential election was a battle between personalities rather than ideologies. But such a campaign can change direction abruptly when candidates are forced to deal with sudden events, especially those effecting the economy.

When asked whether journalists should be privy to all aspects of a candidates personal life, Roberts said she felt personal issues, in almost all cases, should remain personal.

"We do a great disservice to democracy to portray politicians as only doing things for political gain," Roberts said.

But the race for president is in a different category, because voters choose their president on personality, not issues, she said.

"At the presidential level, everything is fair game," she said.

She added that things to watch for in the upcoming campaign include candidate appeals for the women's vote.

The term "compassionate conservatism" is designed to appeal to women, who are voting more and more, she said.

"Women elected Clinton. That's what that language is all about," she said.

Washington Post Columnist Mary McGrory praised Massachusetts for leading the way in legislation, and cited recent gun laws approved by the state.

Her understated speaking style combined with a dry sense of humor had the crowd chuckling throughout her speech.

She sarcastically defended NRA lobbyists who seem to believe "gun shows are the most wholesome form of family entertainment."

She decried the use of charter schools and said the idea of making public schools compete with charters is "grotesque."

"We don't have the right to give up on our public schools," she said.

Senator Richard Gephardt devoted his entire speaking time to education.

Gephardt said the government needs to recognize how family life has changed since the 1950s, and accept more responsibility for educating children.

"There was a price to pay when mothers went back to work, but we're not paying it," he said.

He called for expansion of before- and after-school programs, and praised a teacher who mandated parent involvement in her school activities, even knocking on parents' doors in some cases.

American businesses are lobbying the government to expand the visa program to allow more foreign-born laborers into the country, because high-tech jobs for highly trained people remain unfilled. This is a sign that America has fallen behind in education, Gephardt said.

He decried the lack of trained teachers, and called for better pay and more respect in response. He called on local communities to improve education from the ground up, criticized the school-voucher program, and promised to work for more money for public schools from the federal level.

"I have absolute faith in the community to meet a challenge of this kind," he said.

Conservative commentator Bob Novak of CNN's Crossfire, self-proclaimed "Prince of Darkness," praised Meehan for his work on campaign finance reform, but otherwise discussed the need for fiscal conservatism, the lack of Social Security, and other issues with a dry and self-effacing wit.

Senator Kerry also praised Meehan's work on campaign finance reform, and said it would have a profound effect on the national agenda.

"The reason we don't get more done around here is that each issue is directly tied to campaign finance reform," Kerry said.

Lobbyists spend $100 million a month on legislators, trying to encourage or discourage them from certain actions, he said.

"The agenda in this city is too much determined by the money," Kerry said.