John F. Kennedy School of Government

& EXCERPTS FROM REMARKS MADE TO THE JOHN F. KENNEDY SCHOOL OF GOVERNMENT "WINNING THE WHITE HOUSE: A FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE 'NEW MAINSTREAM' FOR A DEMOCRATIC VICTORY IN 1992" 3:00 P.M. OCTOBER 19, 1990 CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS BY GOVERNOR L. DOUGLAS WILDER Thank you. I think it fitting that we have gathered here today on this - the anniversary of the stock market crash of 1987 - to discuss how the right Democratic candidate. .. .running on a "New Mainstream" agenda... and on a proven record. ... can win the White House in 1992. The 1980 's was the worst presidential decade for the Democratic party since the 1920 's. Yes, the Twenties roared. But what began as a return to "normalcy" under the ticket of Harding and Coolidge. .. .ended without a chicken in every pot (let alone two) - and with the most famous market crash in modern history. In 1990, we look back and realize that it has been nearly a generation since Americans have seen a real increase in their standard of living and the value of their paycheck. . . .despite the fact that more families have two incomes than ever before. Real wages ^re down; regressive taxes are up.... and going higher. Today, as the Roar of the Eighties .... a decade of record economic growth for the country as a whole. .. .begins to fade; . . . .those of middle-class means and those trying to escape the shackles of poverty across this nation are rapidly losing confidence in the direction in which we as a people are heading. In the wake of a decade of fiscal fantasy, America enters the real life "Twin Peaks" of the 199Q.'s (perhaps "Twin Valleys" would be more accurate) handcuffed in our ability to use proven tools of economic and fiscal management. Whereas the namesake of this school of government gave our nation the hope of a "New Generation"— — in the last decade - Washington has given us the disgrace of an "Indebted Generation."