Sherman and Gallegly Split Over Address by President

Ventura County’s congressmen split along party lines in their response to President Clinton’s State of the Union speech Tuesday night, with the Republican suggesting caution while the Democratic praised several domestic programs that Clinton proposed.

Both men commended the president for not referring to the ongoing impeachment trial in the Senate.

“This was an opportunity for him to give the State of the Union, not that of his personal affairs,” said Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley). Gallegly added that attending the speech, given the circumstances, was “very awkward, uncomfortable and unpleasant.”

During the 77-minute speech, which was greeting by frequent standing ovations by members of Congress, Clinton proposed more than $50 billion in new spending to be financed by surpluses in the nation’s budget forecast by the administration over the next 25 years.

The largest chunk would be used to shore up Social Security followed by additional spending on Medicare, the military, education, health care and other programs. Clinton also suggested the nation’s employers support his plan to raise the minimum wage by $1 an hour in the next two years.

“Congress has approved a balanced budget for only two years--that’s after decades of being addicted to taxing and spending,” Gallegly said. “You wouldn’t offer a recovering alcoholic a drink so soon after recovery, and we shouldn’t be jumping off the wagon here.”

The conservative congressman was critical of Clinton’s plan to spend unrealized budget surpluses to create a universal savings account program--a proposal that would allow citizens to invest in a federal plan similar to private-industry 401(k) plans.

“Having a government board investing taxpayer money in the stock market is ripe for misuse,” Gallegly warned.

Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Sherman Oaks), whose district includes Thousand Oaks, Oak Park and Newbury Park, said the president’s “overwhelming proposal on how to deal with the surplus was to save the surplus for Social Security and Medicare. I think the president’s domestic spending is rather modest.”

Sherman, however, also expressed reservations over Clinton’s plan to offer a national savings account plan.

“My biggest concern is that the tax code will get even more complex,” said Sherman, who is an accountant. “I think while we should move in that direction, we need to make sure to streamline what we have already done” in this area.

Sherman likened Clinton’s education plans, which included proposals to build more schools and hold local districts more accountable for problem teachers, to those recently touted by California Gov. Gray Davis.

“Both Clinton and Davis are moderate problem-solving Democrats who see eye-to-eye, so it’s not surprising they have similar views,” Sherman said.

One statement that brought Sherman to his feet to cheer was Clinton’s assertion that the nation’s environment was the cleanest it had been in a quarter-century.

Gallegly said he stood and clapped when the president proposed a $1,000 tax credit for families who care for aging, ailing and disabled parents.

Both congressmen praised Clinton’s recommendation to increase military spending by more than $100 billion during the next decade and his promise of tax breaks for senior citizens who continue to work.

* STATE OF THE UNION: President Clinton delivers last such speech of the 1900s. A1