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#4


Transcript from the presidential podcast “100 Days”


For many, the quintessential image of John B. Anderson’s first 100 days is a picture that was actually taken before they began. We’ve all probably seen it: It’s January 20th, 1981, which is Inauguration Day, but in Washington it’s still not even dawn yet. We’re on the runway at Mehrabad Airport outside of Tehran; Clair Barnes, held hostage since 1979, slipping on the tarmac, is aided by a member of the Revolutionary Guard onto the stairs up to the plane that will take her to freedom. Her smile is radiant.

Many people saw this act alone, the freeing of the remainder of US hostages in Iran, as a sign of the bad times receding and better days ahead. And if even a hostage- still not safe at home yet- could find a human moment with an agent of her oppression, surely the rest of the country could rise above, right?

But it’s worth noting that John B. Anderson never relished taking credit for the release of the hostages. He saw one of two possibilities when it came to the hostage crisis: either the Iranians were playing political games with the lives of American citizens by stalling negotiations under Carter, or, even more frightening, they actually believed the conspiracy theories they were forwarding as excuses for dragging out the hostages’ release. Either way, he refused to play their game. In his inaugural address itself, he congratulated Carter and the Carter State Department on successfully bringing an end to the crisis. Carter himself was sent off to Germany immediately following the inauguration as America’s special envoy to welcome the hostages back and to lead them home.

Anderson’s somewhat reserved relationship with foreign policy, at least in the beginning of his presidency, is on display for all to see, right there on Day 1. And indeed, throughout his first 100 days, Anderson would spend the vast majority of his time working on his domestic agenda, what he saw as his true legacy.

He first set his sights on getting his signature, tentpole campaign promise enacted: a 50-cent per gallon gas tax.

Under normal circumstances, this was not a policy that was going to fly through Congress. The administration expected pushback from all quarters. But the mood in congress around the creation of the American Conservative Party was beyond bitter; it was vengeful. It was inherited wisdom in Washington that the enemy of the House was the Senate, the enemy of the Senate the House, and the enemy of both, the President. But now the ACP was the enemy of them all. And since the ACP hated this bill with all its might, a diverse cross-section of politicians were practically lined up to drive the thing through.

That wasn’t to say that congress suddenly became a pushover. They all had to have their say and make their mark. Certainly, the bill- much like a cucumber in a nuclear test site- had grown oversized, and also in strange and unexpected directions. But that was just the price of doing business in congress, and the president was willing to accept something like omnibus status to get his signature campaign promise passed.

First, it was decided that the bill would be sold broadly as a measure of tax reform. Anderson’s actual policy called for a 50-cent per gallon tax on gasoline coupled with a corresponding decrease in payroll taxes. Since this amounted to a kind of tax reform, congress demanded that the rest of the code be thrown open for changes. Anderson consented, but made it known that the nation couldn’t afford any tax cuts now; actions would have to be revenue neutral.

But placing a tax on gas (one that excluded commercial use and agriculture, mind) also meant affecting not just people’s pocketbooks, but potentially the way they lived. There would have to be spending measures to mitigate the effects. Anderson had called for a major cultural change in America’s approach to energy consumption, and agreed that it would be cruel to simply call for change without providing a roadmap forward for the American people. Therefore, it became an infrastructure bill.

And it was also an energy bill; the first part of the president’s sweeping agenda to bring energy independence to America. But policy experts and politicians alike were not keen to create too much distance between the president’s signature energy proposal and his more targeted “nuts and bolts” proposals. Thus, congress began to consider energy reform.

But waiting for the requisite committees to mark up the tax reform portion of the bill then waiting for other, different requisite committees to mark up the infrastructure portion, and yet others to mark up the energy portion would take too long. Therefore the heartbreaking decision was made to split the bill into three separate pieces of legislation. His critics called it a delay. The press questioned whether Anderson knew how to forward his own priorities. It was his first largely negative coverage since taking office. Anderson pushed back the best way he knew how: by getting to work.

It was now that Anderson began lobbying in earnest, and so came the first appearance of the vaunted Anderson Machine. The president had staffed his cabinet deep with former senators and congressmen, and most of his staffers had experience on the Hill. He sent out his team into the chambers to treat with congress on their territory. Some pundits charged him with weakness for conceding home turf. But in reality, he was declaring the entire city as his home turf, pushing congress to act from within its own house.

That Anderson was able to strong-arm congress in this way is a testament to their anger at the American Conservative Party, which was spending its days trying to hold the floor as often as possible, offering poisonous amendments to every bill, and writing (often blatantly false) editorials in as many publications as would have them. This behavior inspired the two major parties to keep ranks tight, to stifle nay-saying, and to move legislation forward in search of tangible victories.

Thus it was that all three bills made their way through both chambers within Anderson’s first 100 days: a major reform of the tax code, a substantial infrastructure plan (somewhat against Anderson’s will), and an ambitious energy independence strategy.

The fourth major legislative accomplishment of Anderson’s first 100 days was unrelated to these three bills, but perhaps more exciting to the president’s constituents: the reauthorization of the Equal Rights Amendment in congress, which passed the House with 374 yeas and the Senate with 84. While some wanted to grandfather in the legislative votes from the 1970s, the Supreme Court had already ruled against further actions resulting from those votes in the case, NOW v. Idaho. New campaigns at the state level would have to be held. Before the president’s first 100 days were up, 19 states had already ratified- halfway to victory.

Beyond these major accomplishments, there is much that is overlooked by the history books about Anderson’s first 100 days. President Anderson instantly reaffirmed the brand of sober competence he projected throughout the campaign. He spent several days in meetings with congress to ensure the compromise they worked out in light of the Conservative Defections would hold. He continued to rapidly announce presidential appointments, and set his cabinet to the business of the administration. Straight out of the gate were new executive orders concerning housing discrimination, energy efficiency in federal facilities, ending oil price controls, and increasing public access to public lands.

Anderson also demonstrated the work ethic he would become famous for. He routinely worked 12- and 14-hour days, and refused to take a vacation until all four major pieces of legislation had been passed. (His paltry number of vacation days still stands as a low-end record for the modern presidency.)

But more than that, we must return to the mood of the nation. And here I think it is that Anderson sold himself short in divorcing his actions from those that resulted in that picture of Clair Barnes we all know and love. After a turbulent decade- some would say two turbulent decades- the president’s firm leadership and bipartisanship seemed to calm a nation fraying at the edges.

Even the Conservative Defections were taken in stride by President Anderson. In his first television interview after the inauguration, he did much to calm the fears of a worried nation by speaking favorably about the healthy nature of disruptive forces in politics. He welcomed the Conservatives warmly to the national dialogue. And most notably to presidential historians, he mentioned, for the first time, his skepticism regarding the nation’s current electoral system.

Contemporaries- both friend and foe alike- gave him high marks for competence, celebrating (or at least admitting) his ability to get things done.



Early April, 1981

The Washington Bureau of a major American newspaper. Station chief Gillespie leans out of his office into the pit.

“Curtiss, get in here.”

“Uh. Is it urgent?”

“No, Curtiss, I just thought we could grab a cup of coffee, talk about last night’s M*A*S*H. Get in here, Dobson’s contact got us draft copies of the new legislation. I’m supposed to go on Face the Nation this Sunday to pontificate on them and I need you to brief me.”

Curtiss rolls his eyes and trundles into the room. Gillespie takes a sizeable stack of paper from the top of a filing cabinet and moves back to his desk.

“I’m always floored by how big these things are.”

He plonks down a stack of copies of the three bills being considered in Congress.

“How do they get through all this? Just the reading part, I mean. You know how long I’ve been reading The Bourne Identity? A damn month.”

“Maybe if you took longer shits, boss, you’d be done by now.”

“Ain’t got time for no leisurely bowel movements, Curtiss, and neither do you. Now, what do we know about these bills?”

“We know they’re mostly done. You know how it is, things always get tweaked at the last minute, but the big ticket items are all crossed and dotted.”

“Okay, so give me a summary, major features.”

“How much detail do you want?”

“Pretend this is the Price Is Right and you’re announcing my prize package.”

“Fair enough. What say we start with tax reform, that’s the one that’s gonna pass first in all likelihood.”

“Okay so this one has the 50-cent per gallon gas tax?”

“Well...yes and no.”

“What’s that supposed to mean? We just spent six months listening to Anderson go on about a 50-cent gas tax, 50-cent gas tax, 50-cent gas tax, every goddamn day. It’s in there, right?”

“Sort of. It’s not 50 cents anymore.”

“WHAT.”

“It’s 35%.”

“When did this happen?”

“Nailed down last week.”

“50 cents was THE campaign promise. It was his main issue.”

“It’s not a big deal, they’re fine with it.”

“Really? They’re fine with it. What happened?”

“Udall’s people negotiated the change. It’s really not a big deal, with current gas prices it works out to about a 48-cent tax.”

“Wait, so if it’s about the same, why did they bother changing it?”

“...You’re never going to believe me.”

Gillespie stares at Curtiss emphatically, gesturing for him to proceed.

“Seems the DNC was running some focus groups and Udall convinced a friend to give him a peek. They asked respondents-”

“No.”

“They asked respondents if they’d rather pay-”

“No, please, don’t say what I think you’re about to say.”

“-if they’d rather pay 50 cents on the gallon or 35% on the gallon.”

“And they went for 35 because 35 is a lower number than 50?”

Curtiss nods.

“Jeeeesus. They have polling?”

“35% is polling 20 points ahead of 50 cents.”

“I think I’m gonna be sick.”

“The American education system on fine display.”

“I think I’m gonna die right here on this table, a martyr for the passing of American intellect.”

“You have to sign the paychecks today, do it tomorrow.”

“Alright, alright, moving on, what else is in this thing? What else did they come up with?”

“Well as promised, gas tax revenue’s been directed to Social Security and payroll taxes lowered a corresponding amount; they left payroll taxes a little higher than expected to build up Social Security a bit.”

“That should play well.”

“And they removed the individual cutoff for payroll taxes. Used to be you stopped paying new Social Security tax above a certain income. That’s out the window. Shifts the tax burden to the wealthy. A lot of other provisions shifting more tax burden onto the wealthy in general, while phasing out a bunch of loopholes- though when you’re on Face the Nation you should probably call them deductions.”

“Hose the rich; seems like the right mood for the nation.”

“Biggest change in closing the loopholes is that the general interest deduction is gone. Until now, you could deduct up to a certain amount of interest paid on any personal debt. Most people used it for mortgage payments. Really benefited the richest...oh, third of the country, I guess. Nobody else really gained from it. Now they’ve replaced that with a Homeowner Tax Credit, a flat credit worth the same to any homeowner no matter how much your home is worth. So if you’ve got a mortgage of half a million dollars, you used to be able to deduct a percentage; now you’re just going to get a tax credit for a grand or two. But think about what that grand or two could mean to a person with an $80,000 mortgage.”

“Damn. That’s gonna change the whole housing market!”

“Between that and the gas tax, it could change a lot more than the housing market. We could be looking at a new chapter in American life.”

“Damn...well as fascinating as that is, I’m not gonna dive deep on the American way of life in ten minutes of airtime. Anything else in this bill?”

“Indexing is in. Tax code is simplified by some 500 pages. 10% business tax credit for R&D. Slight lowering of nominal personal tax rates across the board, but that won’t kick in until later. Deductions will end first, and they’ll use the gap between then and the tax cut to fund part of the infrastructure bill.”

“Sounds like a natural segue to the infrastructure bill, what’s in there.”

“First, keep in mind that Anderson’s none too happy about this bill. This was the cost of securing liberal Democrats for the whole grand bargain. Word is he had a stick up his butt for most of the negotiations on this one.”

“Curtiss, don’t get me wrong, I admire the man, but ‘stick up his butt’ seems to be kind of a natural state for the guy.”

“In any case, he played hardball here on the financing, wanted to make sure costs were minimized. So the initial federal contribution mostly comes from that tax gap I mentioned: the deductions expire next year, tax revenue will go up, the year after, the tax cut kicks in and revenue falls back to neutral. He’s also reorganized priorities within the DoT budget, shifting some money from highways to public transit.”

“What kind of transit are we talking about?”

“Funds are set up to favor light rail, followed by buses and trolleys, followed by heavy rail- most of that earmarked for specific existing systems, like hurrying along the build-out of the DC and Atlanta subways. But there are some hoops you need to jump through to get funding. First, the locality- the city or county or state or whatever- has to kick in a third of the costs. They also have to agree to join the feds in negotiating with private enterprise to form Public-Private Partnerships, unless the locality ups their contribution to two-thirds of the costs. In addition, the locality has to change their zoning code before funds are released. I don’t know the exact specifications, but zoning has to be ‘sufficiently dense’ within a half mile of any light or heavy rail station, and a quarter of a mile for any bus or streetcar station, though I think there’s some leeway for appeal here.”

“Damn. I mean we all heard Anderson say that America was gonna have to change its driving culture, but politicians say crap all the time. Looks like he’s going forward with it here.”

“To some extent. He really doesn’t want to force it on them. This is more about the economic viability of mass transit. It requires density for success, and MacLaury in Treasury would only sign off on the expenditure with this density proviso.”

“Okay, so aside from $10 or $15 billion to transit, what are we seeing in this bill?”

“The rest is pretty small potatoes. There’s money to retrofit schools and federal facilities for greater energy efficiency. There’s a tax credit to employers who help reduce total commuter miles traveled alone, encouraging carpools, buying shuttle vans, that sort of thing. There’s a temporary tax credit for homeowners and landlords to weatherize dwellings. And there’s a new type of business loan to help rural van lines or small bus services get off the ground.”

“I’m falling asleep. I guess I’ll stick to the choo-choos on Sunday. Okay, what’s in the energy bill?”

“The least exciting of the three. Lots of money for research. Money for fuel additives like corn ethanol. Some deregulation for wind and solar power. Deployment of new-model windmills in the so-called wind belt. Smaller-scale deployment of solar plants in the Southwest. Conversion of less efficient plants across the country to more efficient methods. There’s a new Consumer Efficiency Board, which is a way to encourage companies to voluntarily increase efficiency in their products and to encourage consumers to buy more efficient stuff.”

“Sounds like a second-string infrastructure bill.”

“One thing that isn’t actually in the bill but was part of the negotiation is an executive order Anderson signed back in January. He’d wanted to remove oil price controls upon taking office, but agreed to wait until winter is over to avoid a price shock on heating oil.”

Gillespie rolls his eyes and suppresses a yawn.

“Juicy. Well, I asked for the bullet points, you gave me the bullet points. I’ll wade into this crap and we’ll meet again in a few hours when I have more questions.”