On her personal feelings about finally acting on this long-favored issue
It’s very gratifying. But standing alone, it wouldn’t be very satisfying. It comes in the context of getting our fiscal house in order, creating opportunities like the earned income-tax credit, the minimum wage, changing the welfare system. It’s all part of an overall approach to what I meant when I said, ““It Takes a Village.’’ I meant that it takes a lot of things working together, and child care is a very important piece of that–but it’s just a piece.
On how this bill is meant as a catalyst
This has to be seen as a proposal that works in partnership with state, local and private efforts. Good after-school programs are not very expensive. But it’s only now that various communities are beginning to understand how important they are. So this amount of seed money that would go to, say, take care of 150 kids in some community would lay the groundwork for a program that might be taking care of 1,000 kids.
On spending part of the projected budget surplus on social programs
This proposal fits within the balanced budget. So it’s important to understand that we’re not asking for new money. As for the surplus, I think it’s totally premature to talk about spending any of it. It’s inappropriate. I saw somebody on TV the other night talking, with great amusement, about how many of the people now calling for tax cuts and spending the surplus were the same people who were fighting to the death for the balanced-budget amendment. You know, ““Hello?''
On why there’s no inclusion of a tax credit for staying at home with young children
We have looked at that very closely and are continuing to look at it. We couldn’t figure out a way, other than what we’ve already done, to create enough of a financial incentive for it. It takes a lot of money to offer $250 a year, which is not going to change behavior.
On incorrect assumptions about the current state of child care
A lot of the people who write about this, who pontificate on the TV about it, come from families where if one parent wants to stay home they might have to make a sacrifice . . . drive their old car a few years longer . . . but it wouldn’t be the difference between braces for the kid or not. People lose touch with the real lives of most Americans. And for most Americans, this has not been a choice.
People need to stand in factory lines and watch who’s coming to work. Or stand on a street corner and watch who’s pouring out of office buildings. There are a lot of people making $15,000, $18,000, $22,000, $28,000, either on their own or maybe even jointly. They don’t have a choice. By cobbling together all of these tax credits and other kinds of incentives plus raising the minimum wage–all of these things are giving people real choices. That, to me, is the ultimate goal here because I don’t want to be in the position of saying, ““Everybody should stay home’’ or ““Everybody should go to work.’’ That is an absurd generalization. And it isn’t fair to the individual circumstances of each family.
