Reid to respond to Bush radio address

Friday, March 9, 2001 | 12:14 p.m.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., will give the opposing side to President Bush's weekly radio address to the nation Saturday.

The topic for this week is the Republican president's proposed tax cuts, and how it will affect Social Security and Medicare.

Reid is expected to present the Democrats' ideas on an affordable tax cut that his party says will better benefit all Americans and allow continued investment in national priorities.

The president's address will air nationwide at 7 a.m., followed by Reid's response immediately after, around 7:05-7:10. While some stations air the taped address at that time, others air them at varying later times. Interested listeners should check their station's schedule for air times.

In last week's radio address, Bush asked audiences in states with Democratic senators to "send a message in favor of tax relief' to every member of Congress.

"After all, the surplus is your money," Bush said last Saturday.

Bush's 10-year plan calls for $1.6 trillion in tax cuts. The Democrats' plan calls for $725 billion in tax cuts over 10 years, reaching as high as $900 billion if increased interest on the debt is added.

The Democrats' plan also proposes to reduce the lowest income tax rate from 15 percent to 12 percent, gives relief to married couples penalized under current tax law, frees more individuals and small businesses from the estate tax and provides cuts in payroll taxes for low-income people who pay little or no income tax.