What the Pennsylvania Results Meant

The author of "Will Pennsylvania Loss Revive Rockefeller Republicans?," Nov. 8, suggests that Richard Thornburgh's loss in Pennsylvania's Senate race may be a sign that the Bush administration should turn to the liberal Republicanism represented by Dr. Herbert Stein, a former Nixon administration aide. And yet the article and the election returns show why Dr. Stein's version of Republicanism should be rejected by George Bush.Contrary to what Stein believes, the voters told the politicians that the middle class is not living very well and is not undertaxed. Mr. Thornburgh's loss was an indication that President Bush is vulnerable and that his vulnerability stems from his support of liberal Republicanism. Bush has not cut taxes; he has increased them. He has not cut spending; he has allowed it to rise. The real message for Bush from the '91 elections is clear: If he wants to be reelected, and if he wants a more supportive Congress, he should reject the liberal Republicanism both he and Stein have supported. In turn, he should embrace a vigorous tax-cut proposal to get the economy started. Jordan C. Wethe, Burke, Va.

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