The Economy as a Democratic Party Issue

Paul Tsongas served as a Massachusetts U.S. Senator from 1979-85. He was currently practicing law in Boston. Mr. Tsongas had been making public appearances throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire at the time. He was expected to be the first Democratic candidate to announce he would run for the 1992 presidential election. Some questions had been raised over his health, as he left politics in 1984 to undergo treatments for lymphoma. His doctors had said that his cancer had been cured. In his speech, Mr. Tsongas said, “The major issue I think we Democrats are going to have to face up to is economics.” Important economic issues included foreign competition, jobs, revenue sharing, and taxes. He said that polls showed that the public did not think the Democratic Party cared about the economy, which meant the party needed to do a better job of proving this was a very important issue. In reference to the presidential election, Mr. Tsongas said, "The notion that George Bush can’t be defeate close