Gephardt has outlined several priorities he would focus on if elected president, including:

JOBS

Gephardt says he would protect American manufacturing jobs by advocating an international minimum wage. The minimum wage would depend on a nation’s level of development, and it would seek to eliminate competition from slave, sweatshop and child labor around the world. He also would support increasing the U.S. minimum wage.

HEALTH CARE

He would push for a law requiring every employer to provide access to quality coverage. Employer tax credits would cover most of the cost, which would be paid for by repealing the Bush tax cuts.

ENVIRONMENT

He wants to provide tax incentives to businesses and citizens to encourage development of clean, renewable energy sources that would make the United States independent from Middle East oil in 10 years. He says he would direct agencies to fully enforce the Clean Air and Clean Water acts.

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION

Gephardt offered a vigorous defense of affirmative action last week and criticized President Bush and some of his rivals for the Democratic presidential nomination for questioning the value of such programs.

HIGHER EDUCATION

Gephardt says he wants to increase the accessibility and affordability of college. He has proposed protecting affirmative action programs at colleges, expanding federal grant and loan programs, increasing the eligibility for financial aid among middle-class families, and making the first $10,000 of higher education costs tax-deductible.