The 12-Minute Makeover

Bill Clinton tries gamely to recast himself as a tax cutter and department chopper. But is it too late?

With a re-election campaign looming, an embattled President decided to chuck % his old program and go for broke. On national TV he proposed a multibillion- dollar package of tax cuts, including expanded IRAs for medical bills, education and the purchase of a first home. That evening, an upstart in the opposition party dismissed the proposals as "too little, too late." Later the critic added, "I don't think using the IRAs to finance college loans and health care, as the President proposed, is a good idea."

The year was 1992. The President was George Bush. The upstart was Bill Clinton.

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