InformationWeek

October 9, 2000

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Presidential Focus

Despite their claims to be hip to high tech, neither Bush nor Gore has made technology a highly visible issue

By Mary E. Thyfault

More on presidential election:

sidebar: FTC battles brain drain as it adapts to the times

EETimes: Clinton defers decision on deploying national missile defense system (9/11/00)

InternetWeek: Fear And Loathing On The Information Superhighway (9/11/00)

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n Sept. 14, the theme of David Letterman's Top 10 List was "Top 10 Rejected Gore-Lieberman Campaign Slogans." The special guest on The Late Show was Vice President Al Gore, and he recited the list himself, including item No. 9: "Remember America: I gave you the Internet, and I can take it away. Think about it." The line drew a big laugh from the audience, which likely had heard about Gore's blunder on CNN's Late Edition last year when he said: "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet." Most Americans realize that Gore may have helped spur business use of the Internet in the '90s but wasn't in politics when it was created in the '60s.

However, the joke cuts deeper than that. It suggests the profound effect on technology-related issues that the future president may or may not have during the next four years. That's where a vote for Gore or Texas Gov. George W. Bush may carry real weight. Business and technology managers don't fear that either candidate could do much to stop the Internet's phenomenal growth. But they're clear in their message about how to help it flourish: Stay out!

Perhaps that's why, despite their claims to be hip to high tech, neither Gore, 52, nor Bush, 54, has made technology as highly visible an issue in the election as other flashpoints, such as prescription drugs or Social Security. After all, why mess with success? Between 1995 and 1998, the high-tech private sector drove more than one-third of real economic growth in the United States--with government operating largely in a hands-off mode. IT executives--and, for the most part, the presidential candidates--say they want that to continue.

Of course, a "do-no-harm" campaign platform won't win many votes. That's why the candidates have addressed some key areas in high tech, including the IT labor shortage, local-access competition, privacy, Internet taxation, and research funding. At the same time, they've ignored other concerns such as how to ensure that all citizens have access to high-speed bandwidth or how they'll achieve specific technology goals they've announced.

"Both candidates say pretty much the same things," says Doug Crawford, director of network and telephony planning at Kaiser Permanente, a national health-care network in Oakland, Calif. They both want to restrict regulation, he says, and they both want to let vendors and the market drive technology costs and services. In terms of the IT industry, Crawford says, "it really won't make that much difference who wins."

Maybe. Even in such a laissez-faire political atmosphere, there are differences between the candidates that mirror the philosophies of their political parties. As a Democrat, Gore is likely to suggest government-funded initiatives; as a Republican, Bush has indicated he probably will rely more on the private sector. Either way, most IT managers want to hear more about their plans. "Everybody claims they're for high technology, but we're not getting the kind of focus we would like to get on technology issues," says Tom Loane, senior VP and CIO of Transport International Pool in Devon, Pa.

Not surprisingly, each candidate claims to have the right experience to foster continued growth in technology. Although Gore clearly didn't create the Internet, he displayed an interest in technology while in the Senate. In 1988, he sponsored the National High-Performance Computer Act, which established a national computing plan, connected colleges, universities, and libraries, and included systems and software research and development. He cosponsored the Information Infrastructure and Technology Act of 1992, which opened the Internet to commercial traffic. While serving as vice president, Gore has been the high-tech point man, pushing the administration's position on the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Gore also led the "Reinventing Government" initiative, the federal government's version of re-engineering to better harness technology.

Bush points to his track record for bolstering technology in Texas, where the state government cut taxes on Internet access and data processing and pushed through a state tax credit for research and development. Also, Texas allocates $30 per student per year for high-technology education in public schools. A state agency, the Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund, has allocated $311 million toward building up school technology infrastructure. Today, more than 90% of Texas public schools are connected to the Internet. Bush says those initiatives helped drive Texas to second place in the nation in high-tech job growth.

Bush has a slight edge over Gore when it comes to high-level, high-tech endorsements. The Bush camp boasts as backers former Netscape CEO Jim Barksdale, Dell Computer CEO Michael Dell, and Sun Microsystems CEO Scott McNealy. Gore boasts Kevin Wendle, co-founder of CNET, and Novell chairman Eric Schmidt, who recently hosted a Silicon Valley Democratic fund raiser where guests re-ceived plastic pocket protectors that read "Geeks for Gore."

How do the candidates say they'll ensure technology growth? One key ingredient is people. The IT labor shortage is one of the most critical high-tech issues the next president will face. The Information Technology Association of America predicts about half of the 1.6 million jobs the IT sector will create over the next year will go unfilled. For example, Cymer Inc., a San Diego supplier of laser illumination sources, has filled only about half of its openings in IT and research this year. "We've lost opportunities to advance because we couldn't find enough technology people to move the company forward," says Roger Green, Cymer's CIO and VP of knowledge management.

One fast fix is to hire from abroad. The Senate last week approved a bill to raise the number of H-1B visas from 115,000 to 195,000 per year for the next three years. The visas allow skilled workers to work in the United States, and the need exists: It took the United States only six months to reach its annual limit in 2000. Both Bush and Gore support the measure.

But even if the House approves and President Clinton signs the measure, challenges will remain that neither candidate has addressed. The visas expire after three years, sending about 40,000 people per year back to their native countries and reducing the U.S. talent pool. "Improving the way H-1B issues are handled has to be a top priority," says Loane of Transport International Pool, a General Electric transportation subsidiary. "Right now, the Immigration and Naturalization Service can't even handle the paperwork."