Memo: Lott Speaks about ADA

Item

Other Media

c021_001_002_022_tr

Transcription (Scripto)

c021_001_002_022_tr

Extent (Dublin Core)

2 pages

File Name (Dublin Core)

c021_001_002_022

Title (Dublin Core)

Memo: Lott Speaks about ADA

Description (Dublin Core)

Memorandum and letter between Bob Dole and Alec Vachon about Trent Lott and his opinions on the ADA

Date (Dublin Core)

1994-12-07

Date Created (Dublin Core)

1994-12-07

Congress (Dublin Core)

103rd (1993-1995)

Topics (Dublin Core)

See all items with this valuePeople with disabilities

Policy Area (Curation)

Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues

Creator (Dublin Core)

Vachon, Alexander

Record Type (Dublin Core)

memorandum

Names (Dublin Core)

See all items with this valueLott, Trent, 1941-

See all items with this valueUnited States. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

See all items with this valueDole, Robert J., 1923-2021

Rights (Dublin Core)

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/

Language (Dublin Core)

eng

Collection Finding Aid (Dublin Core)

https://dolearchivecollections.ku.edu/?p=collections/findingaid&id=54&q=

Physical Location (Dublin Core)

Collection 021, Box 1, Folder 2

Institution (Dublin Core)

Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS

Archival Collection (Dublin Core)

Alec Vachon Papers, 1969-2006

Full Text (Extract Text)

MEMORANDUM
Date: December 7, 1994
To: Senator Dole
From: Alec Vachon
Re: Lott Speaks about ADA

* According to an article in yesterday's NEWSDAY, Lott was asked about ADA at a small luncheon for reporters, and said: "Based on what we learned [since passing it], I think we ought to look at that. I'm not proposing to gut it. I'm just saying there are some things in there that have proven to be unnecessarily extensive and mandates that really don't help anybody." COMPLETE ARTICLE ATTACHED.

* Since the November elections--further prompted by Gingrich's ADA remarks on the Brinkley Show on November 13--disability groups are moving to broaden their support to better include Republicans--giving new meaning to the term "inclusion." For example, the Consortium of Citizens with Disabilities(CCD)--the loose association of 130 disability lobbying groups--which once seemed a mouthpiece for the Democratic National Committee (e.g., supported the Clinton health care reform bill even before they saw it)--acknowledged last Tuesday at a strategy meeting held in the wake of the elections that this partisanship has been a mistake.

* Another positive effect of the elections: Disability groups are taking a hard, overdue look at how they do business, who they serve, and what their priorities should be.

NEWSDAY, DECEMBER 6, 1994, TUESDAY, NASSAU AND SUFFOLK EDITION
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A07

HEADLINE: BUSH-ERA BILLS TO GET GOP SCRUTINY
BYLINE: By Susan Page, Washington Bureau

Washington - Beyond their ambitious agenda of new legislation, the incoming Republican majorities in Congress may also revisit and weaken provisions of major bills enacted under President George Bush, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Clean Air Act, a Senate Republican leader said yesterday.

At a luncheon with a small group of reporters, Senate Republican whip-elect Trent Lott of Mississippi said "people in the real world" have complained that some of the legislation - which Bush has hailed as among the major accomplishments of his presidency - places onerous burdens on business.

Lott, a former House whip with close ties to House Speaker-elect Newt Gingrich of Georgia, was elected Friday to the No. 2 leadership spot in the Senate.

"Based on what we learned [since passing it] , I think we ought to look at that," Lott said when asked about modifying the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act. "I'm not proposing to gut it. I'm just saying there are some things in there that have proven to be unnecessarily extensive and mandates that really don't help anybody."

He said the owner of several Kentucky Fried Chicken outlets in Mississippi had given him examples of modifications they were forced to make "that were very expensive that did very little or nothing to really improve" anyone's life.

The Clean Air Act of 1990 might also be addressed, although perhaps "in an oversight way" that wouldn't involve passing new legislation, he said. And he acknowledged some business leaders would like to see changes in the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which made it easier for workers to sue in job-discrimination cases.

Lott's comments opened a major new area for action by the 104th Congress, the first to be controlled by Republicans in the 40 years. The GOP has pledged to reduce the federal regulatory burden on businesses. But modifying the landmark measures already in effect would surely stir a huge battle with Democrats, advocates for the disabled, environmentalists and others.

The Mississippi senator made it clear other items on the Republican congressional agenda, including a constitutional amendment to balance the budget, would come first.

As for Bush's reaction, spokesman Jim McGrath said the former president was traveling in Taiwan and couldn't be reached for comment.

But when he signed the Clean Air Act, Bush had hailed it as "simply the most significant air pollution legislation in our nation's history."