COKIE ROBERTS:  ...You brought up the question of moral issues and we're talking about economics here, but the Conference of Catholic Bishops sent out this week a list of questions for all voters to ask their candidates.  And since I'm a good Catholic girl and I have candidates in front of me, I'll ask at least a few of the bishops' questions as they go through these categories.  And one of them, when it comes to economics, is how will we overcome the scandal of a quarter of our pre-schoolers living in poverty in the richest nation on earth?  Who wants to take it?  Go ahead, and from here on out I expect you all to jump in and answer these questions.

COKIE ROBERTS:  I'll come to you, both of you Senators.  It's remarkable, the Senators have not spoken.  The families where both parents are working and the family's still poor and the kids are poor.  Is minimum wage, raising the minimum wage the answer; what's the answer there?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Can you eat example, can you eat example, can you take example to the hospital and pay for it?

COKIE ROBERTS:  We only have a few minutes left in this segment so let's do health care, and you can add what you want to add when you're talking about health care.  I'm sure you will.  And that is that we now do--you brought up the number of people who are not receiving health care--there is now some sense, in the same way that old people do get health care in this country, that maybe children should have the same kind of health care that old people are getting.  Do you think that's right?

Foreign Affairs
COKIE ROBERTS:  ...The president, President Clinton's national security adviser Samuel Berger, has been complaining about a neo-isolationism that he says is abroad in the land, particularly in the Republican Party.  He points to an unwillingness to engage, the refusal to pay UN dues, the cuts in the foreign aid budget, that we've not [funded?] the Middle East peace accords.  Where do you stand on that Senator?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Well, let's talk about trade.  Because trade is a big part of our economy; it's the fastest growing sector in the economy.  Without this kind of trade we would be having the economy we're having.  Is it a good idea or not?

COKIE ROBERTS:  What about joining the World Trade Organization? [confusion of voices]  All right go ahead.

COKIE ROBERTS:  ...When Pat Robertson gave his key speech to the Christian Coalition this year he talked about Third World poverty--that was his message.  Again back to the bishops, they ask a question: How do we address the tragedy of 35,000 children dying every day of the consequences of hunger, debt and the lack of development around the world?  What about this question of Third World debt, and what about this question of the United States' moral role in the world?

COKIE ROBERTS:  But what about the people in these countries?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Is it American taxpayers or American banks?

COKIE ROBERTS:  I asked you was it a moral--does the United States have a moral stake in the world?

Education and Social Issues
COKIE ROBERTS:  ... Nationwide, education is being cited by voters as the number one issue.  Here in New Hampshire even more so it's being cited by voters as the number one issue.  Now that could be because New Hampshire feels it's in something of an education crisis since the Court has thrown out its primary system of financing the schools.  And today the State Senate voted for an income tax to try to finance the schools.  We'll see how that all comes out; it's politically very up in the air.  How do we get bollixed up like this and how do we get out of it?

COKIE ROBERTS:  You know all of you have supported choice in some form--  Yesterday the House of Representatives, the Republican-dominated House of Representatives, took a vote on school vouchers.  They went down.  It also took a vote on Title I, the program for the disadvantaged.  It succeeded overwhelmingly  Would you all have voted that way and why do you think Republicans in the House did?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Well what about this question of how the Republicans are voting?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Well again that was before the Congress--it never happened.

COKIE ROBERTS:  Let me ask another judicial question.  Yesterday in the Senate there were a couple of votes, one on partial birth abortion, which was overwhelmingly voted against, but not overwhelmingly enough to override a presidential veto.  One on upholding Roe vs. Wade.  Senator McCain, you weren't there for that vote.  How would you have voted?

COKIE ROBERTS: Senator Hatch, today in response to those votes yesterday Governor Bush said here that people should be able to disagree about abortion rights and [inaud] to support adoption.  Should people be able to disagree on this subject?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Should other people be able to disagree?

COKIE ROBERTS:  Now let me just ask you very quickly, because we're really out of time.  Pat Buchanan, not here tonight.  We expect him Monday to announce that he's leaving the Republican party.  Good?  Bad?  Why?