1996 State of the Union Address: 1996 Republican Party Platform

    1996 State of the Union Address: 1996 Republican Party Platform

      Ever play that card game "BS?" Well, the 1996 election was basically a huge game of "BS" between Bill Clinton and the Republican Party.

      Clinton promised smaller government, and the Republicans responded with, basically, "We don't believe you. We call BS." In their official party platform, adopted by the delegates to the 1996 Republican National Convention (basically a kick-off party for the presidential nominee), Dole, Gingrich, and allies laid out their differences with the president.

      The gist: more cuts to more programs. Clinton was cautious about cutting things like Medicare and Medicaid, but Republicans wanted to eschew the scalpel in favor of the axe. As he promised in the 1992 election, Clinton was chipping away at the deficit, slowly. Republicans wanted to blow it away with dynamite.

      It's a disagreement that's common in politics. Often, both sides want change, but some want it to happen faster. In the words of Jim Harbaugh, "I want cake now!"