Gore: Been there, done that

While Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush prepares a blueprint

for a smaller, more effective, technology- assisted government, Democratic

hopeful Al Gore claims that such a government is already under construction,

thanks to his National Partnership for Reinventing Government initiative.

In an address to federal workers April 21, Gore claimed NPR has already

saved $137 billion because it:

* Reduced the federal government by 350,000 employees.

* Eliminated more than 200 outdated federal programs.

* "Slashed more than 16,000 pages of red tape," he said.

Like Bush, Gore cites business as the model for more efficient government.

"It's easy to see a revolution in the workplace where the private sector

is concerned, because of new management approaches, new technologies, new

efficiencies, new reinventions," Gore said in a speech at the Third Reinvention

Revolution Conference in Washington, D.C.

The administration aimed to spark similar reform in the public sector.

"We wanted a government that sees citizens as customers to be respected

and served," he said, adding that now there is evidence of progress. "We're

headed in the right direction for a change. Today, our self-government is

leaner, more effective, and more customer focused."