Campaign Pledge Drive

By Val Castronovo, Matthew Cooper, Daren Fonda, Ellin Martens, Ben Nugent, Desa Philadelphia, Julie Rawe and Josh Tyrangiel

KEEP 'EM COMING In their efforts to alienate no one, the two presumptive presidential candidates routinely promise to make things better for everyone. With that in mind, Notebook staff members will do their best to keep track of the pledges made each week by George Bush and Al Gore. Like public television, we've set a lofty goal: 100 pledges by the November election. This week's drive yielded the following:

BUSH

--To improve military readiness and troop morale

--To expand opportunity for people living between "poverty and prosperity"

--To establish awards for private land stewardship and encourage conservation

GORE

--To preserve national forests

--To make mental-health coverage a priority

--To fight genetic discrimination in health care

--To lead a war against cancer

--To help fathers take responsibility for their children

The fine-print: totals reflect pledges made beginning the week of May 29, 2000, when we first began tracking. This survey is not scientific