Defense Spending

Governor Bush wants to increase spending on America's military. Contradictorally, however, Bush is a neo-isolationist who will bring our troops back from the Balkans, ignoring European protests that America's military presence is essential to Kosovo peace-keeping. Although he'd buy more high-tech weaponry and hike military pay, President Bush won't be in a hurry to dispatch American troops overseas for "peacekeeping" operations. On the other hand, if Saddam Hussein threatens the Arabian Peninsula, tune in to CNN immediately, cause the rockets will be flying over Baghdad.

Arms Manufacture

Although Governor Bush didn't make a big thing of it during the election, he backs Second Amendment protections for firearms ownership, and would certainly be friendlier to loosening restrictions on gun sales than Vice President Gore.

Tobacco

Governor Bush is not as likely as Vice President Gore to regulate or restrict cigarette manufacture and distribution. He would resist class action suits aiming at extracting huge settlements from tobacco companies for health claims.

Families, Family Planning, Choice, and Gay Rights

Governor Bush avoided declaring irrevocably that he'd try to outlaw abortion, if elected, or that he would actively undercut family planning. He supports a constitutional amendment that would permit abortions only when rape, incest, or a mother's survival is at stake. However, many pundits think he's only trying to placate the religious right, but won't do anything more than make speeches and rail against the immorality of killing babies. Still, under President Bush, a ban of RU-486 is more likely, even though the president's executive powers don't reach inside the nation's health organizations. And he supports a ban against partial-birth abortions, too. Federal judges appointed under Bush would not face a litmus test, he says, but he is likely to favor "constructionists" who are averse to abortion procedures. Finally, Bush opposes same-sex marriages.

Internet and High Tech

These companies form the bedrock of the broad socially-responsible funds holdings, because these companies don't pollute (not much, anyway) and treat their workers pretty well. And as the high-tech sector has soared and then dived recently, so, too, have SRIs. That may change under President Bush. Although he isn't especially averse to new-wave companies, he isn't exactly hot on them, either. Some say George Bush doesn't even know how to use a computer, but Al Gore thinks he is one.

Energy, Environment

Governor Bush is an ex-oilman from an oil-producing state. He's also the son of an oilman ex-president. And he's the candidate whose Vice Presidential companion, Dick Cheney, ran Halliburton, a big erergy company, until recently. Bush wants the U.S. to develop stronger oil and gas capacity, and become more self-sufficient as an energy producer. He supports an Alaskan pipeline, for instance, while VP Gore strongly opposes it.

Conclusion: If you seek a strong return from your SRI, and your views are malleable, if Governor Bush wins, sell your Domini and Pax shares short, but pile into the Timothy Fund and Shepherd Funds posthaste.