Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante should appeal to UC students regarding his convictions on the importance of educational funding and his stance on lowering student fees.

Bustamante is perhaps more capable than others of understanding student concerns and subsequently responding to them in an adequate manner.

Bustamante¹s ³tough love² plan takes $2 billion in unspecified cuts. Considering the big portion of the budget that is education, the plan seems nearly impossible to fulfill its promise.

If anything, it is likely that the University of California will suffer more cuts under his quick-fix proposal, a disturbing possibility for an institution that has seen tuition increase 40 percent in the past year.

Bustamante¹s plans for raising taxes on everything from cigarettes to alcohol to driving are liable to do more harm to citizen morale than good for the state economy.

Definitely serving as a Democratic foil to the outsider image of fellow recall candidate Arnold Schwarzenager, Bustamante does have a distinguished political career that adds credibility to his campaign. Nevertheless, the financial implications of his ³tough love² plan are simply too harsh to garner the necessary voter support.