Masonry Magazine February 1988 Page. 23

Masonry Magazine February 1988 Page. 23

Masonry Magazine February 1988 Page. 23
theWASHINGTON wire...

THE FALL ELECTIONS WILL BE DOMINATING THE 1988 SESSION of Congress. Leading lawmakers of both political parties are fairly well agreed on that. With control of the Senate as well as the White House hanging on the voting, both sides will be more concerned with developing effective campaign issues than with facing up to controversial or unpopular problems that need action. Net, Congress will pass very little in the way of major legislation in 1988.

To be sure, there will be a great deal of talk about needs and issues. The House and Senate chambers are fine places for testing the campaign rhetoric of the many candidates. Meanwhile, President Reagan will lose even more clout as a "lame duck." With only one year left in his term, he will fight to preserve hard-won gains, but he won't be pushing a big agenda; he can't muster the support. Rather, Reagan will concentrate on foreign policy, especially arms curbs.

THE SESSION THAT JUST ENDED WAS NOT FULL OF ACCOMPLISHMENT, either, though 1987 was not an election year and many issues cried out for action. Again, hostility between the White House and Democrats derailed many bills. This is not to suggest that nothing whatever was achieved in the past year. Where urgency or mutual interest prevailed, some compromises were arranged. Congress did approve a big deficit-reduction package after lengthy debate-including a tax hike, cuts in military spending, and trims in entitlements.

In addition, lawmakers enacted measures to bail out the farm-credit system, retain the independent counsels to investigate government officials, extend the clean-water and the highway programs and shore up deposit insurance for savings-and-loans. But Congress failed to approve critical bills on securities, trade, banking, health care, welfare reform, the environment and farm subsidies. Of course, much of these left-over items will carry on into 1988. Here's the outlook for many issues:

STARTING WITH THE DEFICIT- further cuts are possible in fiscal 1989, the budget accounting year that begins next October 1. Under Gramm-Rudman, the deficit target is $136 billion, down from $148 billion of fiscal 1988. The Administration has much less flexibility than usual on this new budget, because of the recent agreement finally reached between Reagan and Congress. That package calls for spending for domestic programs of $169.2 billion... other than interest on the debt, Social Security, and farm price supports. So the major parameters of the 1989 budget package are already established.

But forecasts of economic growth are being cut back by the White House, because of the October 19 stock-market crash. Thus, the Administration may have trouble meeting the target as revenues dip. Even deeper budget cuts may yet be needed.

THE PENTAGON WILL HAVE TO MAKE MAJOR SLASHES in spending on defense. The military services will slice some $33 billion in 1989, a 10% reduction. And further chops are being planned for the five years that begin in 1990. The budgets would be 12% less than those drafted a year ago, officials say. The armed forces would be reduced by 100.000. Civilian jobs will be pared.

THE CUTS IN PENTAGON SPENDING ARE LIKELY TO SPARK vigorous protests. Members of Congress whose districts are affected by the trims will object, especially those with big research and development facilities facing cuts. But those large reductions could boost the Republican presidential nominee; he could claim the Administration has been responsible on defense spending.

RATIFICATION OF THE PACT TO SCRAP intermediate-range nuclear weapons will be voted on by the Senate some time this spring... with passage likely. The supports of the new pact will successfully beat back proposed changes, blocking all attempts by Republican conservatives to toughen the language. Preliminary battle lines are now being drawn around three critical issues: how the treaty will affect the balance of conventional forces in Europe .. the adequacy of the treaty's verification provisions to prevent cheating... and whether approval should be linked to Soviet compliance with past pacts.

The jockeying may have less to do with the meat of this pact than with a more sweeping agreement that would cut long-range missile numbers, one that may be signed in Moscow this summer.

CONGRESS WILL VOTE A FREE-TRADE TREATY between the U.S. and Canada. The new understanding. already signed by Reagan and Prime Minister Mulroney, will be submitted to the Canadian Parliament and Congress for ratification. The pact, to go into effect on January 1, 1989, removes all current tariffs and also eliminates numerous non-tariff barriers between the two countries. Some tariffs. on such goods as computers, motorcycles and vending machines, are to be removed as soon as the pact takes effect. Others will be killed in stages over various periods of time-some as long as 10 years for goods like steel, appliances, pleasure boats, tires, and some types of equipment.

The enabling legislation is not expected to go to the Senate until June. Lawmakers first want to take up the trade bill.

THE OUTLOOK FOR MAJOR TRADE LEGISLATION REMAINS UNCERTAIN as of now. The Reagan Administration continues to send conflicting signals on the bill.


Masonry Magazine December 2012 Page. 45
December 2012

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Masonry Magazine December 2012 Page. 46
December 2012

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Masonry Magazine December 2012 Page. 47
December 2012

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