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Show Thursday, January 13, 1983 Iagelli Section A Senators Outside Earnings Reflect Deeper Problem Utahs senior senator, Jake Garn, mental one. It is up to the voters (of is being criticized for making $48,000 Utah), he declared the other day, to the quality of service on speeches and writings during 1981, determine more than any other senator. The they receive from their public offiUtah Republican is chairman of the cials. Its the ultimate answer but it Senate Banking Committee and doesnt deal completely with the much of this outside income derived question. from talks to groups connected with It is more than a matter of voters banking. perception of an individual senators Many Utahns, we suspect, will ea- performance and integrity. Ideally gerly join in questioning the propri- there should not be even the opportuety of the senatorial moonlighting. nity for temptation, no need for a But before they leap to judgment member of the United States Senate they should ponder the complex cir- having to go about the country speakcumstances that shape a senators ing and writing to earn spending needs while serving in money. And that brings us back to D. C. those people who, as mentioned earliWashington, It is easy enough to demonstrate er, will be eager to join in the critithat the $60,662 Mr. Garn earned as a cism of Sen. Gams outside earnings. senator in 1981 (the figure will be the If they do not want their represame in 1983) didn't leave much to sentatives in Washington to have to live on after taxes and various spe- scrounge for extra income, they cial expenses associated with a sena- should insist that the pay for all tors life are deducted. In order to members of Congress is sufficient to maintain a lifestyle in keeping with a cover not only the bread and butter senators station in life there has to expenses of day to day existence in be cash from some outside source. an expensive capital city but to also For a chairman of an important provide the extras that such service speaking fees is a very handy entails. Having so provided, they can source. piously and justifiably prohibit all The question naturally arises forms of side jobs and in good conwhether the acceptance of fees for science, vote out of office any memspeaking to bankers also weakens a ber who defies the ban. senators resistance to bankers speSen. Garns sin, if any, was one of cial pleas and dilutes his effective- over He let himself get ness as an impartial defender of the out inindulgence. front of the pack and he is public interest. drawing most of the fire for a pracSen. Garn naturally maintains tice that, in one form or another, is as that he can take the fee and resist old as Congress. And it wont change, any blandishments that come with it. if ever, until the folks back home reAnd who is to say that he cannot? But alize that the glory of serving in Conhow is anyone to know if the senator gress, for all its magnetic allure, is ever so slightly influenced, perhaps doesnt buy groceries or send chilwithout even realizing it? It is a nice dren to college or any of a hundred question and an old one, too. other things everyone, even public ofSen. Gams defense is a funda ficials, feel they are entitled to. free-wheeli- com-'mitte- e, Jack W. Germond and Jules Witcover White House Gag Order Hints Trouble The Chicago Tribune The message in the White House gag order is an admission that the Reagan administration is in very deep political trouble. possibly terminal an Indeed, such attempt to control the flow of information from the White House is something that occurs in almost every administration, and always when things are going sour. Moreover, these orders are always couched in terms that have little or no relaand that totally distionship to the facts tort their real purpose. Thus, David Gergen, the White House WASHINGTON - What most of his audience learned as school children in history suddenly became a living, breathing man leaning against his cane, letting his listeners know what it was like to be amongst the crowd on that chilly April morning in 1893. books To say the passing of Elder Richards signals the passing of an age is not overstatement. In a way its very true. Inspections In Arms Talks New York Times Service In the vocabulary of arms negotiations, the one phrase that both; sides agree is taboo is inspection. The reason the Soviets have expunged the phrase is that they have always opposed any suggestion to allow foreigners to come and inspect their weaponry. Such intrusions, they have unreasonably insisted for a generation, would merely be attempts to spy on relic of an antique era. All through the Soviet system. his life and into his last years he reThe reason American negotiators have mained a passionate and vibrant de- avoided the taboo term is that they know fender of the gospel that was so dear that any such suggestion of mutual inspecto him. His book A Marvelous Work tion to verify arms agreements would be instantly rejected and even to put forward and a Wonder remains a corner- such an idea would be evidence that the U.S. of stone in the Church of Jesus Christ was not serious. Latter-da- y Saints missionary proThat brings us to the current Soviet gram. It is a fitting legacy to the man peace offensive. Having tipped the balwho himself was a constant mission- ance in their favor in strategic missiles, and having taken a major jump ahead in Europeary for his church. an theater missiles, the new leadership is His service as a missionary, mis- now ready for a deal that will lock in its sion president, bishop, stake presicurrent advantages. The Reagan response has been sensible. dent and, finally, as a member of Six years ago, when the United States first of of Twelve the Quorum Apostles actual reductions in armaments, LDS Church underlined his unyield- proposed the Soviets rejected the idea as not serious"; ing, but warmly human commitment the Carter administration abandoned its poto his beliefs. sition. This time around, the Reagan men let it be known that reduction was going to be Elder Richards epitomized that the name of the game, and after much grumunique blend so characteristic of his bling, the Soviets have begun to take it seria fierce pioneer spirit ously. The hard line produced a Soviet strageneration of mixed with a humble tegic proposal that shows a little movement. On the European theater negotiations, dependence on God. however, the Soviets have been relying on propaganda ploys to prevent the West from catching up to the deployment of the new intermediate-rang- e Soviet missiles. The called the zero opReagan counter-plotion you take out your new missiles, and we won't put in our new European missiles ment for not reclaiming its war dead called the Soviet bluff. from the islands. She said if the ArTo renew its appeal to the European gentine casualties arent returned to peace movement, Andropovs next move the mainland soon, the British would called for a reduction to the number of much inferior missiles controlled by the French remove them from temporary ceme- and British. That would leave a third of a teries, for reburial in a permanent million U.S. soldiers in Europe without conFalkland Islands site. Whats the use- trol of an effective counter to Soviet weapful purpose of such statements? onry; it is a stunt, and not meant to be taken seriously. We are now at a point where the Russians Final arrangement for a wars are making serious noises on the strategic dead and missing is among the most level (where Reagan has shown a resolve for volatile of subjects arousing human reductions) and noises on the Euemotions. For example, the still pro- ropean theater level (where the Soviets still vocative question about the United hope to divide and conquer). Evidently ReaStates men missing in action during gan considers that enough of a basis for movahead. the Vietnam war. Families who lose ing Before taking the next step, however, we sons, husbands, fathers, brothers in should make certain to avoid the mistake of war suffer enough without hearing the 1970s. We should think the unthinkable the victors mentioning the dead as about verification and say the unsayable: the only practical way that arms reduction can recrimination. part of be accomplished on the strategic or theater e As leader of her country, Mrs. levels is when it is accompanied by inspection. Thatcher ought to be finding ways to To avoid using the awful words and triggive last years fighting and dying gering the automatic taboo, we can adopt over the Falkland Islands a meaning the preferred euphemisms cooperative which might actually help in the re- measures and confidence-builder- s. Preduction of international conflict. cedent can be found in the UJS. Soviet threshtreaty, signed in 1974 but rtever Whatever such progress she has old test-baratified: of on seismic signals instead made, she set back tragically in a from installations relying thousands of miles from vainglorious performance of dubious test sites, it was proposed to dig holes near justification, considering the exces- the sites and plant instruments that could be sive already compelled read by the other superpower. That's the sort of verifiability that can work on the rocky, wind-torture- d Falkbuilding confidence by admitting we don't trust each lands by strutting, inept politicians. other. WASHINGTON on-si- te self-relian- Elder Richards wasnt a dusty Mrs. No Thatchers Mistake one ever accused Great Bri- tains Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher of lacking fortitude. But the g lady may have overdone the routine during a recent visit to the Falkland Islands. tough-talkin- Mrs. Thatcher decided to a conduct surprise inspection tour of the place fought over last year by British and Argentine forces is somewhat of a mystery. Except its no secret she was immensely proud that her governments resolve to expel Argentine troops with a countering British expedition succeeded fully. Nonetheless, a watching world hoped the next development would be diplomatic efforts leading to an e end of the prolonged dispute over the Falklands. Thats hardly the stuff of Mrs. Thatchers statements during her Falklands tour. Why British-Argentin- The prime minister told British soldiers and officers on the islands to be alert for possible return of Argentine attackers, warning, in the process, the Argentines against any such moves. Scarcely the language of moderation. Beyond that, Mrs. Thatcher openly disdained the Argentine govern y, non-serio- on-goi- on-sit- -- n self-scarifi- free-lanc- On-Si- te Herald of an Era At a wedding reception in 1979, Elder LeGrand Richards regaled the guests with stories of his early childhood in Utah. When I was seven years old, he told his rapt listeners, I remember going with my mother to the dedication of the Salt Lake Temple . . . With that simple statement, Elder Richards caused an era out of Utahs past to spring to life. free-lanc- William Safire Raise communications director, complains about misleading and inaccurate leaks from meetings involving President Reagan and his advisers. But the real problem is that those leaks have so accurately painted a picture of a White House in disarray in trying to prepare a budget for fiscal 1984. And Gergen complains further about e artists responsible for those e leaks. But the truth is that those artists include some of Reagans closest advisers, and everyone in town knows that. And in many cases it is clear the purpose of the leaks has been to influence Reagan himself by intensifying the pressure on him to view the budget in more realistic terms. The dirty little secret in Washington these days is that Ronald Reagan has been hell-bea refusal to on a budget course yield on either the level of defense spending or taxes that virtually all his advisers and virtually all his allies in Congress believe is politically destructive and certain to fail. And it is that picture that has been emerging, so accurately, from these leaks. As a practical matter, the gag order isn't likely to have any lasting effect on the way things are done in Washington or even inside the White House. The relationship between the press and politicians is a symbiotic one, like all other and the presidents advisers need to use the press to politicians here advance their goals. The notion of gagging presidential advisers doesnt square with common sense anyway. Most of them are people with large egos and ambitions who are concerned with their own reputations as well as the success of the president they serve. This is most obvious when, for example, someone floats a politically outrageous nosuch as taxing unemployment benetion fits and there is a mad rush to deny paternity. Ronald Reagan is only going to be president for eight years at the most, but those around him have their own political plans that usually extend far beyond that. Beyond that. White House policy formu J lation inevitably involves congressional leaders, and the idea of gagging members of the Senate or House is laughable. Nothing is secret in this town if more than two people know about it, and sometimes even that is too many. Whatever the effectiveness of the gag order, the political imperative that inspired it is clear enough. Reagans greatest strength as a presi- dent, and as a potential candidate for in 1984, has been his image as a strong leader. Even those who don't agree with him recognize that he has projected the image of a president with definite goals in mind and definite plans to achieve those goals. But in the last few months that image has been blurred by the wretched condition of the economy and Reagans reaction to it. As it has become increasingly apparent that his theory hasnt done the original supply-sid- e trick, it also has become increasingly apparent that Reagan is stuck for another answer. On the contrary, he is still relying on the rhetoric that won him election in 1980 and carried him to such dramatic legislative vic- tories in 1981. Meanwhile, the world has turned several times. None of that has been lost on either the voters, as the opinion polls make clear, or the business community, as the level of business activity makes clear. This is a problem that will not be solved, however, by exercising greater control over White House press relations. It is too basic for that because it involves the beliefs that Reagan holds most deeply about both defense and domestic spending. And whether Reagan holds to those views or tempers them is going to be apparent to everyone when the budget for fiscal 1984 is sent to Congress later this month. There's no way to keep that secret. The real question, then, is the policy, not when and by whom it is disclosed to the public. (Copyright) Raymond Coffey For Solving the Nations Ills: Just Clear Out the Capital The Chicago Tribune WASHINGTON - Well, Speaker Tip O'Neill season tickets for lets throw not ton only caution but modesty to the winds: I think I've got a better idea for dealing with the recession, the federal deficit and unemployment than anything President Reagan has come up with lately. As you know, Reagan suggested a year or so ago that the countrys economic distress would pretty well disappear if only every church and church-goin- g family would adopt a family who had run into financial hard times. Then, more recently, he suggested the unemployment problem might be solved if only every business in the country would hire just one person whether, apparently, they could use him (or her) or not and even whether, apparently, that business, like so many thousands of others, was itself about to go over the cliff of bankruptcy. Then, once again, last week at his press conference, the president revived his slightly faded idea about how happy days would soon be here again if people would just read the help wanted ads in the newspapers. As perhaps you have noticed, none of these ideas have, uh, worked out. So. heres my idea: Every economist in America who has been predicting economic recovery would and take into their homes someadopt a Rewhere far away from Washington publican member of Congress. Every economist in America who has not been predicting economic recovery, and has, in fact, been gleefully forecasting gloom and doom and a Democratic presidential and take into victory in 1984, would adopt their homes somewhere equally far from a Democratic member of Washington Congress. Every representative of the "military-industricomplex" who has been pushing the Pentagon budget into the outer regions of outer space would adopt two (they can afford more than one) military procurement officers above the rank of colonel. Someone would give Reagan, "The Gipper, season tickets to Notre Dame's and Democratic House footbalj games Bos- College. If we got them all out of town, it seems to me, someone we haven't heard from yet might actually come up with an idea that might work. The people who presently are. and are supposed to be, in charge of putting things right are, obviously, overdosed on confusion and contradiction. Reagan, for instance, who used to go faint at the idea of federal deficit spending is now serene about the dead cinch prospect of running $200 billion or even $300 billion a year in the red as long as he doesnt have to raise taxes, except the ones he can call user fees. If we could get the whole load of them out of town and into foster homes and thinking about, as Reagan put it at last week's press conference, something more relevant than punting political footballs on third down, maybe we could get some good answers. Now, and finally. I have to confess one big weakness in this plan It would leave all the special Interest lobbyists still here and still in the game. But asking anyone to adopt one of them is more than even I would ask (Copyright) r |