Polk County Enterprise (Livingston, Tex.), Vol. 105, No. 30, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 16, 1987 Page: 4 of 32
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EDITORIAL
PM»M
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1WK PINK nfl'NTV ENTERPRISE
Bush's thorn
State Capital Highlights
If you want to be president of the United States,
being vice |>resident can be awkward. That is the
situation George Bush finds himself in these days,
and he may be thinking of some predecessors.
Vice President Hubert Humphrey lost to
Richard Nixon in 1968 because he could not
criticize President Lyndon Johnson on the Viet*
nam War issue. He was dammed if he did and
damned if he didn't.
Funner Vice President Walter Mondale un-
dubtedly lost votes to Ronald Reagan in Wt*
because he was tarred with President Jimmy
Carter’s administration.
Ami now Bush is in political trouble because he
cannot disassociate himself from Reagan’s Iran-
Contra Brins dccit*
Bush tried timidly to distance himself by saying
that he had reservations about the arms sales. But
he was not convincing.
Then the president said that Bush had sup-
ported the arms sale plan. And Bush had no choice
but to say that Reagan was telling “the truth.”
If he wants the president’s political support,
Bush must go down the line with his leader. If he
docs this, however, he ties himself to a failed and
unpopular policy.
Unfortunately for Bush, the debate will net go
away before the primaries. And if he is to have
credibility as a candidate, he will have to speak
out candidly and tell the American people just
what his role was.
< Reprinted by permission of the Scottsdale
fAriz.l Progess)
The pressure is on
. ______•• I1.U____jutnt- Partner. D-Porl
By LYNDIU WILLIAMS
Texas Press Assoclatiee
and tedious as senators try to worts program, P» "tier, D-Fort Worth,
refashion the bill on the floor. P»™g the program to the f^ral ATftT frMatotiM
Crisis plan sought nvPAt ereated^duriniTthe^pres- Senators approved by one vote a
AUSTIN - The Texas Senate is State Treasurer Ann Richards, g Def>ns pton ,0 deregulate AWT. the only
xrMwf SgSggjg
over the new taxes ceiling he set
Politically, It’s not pretty, but the
Senate Finance Committee last
week approved a $39.4 billion budget
that is either too fat or too lean,
depending on who’s talking, and sent
it to the floor for debate.
In the House, leaders said the
Senate bill is too expensive, but
members expect to report out a bill
only $1 billion less, still over the
governor’s ceiling.
Some senators doubted their ver-
sion contains enough money for
education and the prison system, but
agreed it was the only way to get a
bill oat of committee.
The debate is expected to be tougli
money in the fall.
Richards says key questions con-
cerning how much law enforcement
to keep, or which life-supporting
hospitals to maintain, may have to
be decided by legislation.
Certainly, her sobering reminder
to lawmakers had an effect on their
actions.
Public works bonds
Meanwhile, I,t. Gov. Bill Hobby
and others met with Clements to
discuss a $1.1 billion public works
idea to spread costs of expensive
water and facilities projects.
“Texas is in an absolutely classic
situation for an accelerated public
general obligation bonds for prison
construction, $400 million for water
development projects and $400
million in a state loan program for
local public facilities.
“The aim is Job creation,” said an
official in Hobby’s office. "The state
will have 3 million more people, 20
million people, by 1W0."
The package, called the “Build
Texas Program," contains three
separate proposed constitutional
amendments. The three senators
sponsoring those amendments are
Bob McFarland. R-Arlington, John
Montfbrd, D-l-ubbock, and Hugh
that the sponsor
"schizophrenic.”
Currently, A TAT can raise or
lower its rates within a narrow
range without asking permission
from the Public Utilities Commis-
sion. Hie new bill aflows ATAT to
lower rates without PUC approval,
but if commissioners suspect aa
anti-competition situation, the PUC
can investigate and invalidate flie
rates.
.V
A
ftSBgtoy.
Amnesty cost
The House passed a package of
economic development bills, in-
cluding three proposed constitu-
tional amendments to end tie Male
ban on investing tax money and
state credit in private businesses.
One bill creates a Texas Depart-
ment of Commerce to make teufawu
loans.
The House also approved legisla-
tion to allow the State Board af In-
surance to watch more ctoaely Ike
job-safety programs of teamse*
companies.
Also approved was a measure
allowing judges to order the install*
tion of Breathaliser equipment on
car ignitions of persons convicted of
DW1.
Solin' people arc never satisfied.
1 „-isf year Congress passed an immigration -
reform bill unprecedented in scope and compas-
sion It was unprecedented in another direction as
well. For the first time it offered legal residency
and eventual citizenship to untold millions who
had entered the country illegally. Applications
will begin on May &. .
Yet what is being heard from organized
Hispanic interest groups as the amnesty ap-
proaches? It is disgruntled carping about the
complexity and the costs. of legalization. ^ ^
The law is complicated, matteJioby a Congress
suiKTsensltive to balancing divergent political
and economic interests. As for the cost, it is com-
parable to what is required of persons who enter
the United States legally and sock perinanenl
stilus
The legalization fee - $185 per individual or $420
maximum per family ** is less than what uwjO'
aliens paid smugglers to get them across the
bolder. To cx|>ccl U.S. taxpayers in general to T iAfffnalar
fund the costs of granting residency rights to il- »
cOWVnwJSs
Other HighUgbt*
•A We»l Texas Judge rated in
favor of the state in a dtopute ever
millions In royalties from the Yates
Field, and the Texas General Land
Office could collect up to $13 mlBton.
•Out-of-state businesses huve been
buying troubled Texas businesses st
record rates. Last year, 114 Texas-
based companies were acquired by
non-Texas interests, compared to 71
in IMS.
•Meanwhile, farmland prices to
Texas dropped an average 11 per
cent last year, compared to a 17 per-
cent decline in 1M5.
•The Texas House heard a plan to
give property tax exemptions to
mothballed offshore drilling rigs,
which are usually moved to non-
Texas waters to avoid such taxes
Owners spend 1500 to $3509 daily to
maintain mothballed rigs which
could mean more Jobs in Texas.
Another stab
'Bugging' nothing new
By ALAN MILLER
l4 poverty could be legislated away, our welfare
system would have withered into obsolescence
overhaul welfare, to get the poor of the dole and
into jobs tht will make them prodtK-bve^lf;
sufficicnl individuals. Yet, the goal of federal
welfare reform remains as elusive today as it was
in the late 1960s when Sen. Daniel Moynihan,
D-N.Y., launched the crusade.
Elusive, but no less alluring.
Congress is ready to try again. Earlier in
March, Rep. Harold E. Ford, D-Tenn., unveiled a
sweeping proposal that would replace Aid for
Families with Dependent Children with a com-
bination of job training, employment eounscllng
and work-for-wclfarc program. A proposal on the
Senate silk would give states bonuses for moving
welfare recipients into the private job market.
Cost is onr factor. Federal legislators should
look carefully at the welfare reform efforts in
Massachusetts, California and other states. They
must ask whether the benefits from the programs
justify their enormous price tag - especially when
the federal government is confronted with stag-
gering budget deficits. .
In California, where the GAIN welfare rrtorm
program is just getting under way, many counties
are finding they’re going to spend niore money in
remedial education than previously estimated.
That could drive up the cost of this attempt togel
people off welfare, which already is expected to
run the state 1288 million next year.
Why not concentrate our resources on the
welfare receivers who need the most help? And
why not relieve some of the conditions that cause
people to drop ini * welfare in the first place?
Boosting the minimum wage, extending public
health iiwurance to the working poor and expan-
ding child care automatically win help ma* f*ter
families off the welfare rolls.
Walked in the boose ihe other
night after work, and there’s Susie
with her dog food all packed. Stan
ding at the buck door with that deter-
mined look we’ve grown to know so
well.
We want to know what’s up? Why
this sign of sudden departure?
She says she’s going to Join Uie
Marines. She heard they apparently
let some Russian floozies get them in
trouble in Moscow, and she felt some
cuddly comfort from her might keep
those good looking guys from stray-
She wondered if that was what Mr.
Baker did when he came to our
house. That lie said he was a debug-
ger
There really wasn’t much new go- history. And a bunch of okl men In
ing on in the world. Only new the State Department and Pentagon
reporters who hadn't read their who had forgotten theirs.
s said it wasn’t fair that a bunch
ef good looking American boys
should be sent overseas to guard
- American diplomats, and be forced
-to play backgammon and work
crossword pozzies in their spare
timr.
She wondered if what she had
heard about Marines was true. She’d
seen all those television commer-
cials that file Corps used to entice
new recruits.
Were they really as tough in bat-
tles as everyone said?
We assured her that was true.
That during World War Two we had
seen a lot of fighting Marines at flint
hand. They were tough all right.
We did mention that she was a lit-
tle rash in thinking her four-footed
comfort was going to resolve any
possible repetition oT the spy scandal
in Moscow.
That we found It a tittle hard to
believe flat Marines or anyone else
could Nve like monks for months at a
time and not be attracted by some
female snuggling up with dabs of
Coco perfume behind each ear.
We really thought there was more
.1 •
No, Mr. Baker was after bug-bugs.
Not electronic bugs.
She said wasn’t it a tittle uncouth
for people to go around listening to
other people's conversations?
We said that attitude got us in a
bunch of trouble before World War
Two. There were folks then who
thought it was not proper to read
other people’s mail. Probably ex-
plained in part why Pearl Harbor
was such a surprise to so many of us.
That if we weren't attempting to
bug the Russians to the same extent
they were trying to bug us, we ought
to have our head examined.
The Russians were apparently one
up on us In that they had their bugs
in place, and Just thought they'd add
a few girls to the espionage equa-
POLK COUNTY
ENTERPRISE
ALVIN HOLLEY, PUBLISHER
Telephone Number 327-4357
USPS 437-340
i-
Entered aa Second-Ctem Matter at the Poet Office at Uvtagatoo, Itetm
77361 under the Act of Congress of Much S, UR.
EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT
tion.
And what better group to go after
than a bunch of single young men a
long way from home who might have
Just got a Dear John letter? Doesn’t
take an idiot to figure out that might
work. ,
We reminded her that all this
palaver about bugs in the embassies
and good looking women blowing in
a Marine’s ear was probably Just a
lot of clap-trap from some folks who
don’t want to see us talking to the
Russians about arms control.
We said listening devices had been
around for so long we were amazed
that it could be a headline story
anymore. That aU the reporters
gushing about it today must have
missed all their college history
courses. Probably chasing girls with
Coco behind their ears when they
should have ben totting the books.
She wanted to know if we were
really going to tow down that new
embassy we were building In
Beatrice Hall, Spectel Oomepandcnl
Van Thomas, Sparta Editor
Greg Peak, Area New* Editor
Don Hendrix, Spectel Sections Editor
Sherry Fstcraon, Living Section Editor
Mike Waters, Darkroom Technician
Kenneth Schmidt, Pbotographar
PRODUCTION DBPAR1MCNT
Beamon Goodwin, Roger Holder, Paul Holey
Martha (TBeumon, Nolds W
CIRCULATION DEPARTMENT
tflnervteer
la Weemas
ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT
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sow. That from looking at pictures ef
It we were sure it waa a new prison
design thought op for the Texas
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leftflei
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White, Barbara. Polk County Enterprise (Livingston, Tex.), Vol. 105, No. 30, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 16, 1987, newspaper, April 16, 1987; Livingston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth795771/m1/4/: accessed July 9, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Livingston Municipal Library.