European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - August 29, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes saturday August 29.1987 Tom Wicker Reagan about face on arms Issue applauded president Reagan has decide to Back away from his Tough Guy de mands for on site verification of the pro posed soviet american treaty Bannin medium and Short Range missiles. Arms control advocates if tempted to laugh in derision should stifle the impulse. The temptation May arise because on site inspection has been for so Long a club with which hard liners liked to beat the russians Over the head. Now it s the United states refusing to accept such inspections on its territory and for the same reason the soviet Union used in give that they would offer Opportunity for spying by the other Side. The inspection Reagan originally pro posed May Welt have been offered be cause the administration at one time believed the russians never would accept them to no treaty could be agreed upon. That would be in keeping with the record As car Back As the Truman administration when the so called Baruch plan for International control of nuclear weapons included intrusive inspection provisions that Stalin s soviet Union obviously would not accept. Nevertheless the temptation to laugh has to be resisted because Rea Anthony Lewis Gan s about face is More than an important step toward the medium and Short Range missile treaty. It will also improve prospects for More far reaching agreements by helping a suspicious american Public to understand that Whai president Nixon called adequate no infallible verification is sufficient for National Security. The inability of Nikita Khrushchev s government and the Kennedy administration to agree on the number of permitted on site inspections prevented conclusion of a comprehensive test ban treaty a Quarter Century ago. On Sile inspection again was a primary problem when president Carter almost but not quite negotiated a similar treaty. In both cases the soviet Union had accepted the principle of on site inspection though that Seldom has been acknowledged in the United states. The Reagan administration s spokesmen have explained that soviet agreement to a worldwide ban on medium and Short Range missiles with Nei ther Side retaining any such missiles in Reserve eased the verification problem for the proposed treaty. The administration had promised to water Down its verification demands if the soviet Union agreed to the total ban and thus ii has withdrawn a proposal for each nation to station inspectors outside missile production and Assembly facilities on the other s territory. That does t explain however the president s willingness to limit sharply his previous proposals for Challenge inspections on Short notice at the sue of suspected treaty violations. Those proposals would have allowed either Side to Hryc Access virtually on demand 10 a wide Range of defense facilities on he other s National territory. The Washington Post quoted an unnamed senior . Official As explain ing that american intelligence agencies including the Cia and the Fri believed they had been snookered into going along with the possibility of such inspections on . Soil. Administration conservatives this source said had persuaded the agencies that the russian would not accept the Challenge inspections. Moscow surprised he administration however by accepting again the principle of such inspections Al though it had not agreed to specific . Proposals. American intelligence Agen cies thus feared that further negotiations might result in soviet inspectors gaining Access to sensitive defense installation in this country. Britain and West Ger Many also objected to extensive an sit inspections on their soil. Thus the new . Proposals Limi Challenge inspections to a Small number of medium and Short Range missile Sile All in the soviet Union or the Unile Stales none in Western or Eastern Europe and Only for 5 to 10 years after the destruction of these missiles. These developments offer the Best Eye Denic yet hat president Reagan despite his militant remarks in los Angeles wednesday really docs warn to Climax his administration with an arms control treaty and is wilting to make pragmatic adjustments in his Long held positions which seem More instinctive than Rea soned in order to achieve it. That s Why arms control advocates have More reason to applaud than laugh. Conservative hard liners naturally will shriek and scream betrayal but it will be hard for them to convince me rest of the country that Ronald Reagan is soft on communism or National Security Moo fart. To not Ntow sri How judge Bork views Powers of the president the Iran Contra affair has just reminded us of a reality of modern american government to a degree quite unforeseen by the framers of the Constitution us president has the initiative in our system. He acts Congress reacts. Power is entered in the Whitehouse. So is the risk of its abuse. A supreme court nominee s approach to issues of presidential Power is therefore highly significant. Judge Robert Bork has made his exceptionally Clear. He lakes a sweeping View of whal presidents can do beyond the control of Congress or the courts. Some examples As a Law professor in 1978 Bork test fed against a Hill to control electronic surveillance in this country of americans or aliens suspected of foreign intelligence activity. The Bill called for a special court to Issue warrants. Bork said the president had Power As com Mander in chief to order such wiretapping and eaves dropping and it was unconstitutional 0 limit his Power by requiring warrants. Bork predicted that the Bill would put an impossible Burden on judges and result in leaks. Congress passed it the Taw has worked smoothly and Tutere Nave Burnno leaks. The Man Bork has been nominated to replace jus Tice Lewis f. Powell jr., look a very different View on the related Issue of internal Security surveillance. Writ ing for a unanimous court in i 972, Powell held that warrants were constitutionally required in such  rejected the government s claim that internal Security matters Are too Subtle and Complex for  la 1971, during the Vietnam War Bork wrote in the american journal of International Law that con Gress had no Power to keep president Nixon from sending troops into Cambodia As he had done of con Gress permits . Military activity in a Region he said. It cannot limit the commander s discretion id Send troops into this country or that. Bork dissented last year when the court of appeals gave a narrow Reading to a statute that lets the executive exclude foreign visitors when their visits might be prejudicial to the Public  he emphasized the need for deference to the president s great Power in foreign affaire. That decision Abourezk v. Reagan will be reviewed by the supreme court. As a judge he has taken a very strict View of standing the status needed for anyone to gel Access to the courts. In 16 cases in which his court has been divided on the right of Access he voted every time Loden it. If no one can gel to court to Challenge a governmental action then of course the executive can carry on without having to defend its lawfulness. In 1984 a bipartisan group of senators and re pc sent Alives sued to Challenge what president Reagan claimed was a Pockel veto of legislation. The Issue was whether he could kill a Bill by simply not signing it without returning it to the Capitol when Congress was in a temporary recess. The court of appeals held that he could not that a pocket veto could be done Only after Congress had adjourned. Bork dissenting argued thai the members of Congress had no standing to raise the Issue in a Law suit. Lei them fight it out politically he said. Again there is a contrast with Powell. He wrote in 1979 that it was belter for the courts to resolve a dispute Between the other branches of government than to let Congress and the president Bailie on in Mutual  in 1975, As solicitor general Bork declined to take to the supreme court an earlier court of appeals decision limiting the pocket veto. But he also refused to accept the decision As a general Nile. Sen. Edward m. Kennedy the plaintiff in the Case denounced Whai he called presidential imperialism president Ford settled Hal dispute in 1976 by saying he would use he pocket veto Only when Congress had finally adjourned. Secrecy is an important element in the Power of the Modem presidency. In nine cases in which the court of appeals divided on issues of Access to govern ment information Bork voted in every Case to Den Access. Finally there is judge bark s Well known View that a special prosecutor Independent of the president is unconstitutional. In his opinion the separation of Powers is so absolute a doctrine that Only a president can direct the investigation of his own wrongdoing Orris subordinates. A newspaper column cannot begin la detail Bork views on presidential Power. Nor in fairness can it convey the eloquence or passion of his words. But for anyone concerned with the delicate balance of Power and Freedom in our system the consistent thrust Ofhie views in one direction must be troubling. 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