European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - January 14, 1989, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars and stripes William Safire Reagan started Strong but faded in the stretch Jay Sullivan the Racehorse used to thrill he silk his fans with a come from behind Rush in the Homestretch sometimes. I used the analogy of Silky s unpredictable finish i rooting for Ronald Reagan in the primaries of 1976 and 1980, when the principled californian was challenging the Republican establishment. Was Ronald Reagan like Silky Sullivan on a goodday let s see in Domestic affairs Reagan was at his Peak when his poll rating was at its lowest in the Depths of the 81- 82 hard times. Reagan s recessi9n, made deeper by his refusal to use fiscal stimulation was the harsh cure required by the nation s feverish inflation. Reagan exuded optimism and Confidence through the pain until the breaking of inflationary expectations and the Long Range stimulus of his tax Cut propelled the Economy to its recovery and years of stable growth. In politics you Don t take credit for a recession you blame the fed but in history you get credit for imposing austerity to right the ship. Although reaganomics gave voodoo a bad name the decision to slash tax rates rejuvenated free enter prise. Liberal critics Grump that the cuts were the Caus of the unprecedented deficit but the fact is that the cuts stimulated growth to bring in More tax revenues As Supply siders predicted. On defense he continued a buildup begun by the belatedly disillusioned Jimmy Carter. But Reagan would not expend the political capital of his popularity by urging the compensating Domestic cuts like Lyndon Johnson but on a grander scale he preferred red Ink Toa hard Choice Between guns and butter. A democratic Congress shares the blame but the Reagan refusal to reduce the rate of spending increase burdened the coming generation with a whopping Cost of debt serv ice. In his remarkable first term he came up with the idea of an end to the outmoded Mutual assured destruction and put Forward his plan for a shield against nuclear missiles. Though Pooh poohed As Star wars by the arms control crowd Reagan s strategic defens initiative helped Force new thinking in the Kremlin which had stolen a March on offensive Missi Lery. He refused to give up the ability to test during the All night Crapshoot at Reykjavik and now that we see West German Tode Kramer making missile technology available to terrorist states the concept of a rudimentary shield in place within the next decade looks All the More prudent. Hard liners were proud of Early Reagan with his James Kilpatrick rejection of our slide into a Law of the sea treaty lost that would have socialized the sea Bottom we were gratified by his willingness to use military Power in Small doses in Grenada and Libya and were moved by his personal Grace under fire we were elated at the evil Empire rhetoric because it brought moral pres sure to Bear on International mischief making in Afghanistan Nicaragua Angola and the Middle East As Well As within the soviet Union. But then came late Reagan a 1984 Campaign  followed by the tolerance of Deaver sleaze a distancing from decision making a soft hearted self delusion that hostages could be ransomed with arms and nobody would notice an inability to hold regular news conferences a lust for lie detection and a late fixation on the imagery of peacemaking to ensure his place in  one result of this debilitation was his love affair with Mikhail Gorbachev. In Reagan s late life crisis personality swallowed policy. Like the failing Roosevelt with Uncle Joe at Yalta the american president saw himself and his soviet counterpart As individuals of personal Charm and Power Able to leap historical chasms rather than As temporary leaders of antithetical movements Able to make adjustments to Lessen tension. He professed to see in Gorbachev s eyes an end tothe soviet goal of world dominance in the final fort night of his presidency As the official spokesman of the soviet Union accused the . Of state terror ism the out of it Reagan was lamely insisting that the incendiary charge had not passed the lips of Gorba Chev. We assess leaders in the Light of other leaders. Rea Gan s reputation was enhanced because he was not the Uckless Johnson the mysterious Nixon the fumbling Ford the hapless Carter. But neither was he Silky sul Livan on a Good Day closing with a Rush. Realistic historians will remember Ronald Raganas a near great first term president who tired and faded in the stretch. C new York times . Court ruling has far reaching ramifications  mighty Little difference when you come to recognize the Gay rights coalition officially " but is the District of Columbia and  judge Royce c. Lamberth. The Case has mean ing beyond the Potomac. These were the circumstances in 1977, the  Council which is perhaps the most Liberal legislative body this Side of Sweden adopted a human rights act. The Law undertakes to prohibit discrimination on every conceivable ground including  because Georgetown University benefits from Public funds the University was caught within the Law s embrace. But Georgetown is an institution closely affiliated wit the roman Catholic Church. The Church s teaching on the matter of homosexuality is explicit homosexuality Isa mortal sin condemned by god s commandments. Nevertheless a Gay rights coalition sprang up at George town. Citing the human rights act the group demanded the same recognition facilities and support the University accords to other student groups. The University understandably refused the de Mand. It was As if a condom club had been formed to promote birth control. Without violating its Clear religious convictions Georgetown could not possibly have condoned the Gay rights coalition. Whatever constitutional right a student May have to be a practising homosexual he has no constitutional right to be student at Georgetown. The students sued and the students won. A local court ruled last March that Georgetown did not have Colorado sen. Bill Armstrong found the decision outrageous. He successfully introduced an amendment to the . Appropriations act. His amendment directed the District 19 adopt a further Law providing that religious institutions could not be required to accommodate any group organized to promote a Homo sexual lifestyle. Failure to adopt this further Law would Cost the District its $3.2 billion Federal appropriation. The District City Council walked. All 13 Mem Bers joined in a suit asserting that the Armstrong amendment violated their constitutional rights of free speech they were being coerced and intimidated into voting against their convictions the Armstrong amendment therefore was unconstitutional. On . 13 judge Lamberth handed Down an Opin Ion upholding the Council s position. The court did not question the Power of Congress to adopt the Arm Strong amendment by direct legislation. But members of a City Council do not Park their constitutional right sat the Gates of City Hall. Their rights include the Nehf to vote  " now the judge s View of free speech is a View that might mildly be described As novel. Armstrong Calls it bizarre and off the  you will recall humpty Dumpys magisterial assertion in through the looking Glass when i use a word it Means just what i choose it to mean neither More nor less " the colloquy continued. �u11ilfi�-1vu111uiy w111u11 isto be master that s  Over the past 30 or 40 years both Congress and the Federal courts hundreds of times have ordered legislators to vote in particular ways or suffer the consequences judge Lamberth himself touched and in stantly brushed aside the example of Yonkers a a re v s District judge Leonard b. Sand or dered the local Council to vote his Way or bankrupt the or Ita time Congress has conditioned the Grant of Federal funds upon the enactment of specific state or local legislation. If state Legislatures did not Lse the Legal age for drinking or did not comply with Speed limit directives off with their Heads or at least off with a part of their Highway funds. Lamberth s opinion puts All such orders and enact just Jeo a Ryu if pkg slaters have As he said a in Huv Nal Glt a vote freely " now can they be coerced to vote As judges or congressmen decree and the t a by Portal Issue where stands religious Ioeny it a local Council May interpret Liberty to mean whatever it says last week Armstrong announced that the Lamberth pc 51 be Appe aled in time we will find out which is to be master that s All. C Universal press Syndicate the opinions expressed in the columns and cartoon son this Page represent those of the authors and Are in no in c considered As representing the views of the and stripes or the United states government