European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 13, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse Monday december 13, 1993 commentary the stars and stripes Page 13 to steal a now that new Jersey democrats have dropped charges that the Campaign of it Christie Whitman attempted to suppress the Black vote by buying off ministers their party colleagues should have been consistent and declined to re indict Texas Republican sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison for a second time on charges that she used state phones and employees for private business while state treasurer. In new Jersey democrats at least had some grounds for pressing their investigation namely the Braggadocio of Whitman Campaign chief Edward j. Rollins or. But in Texas the motivation appears to be Petty politics. After dismissing the indictment against Hutchison on a technicality a new grand jury was Impan eled to consider the charges anew and it re indicted her on wednesday. The pungent odor of politics not the Sweet smell of Justice seems to be the driving Force behind District attorney Ronnie earless vendetta against Hutchison who some believe to be the greatest Republican threat in Texas history. The fact that ethics Laws Are selectively enforced is bad enough but the Texas grand jury process itself stinks. Called the Quot key Many system grand juries in Travis county Are selected this Way county judges All of whom Are elected democrats seem to pick their friends and acquaintances As jury commissioners these commissioners then seem to select their friends and acquaintances As grand jurors. Various Texas press reports have noted that the presiding judge who Impan eled the grand jury and ruled on Hutchisonn a motions contributed to the Senate Campaign of Robert Krueger whom Hutchison Defeated in a special election. One of the jury commissioners was a former assistant to the democratic District attorney and is currently a democratic officeholder. Another commissioner is the treasurer of the democratic judges current re election Campaign. In the grand Iai in do Rev mgt Milf a wet Lar of Whitman funds mwd1& sep pics m Buck vote in vat Kly by Luff up St it what a \ hot to mid atm Naffla i spr6m> slut off a Toumbs of tosses to cd floss. Of Iwest do wars / Man Toj just most Wolf tug jury that indicted Hutchison last september there were among 12 jurors 10 identifiable democrats and no republicans. Earle who sought the Senate seat that gov. Ann Richards gave to Krueger after Lloyd Bentsen became Treasury Secretary has refused All requests from Hutchison for an immediate trial on the original indictment and for her lawyers to appear before the new grand jury. He has said that a Quot consensus of grand jurors does no to want to hear them. Attempts by Hutchisonn a lawyers under the open records act to look into reports that Richards has 13 private phone lines and it. Gov. Bob Bullock has three a and whether ethics Laws might have been violated by the misuse of these or state phones a have been stonewalled. The response from Richards and Bullock has been that such records Are private. You dont have to be a political scientist to understand what is going on Here. Texas democrats want to drag the Case into next year to thwart Hutchisonn a re election bid. She is the first Republican to win every county in the state and democrats fear minority status. The filing deadline for the . Senate race is Jan. 3. Texas democrats would love to see the trial take place while the Senate is in session so that Hutchison would be forced to spend More time in Austin than Washington. A trial next year would also Drain away the time and Energy she needs to Campaign and put corruption charges in the headlines closer to election Day. The do cent thing would have been for the Travis county District attorney to drop the charges and let the democrats fight fairly in the next election. Democrats who seem to have declared bankruptcy in the idea department Are developing a reputation for underhanded tactics and vengeance when they fail to capture a majority of votes. They should Stop using to win elections in court that they have lost to the voters. New Jersey democrats gave up their fruitless attempts to invalidate their governors election. If Texas democrats think they have an ethics Issue let them make it in the court of Public opinion during the coming Campaign. Trying to steal an election retroactively is unfair and further erodes what Little Confidence remains in politics and lot Argals a to Mfrench have a Point in defending film Industry the Snag on the Gatt talks is not As easy to unravel As one would like nor As open and shut As . Negotiator Mickey Kantor would have us believe. Yes its True that the United states is subsidizing the French movie Industry. But the free markets envisioned in the general agreement on tariffs and Trade do not address the cultural question. As things now stand 57 percent of Box office receipts in France come from movies produced in Hollywood. The French Deal with this Quot coca colonization a of France As they used to Call it in two ways. The More direct Way is to impose an 11 percent tax on every ticket sold. Additional taxes on to movies and videocassettes raise $350 million a year and subsidize the French movie business which employs 70,000 workers. A French movie Industry spokesman does not disguise that this is what happens. And he says it with a wonderful gallic insolence Quot what is Good for France is Good for France because it is not Good for the United states and other that is More a Wisecrack than a Wise generality. It is True that if there is a finite sum to Divide Between John and Jim the More you give John the less Jim gets. But it is precisely the vision of free Trade that both parties Benefit from a transaction. So economically France does no to Prosper by adding to the consumer costs of going to the movies or by discouraging the Export of american products. The apparent Gam is Short term. The second Means by which the French seek to protect themselves is by limiting the hours during which entertainment can be shown on television. This is not exclusively a French form of cultural protectionism. In 1989, the european Community decreed that a majority of air time should be reserved for entertainment produced by its 12 members. On this Point Kantor is willing to negotiate but he swears that unless they drop the movie tax it is to Deal. If the Gatt people done to act by wednesday we will have a bureaucratic morass. On that Day the presidents License to authorize the entire agreement lapses and the Little protectionist piranhas in Congress Are set Loose a and the Ideal of free Exchange and the Corol Lary diplomatic advantages of it suffer a grievous blow but inasmuch As the passage of Gatt deserves top priority Kantor should ease up on the movie tax to begin with the service Industry has not been held to rigid accounting on the matter of free Trade. The reason for this is that the value of services is not As easy to quantify As Wood shingles or Rice. A nation properly concerns itself with cultural Aggras Sion. We done to permit for instance the importation of child pornography. To say that this is entirely different from categorical impositions on an entire Industry is simply to Point out that different countries have different approaches on cultural questions. During the past few weeks the canadians have been forbidding any traffic by any american Media reporting on a murder trial. The canadians Are also confiscating the Export by american companies of sex contrivances William f. Buckley judged to be degrading to Canadian women. The French go further. The theme As reported in the new York times is expressed by the actor Singer Renaud a a it a Dallas or French it does no to speak Well for the French in general to confess that they need French tariffs to protect themselves from Jurassic Park and Dallas but bad culture tends to drive out Good culture. It will not destroy Good culture but we Are required to acknowledge that Good culture needs to be subsidized. The opera the symphony orchestra the Ballet the museum the gallery arc All subsidized. In America the subsidy is overwhelmingly provided by the private sector but As a nation prepared to subsidize pcs and artists and intellectuals via the National endowment programs we can hardly accuse the French of the simple crime of patronizing their own movie Industry. It is the Means by which they do it that offends us. But since the French people Are paying the movie tax Isnit it they who Are being conned into protecting their own movie Industry Daniel tuscan de plan tier the president of unit Rance the association that promotes French films tells us that when the French can Lay claim to 10 percent of the . Movie Market gladly give up Pineir tax. That Isnit going to happen in the foreseeable future so the Clinton administration is Best off swallowing its Pride on this one. C Universal pies Syndicate
