LEAFY SPURGE: To the sour-puss critics of the bipartisan economic stimulus package agreed to by President Bush and congressional leaders. To hear the critics whine, it won't do a cotton-pickin' thing to avoid a recession. And while they giddily tear into the plan, they have no convincing alternative. Fact is, the stimulus package is part of a larger strategy - including continued lowering of interest rates - to address weaknesses in the U.S. economy. The stimulus is specific to consumer spending and business investment. Other remedies are being cobbled together to address the subprime mortgage crisis and inflationary pressures, which are being driven primarily by high energy prices. To conclude that the stimulus and other targeted fixes won't work is not terribly bright.
LEAFY SPURGE: To the presidential campaigns of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., which are saying one thing and doing another. Both candidates are trying to put themselves on the high road regarding questions of race and gender. But the subtext of their campaigns is race and gender, and their surrogates are working those hot-button topics for all they're worth. When some campaign operative lets slip a nasty comment about Obama's youthful indiscretions or Clinton's use of the gender card, voters can be sure they were not slips at all. The orchestrated dirty tricks most certainly have the OK from the candidates themselves. It's na?ve to believe otherwise.
PRAIRIE ROSES: To Republicans and Democrats who applauded the nomination and participated in the Senate committee hearing for former North Dakota Gov. Ed Schafer, the president's pick for U.S. secretary of agriculture. Last week's hearing was distinguished by the bipartisan nature of the event, which saw North Dakota's Democratic congressional delegation and prominent state Republicans on the same page regarding Schafer's nomination. It's also important to note that the delegation has worked hard to speed the confirmation vote in the full Senate so that the new secretary can attend the president's State of the Union address tonight.
PRAIRIE ROSES: To the U.S. Air Force which last week announced new procedures for the handling of nuclear weapons. The changes come on the heels of an incident that began at Minot (N.D.) Air Force Base when six nuclear-tipped missiles were flown across the country in violation of long-standing procedure. The mistake was serious and had ramifications from the base to the highest offices of the Pentagon. At least 70 airmen and officers were punished for the lapse. The new procedures include new levels of inspection and custody designed to keep a nuclear weapon in a clear and unbroken chain of accountability.
Forum editorials represent the opinion of Forum management and the newspaper's Editorial Board.
