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Pag* 6 NORTHWEST HERALD Section B Wednesday, September n, 1985 Opinion Illinois fight song Get ready for the fireworks. Illinois Attorney General Neil Hartigan formally announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for governor earlier this week. This comes as no sur­ prise, Hartigan has been cam­ paigning all year. What this does is set the stage for ait interesting Democratic gu­ bernatorial primary. Adlai Steven­ son has been making hoises about entering into the fray. He is ex­ pected to announce his decision later this month. A recent poll done by two major Chicago media outlets showed that if the primary were held today, 53 percent of potential Democratic voters would support Stevenson. Hartigan discounted the results of the poll, saying that other polls show him to be the stronger candi­ date against Republican incum­ bent James Thompson. From the barbs already thrown at each other by the two Demo­ cratic candidates, it appears likely that at least the primary will be a spirited affair. Such behavior from Stevenson is totally out of character. If you remember his campaign against Thompson in 1962, it often appeared that Stevenson was sleepwalking. Even with this som­ nambulist behavior, Stevenson was barely beaten by Thompson. Imagine what might happen if Ad­ lai really campaigns Imagine the interest that could be created for the general election if Stevenson and Hartigan throw the gloves off as they have threatened to do. A really rock'em-sock'em, bare knuckles street-brawl, campaign would be an interesting turn of events for our usually boring state elections. Protectionism, again In the auditorium of the old Na­ tional Republican Club on West 40th Street in New York City, there used to be a wonderful high- backed chair, no doubt used by the presiding officer on suitably mo­ mentous occasions around the turn of. the century. It was made of solid mahogany, elaborately carved with all sorts of scrolls and curlicues and upholstered in a du­ rable green baize. Centered at the top of the chair's high back, where it could easily be seen by all, was an inscription in gilt letters: '•PROTECTION - THE NA­ TION'S HOPE." I used to call that inscription to the attention of visitors, and we would chuckle at its antique charm. It never occurred to any­ one that we might live to see a day when protectionism would again become a respectable cause, politi­ cally speaking. And if it had, it would never have crossed our minds that its most zealous advo­ cates would turn out to be, not today's equivalents of the old mo­ guls of the National Republican « Club, but modish young members > iof the Democratic Party. The Democrats are casting about desperately these days for viable issues and the conviction is growing in many quarters that "trade" (which is simply the mod­ ern tag for the whole subject) is just what the doctor ordered. Pro­ tectionism appeals to the deepest instinct -- self-preservation -- of every businessman threatened by foreign competition, and these days that's a heck of a lot of busi­ nessmen. Better yet from the Democratic standpoint, it appeals just as much to those business­ men's employees and the unions that represent them. Rhetorically speaking, it can be put forward as a statesmanlike response to the country's huge and growing bal- ance-of-trade deficit. Last but not always least, it can be garnished with a little discreet xenophobia: Congressmen, after all, aren't afraid of the Tokyo vote, and some of them aren't above stirring up a bit of nationalistic animosity to- w ard Am er ica ' s o v ersea s competitors. Viewed strictly as a political is- William Rusher sue, in fact, protectionism has only 4>ne major flaw: It runs squarely counter to the interests of every American consumer. Every time Congress or the president acts to bar a foreign product, Americans who want to buy a product of that particular kind -- whether it be a car or a pair of shoes -- .must dig deeper in their pockets to pay for it. For that, at bottom, is what protectionism is: simply a subsidy paid by American consumers to American producers. Politically speaking, the distri­ bution of forces favors the protec­ tionists, because the threat to the businessmen and union workers in the endangered industries is mor­ tal and they are understandably vocal on the subject, whereas the consumers, though far more nu­ merous, are only nicked a little at a time -- 20 or 30 percent, say, on a pair of shoes, a few hundred dol­ lars on a car, etc. Nevertheless, the Democratic Party and its allies in the media, who virtually invented "consumer­ ism" as a new political football in the 1970s, have to be a little careful about deserting that celebrated cause too openly. 1 was amused to note that Andrea Mitchell, patrol­ ling the Western White House for NBC News recently, managed to do a whole segment on President Reagan's decision not to reduce Italian shoe imports without once mentioning the word "consumer." She all but wept over his cruel indifference to the plight of the American shoe industry, and even lugged in a suitably ominous refer­ ence to our large trade deficit; but that Mr. Reagan had moved effec­ tively to keep the cost of shoes from going up for all of us re­ mained, shall we say, her little secret. And where, by the way, is that great "consumer advocate" Ralph Nader, now that consumers really need him? Will he love them in December as he did in June? > (William Rusher is a columnist for Newspape r Ent erpr i s e * Association) (C^T KgX} y T vwmw (REWOfMStWWMWT) NORTHWEST HERALD "Our country right or wrong . When r igh t , t o be kept right; when wrong to be put right." Carl Shurz ROBERT A. SHAW Edi tor and Publ isher LEONARDM. INGRASSIA Execut ive Edi tor STEVEN H. HUNTER 4 Market ing Di rector KAREN A. ANDROS Saturday Edi tor MICHAEL E. MORSCH News Edi tor /Regional DENNIS M. McNAMARA Edi tor ia l Page Edi tor RONALD L . STANLEY Circula t ion Di rector 3 VSisssaBsr MAKEtM SHINE.. m mm Junkets: Let the sun shine in WASHINGTON - All 535 members of Congress are back in the capital now. And some of them ought to be ashamed of themselves. Today's topic, to put the matter politely, is authorized congressional foreign travel. To put the matter bluntly, the topic is junkets. Ac­ cording to U.S. News & World Report, 31 senators and 160 represen­ tatives have visited 65 nations since the first of this year. Much of that travel occurred in the August recess. Beyond question, much of this travel was entirely legitimate. It would take a real yahoo to condemn all congressional trips abroad. Members who are involved in foreign affairs can learn from face-to-face meetings more than can be learned in months of corespondence. For a specific example, Sen. Bob Dole may have accomplished more in terms of trade relations by his trip to Tokyo last month than he could have accomplished with 50 speeches on the floor. For another example, Sen, Jake Gam went to Shanghai, Hong Kong and Taipei last fall as chairman of the banking committee. He wanted reciprocal treatment for U.S. banks. He met the Chinese bankers eyeball to eyeball, and when they blinked he had his reciprocity. But when the propriety and usefulness of much foreign travel has been acknowledged, a great deal re­ mains to be said. It is equally beyond question that travel privileges often are abused, that members combine o f f i c i a l bus ines s w i th pr iva te pleasure, and that the taxpayers are g e t t ing roya l l y r ipped o f f . Fortunately, we have seen nothing this year that approaches the brazen conduct of Rep. Adams Clayton Powell 20 years ago. The Harlem congressman tapped funds of the House Education and Labor Commit­ tee to finance regular summer vaca­ tions in Europe. He was forever fly­ ing down to his beach house on Bimini island in the Bahamas. He turned up in Geneva with the title of "Congressional adviser"to the U.S. delegation to the International Labor Organization," and after a pleasant sojourn in that expensive city, he went on to the nightspots of Paris. The Rev. Powell, let it be said, was a cool cat. Powell's constituents were indif­ James J. B Kilpatrick • • m ' h ferent to his travels. After the House refused to seat him, the voters re­ elected him anyhow with an 84 per­ cent landslide. Other constituencies may not be so forgiving. As a breed, voters will tolerate almost anything from their elected public officials -- anything, that is, but living it up at the'taxpayers' expense. My guess is that Rep. Bill Alex­ ander will have some tall explaining to do back in the 1st District of Arkansas. He commandeered a 42- passenger Air Force jet to take him, his daughter, six associates and other factotums to Brazil for six days of studying alcohol fuel plants. It cost| taxpayers $56,000 for that airplane Alexander could have flown first class on Pan Am from Washington to Rio and back again for $3,682. The Alexander incident was excep­ tional but in some ways typical. Members customarily take their wives or children along. In time, the Air Force bills members for the cost of air transportation and reimburse­ ment is made, but many other ex penses fall through the cracks. The State Department picks up the cost of entertaining junketing members at our embassies around the world. It is fiendishly difficult to find out what all this costs. In 1983, the Better Government Association and United Press International went to court, in­ voked the Freedom of Information Act and struggled mightily to get at the truth. After months of dogged labor, ithey 'put together a figure of $22 million for foreign travel in I9ti2. If Oklahoma's Sen. Don Nickles has his way, at least this difficulty would be removed. He has introduc­ ed a bill that would compel iull disclosure of all costs, hidden and otherwise, of congressional travel abroad. All vouchers4would have to be filed in one place and m^de available for public inspection. Thfen, if a House delegation went to a pa r l i a menta ry co nference » in Brussels, but somehow made jin- termediate stops at Lisbon, Vienna, Copenhagen, Moscow, Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, the taxpayers might bet­ ter be able to ask, How come? The Nickles bill, it will not surprise you to know, has picked up no visible ^up- port at all. (James Kilpatrick is a columnist-for U niversal Press Syndy cate) * Reader Forum Real "Message" To the Editor: After reading an editorial col­ umn by Ben Wattenburg ("A Mes­ sage to Garcia") in the Saturday, Aug. 31 edition of the Northwest Herald, the message coming down my antenna is that Rep. Robert Garcia, D-N.Y. is engaged in an­ other wheelie-dealie attempt to pyramid waste and mediocrity in our nation's poverty programs. The time has come to put an end to this waste and stop recognizing "mediocrity" as a virtue. Unfortunately, mediocrity has become an acceptable standard in our national life. It is prevalent in government, industry, and in the owork ethics of the American wage earner. Socialism embraces and rewards it, organized labor pro­ tects it, and the consumer is gouged by it. Although Wattenberg did not mention it in his column, I suggest Rep. Garcia read the original "A Message to Garcia." A brief re­ sume of it explains that during the Spanish-American War, it was ur­ gent that our President contact General Garcia, a leader of the insurgents, who was somewhere in the mountains of Cuba. It was vital that someone get the message to Garcia quickly, due to the fact that mail or telegraphic communica­ tions were impossible. Someone mentioned to the Presi­ dent that there was a Lt. Rowan who could get the message to Gar­ cia if anyone could. Rowan was summoned, took the message, landed (in an open boat) by night off the coast of Cuba. He disap­ peared into the jungle, and in three weeks, came out the other side of the island. Rowan had accom­ plished the impossible by travers­ ing a strange and hostile country alone on foot, and delivered the message to Garcia. The point the story makes is that Rowan did not ask, "Where is Gar­ cia? How will I know him? How will I get there? Etc, etc. He sim­ ply took the letter and delivered the message to Garcia. One of the greatest problems facing our nation today is trying to find more Lt. Rowans. They are need in Congresss, in business, and in industry. George P. Kelly Genoa City, Wis. Red Cross appreciation To the Editor: On behalf of the Board of Direc­ tors, the staff, and the many volunteers of the American Red Cross, McHenry County Chapter, I want to publicly thank the Woodstock merchants who so generously con­ tributed items to be used as prizes in the recently-held Swim-A-Cross com­ petitions sponsored by the American Red Cross and NISRA. These mer­ chants include P.O. Knuth Co., Beard & S tova l l , F rames Me n ' s Wear , Ray Wolf Jewelers, Beyer's News Depot, Athletes in Motion, and Woodstock Gym & Slim Club. It is b&ause of businesses like these, along with all the people who took part in the Swim-A-Cross pro­ ject, that the Red Cross is able1 to maintain its leadership position , in the community, and to provide Ihe many important services that,, it does. ' ti* We at the Red Cross are so •ap­ preciative of the very good area backing we have enjoyed for so long Our organization is dedicated to con­ tinuing to provide the many helpful and necessary services we are known for, but we'll always need help f rom the com m uni ty to do i t ! Jeanne Miller Secretary Board of Directors Tired of griping To the Editor: I, for one, am tired of the almost month ly l e t t er s ma l ign ing o ur District 47 school board. Our boa _ m a de u p o f s om e o f Cr ys ta l Lak most dedicated and hardest-worki citizens, who unselfishly give of thl time and talents to try to give this' ty the best schools possibly. I am deeply offendecifwhen th public servants, who devote h dreds of hours of time and cost taxpayers nothing, are repe greeted with cynicism and ridicul Could it be that critics simply c n o t r e la t e t o p e o p l e who f ree ly g iv themselves and expect nothing p®" sonally in return? Our District 47 board is compo^td of just such people and I say "BIms them all." Nancy Emighljz Crystal Lake>^