Stand Fast

THE MAJORITY opinion does a fairly decent job of glorifying Congressional opponents to the President's budget proposals as champions of ordinary passed vigilant against Reagan's "hatchet job on several programs." Sadly, it seems that the message heard resoundingly at the polls only a month ago has been lost on everyone but the President. We can only hope he stands fast in the months to come on his pledge to millions of hard-working Americans to restrain the growth of federal spending, even in the face of overwhelming "conventional wisdom" in the little world of Washington that "it just can't be done."

In fact, the budgetary process occurring this winter shows that the mandate Reagan's been given twice does indeed have a chance of fulfillment, and that the ever spiralling growth of federal spending does not have a life of its own. The Administration has looked at savings from across the board, and not just at "necessary social programs." Savings are being sought from sources as disparate as farm price supports and "non-means-tested" veterans' medical coverage. Middle-class goodies, especially student aid, will feel the pinch as well, while much of the savings in Medicare are even now being realized by a cost-cutting incentive program which most experts laud as the most beneficial government program in decades. In short, while many particular ones are set to be gored, Reagan's oft-cited onslaught against the "safety net" just isn't happening.

To put it simply, it's exhilarating to witness a government engaged in the arduous process of actually looking at each and every expenditure of the taxpayers' money. Hopefully every sector of the federal budget will feel pressure to save, including defense. The days are over when Congress can treat the American economy like a bottomless pit of resources from which to fund every program imagination can dream up. Ronald Reagan deserves a great deal of credit for putting back into the political agenda the notion that government should be responsive to the electorate, and that the federal budget cannot inevitably acquire a momentum uncontrollable by our elected representatives in Congress.