To the Point

Budget Shortfalls Falling Short on Public Services

To avoid the political fate of his father, President Bush is turning from military success in Iraq to America's struggling economy. Washington's allowed to go into debt, so he can advocate both tax cuts and spending. Even the Wall Street Journal reports that President Bush and Congress have it easy. But states and local governments have to make the kind of agonizing choices that hurt everybody-the people whose services get cut, the taxpayers whose bills go up, and the politicians who have to make voters angry. With a cumulative budget gap of $68 billion, some tough choices are being made all over the country between increased taxes or reductions in public service. Do Americans still want public services? Are they willing to pay the cost? We hear what voters want most in New York, Texas and California. Making News: New Palestinian Cabinet Formed Just hours before a midnight deadline, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat agreed to a new cabinet to be led by Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen. If the Palestinian parliament approves, that will keep alive the so-called -road map- favored by President Bush. Justin Huggler reports from Jerusalem for the Independent of London. Reporter's Notebook: Azar Nafisi on Literary Life under the Mullahs As Iraq struggles to form a new government, some leaders of its Shia majority are demanding a religious state like that of neighboring Iran. A new book by a college professor expelled from Iran for refusing to wear the veil, describes the repression of women after the Islamic revolution, and the refuge some were able to find in Western literary fiction. Azar Nafisi is a visiting fellow at the Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies and author of Reading Lolita in Tehran.