To the Point

Bush's 2007 Budget: Guns and Butter in an Election Year

The hundreds of billions of dollars involved in President Bush's latest budget are beyond the comprehension of most American taxpayers and most of the beneficiaries of federal programs. It proposes to cut domestic programs and increase defense spending, with still more money later on for Iraq and Afghanistan. The White House plan would also make tax cuts permanent and increase the deficit. Is defense spending driven by real security needs, the requirements of big corporations that live on federal contracts, or both? We look at who's likely to be called on to sacrifice in this election year and who stands to gain after Congress takes action, and get two contrary views on the money that goes to the Pentagon. Making News: WTO Says Europe Must Accept Genetically Modified CropsA new survey shows that Europeans are more worried about genetically modified food than terrorism, but yesterday the World Trade Organization reportedly ruled against government bans on genetically engineered imports. Justin Gillis, who writes on biotechnology for the Washington Post, says Europe's concerns over genetically modified crops range from safety to the environment. Reporter's Notebook: Evangelists Call for Global Warming Initiative, Splitting FaithfulBritish Prime Minister Tony Blair said today that the world has just seven more years to take action before it's too late to counteract global warming. Sweden has pledged to wean itself off oil completely in the next 15 years. Now, 86 American evangelical leaders are backing a major initiative to fight global warming, even though they're taking flak from some of their colleagues. Reverend Jim Ball is Executive Director of the Evangelical Environmental Network.