To the Point

The Half-Trillion-Dollar Budget Deficit Dilemma

In the days of Presidents Bush, Sr. and Bill Clinton, -deficit- was a dirty word, and it took more than a decade to build a surplus of $334 billion. Now, in less than three years, that-s turned into another deficit of $455 billion. Yet, instead of the promises of fiscal prudence that we heard in the 90-s, Republicans want to extend the tax cuts and both parties advocate increased spending. Will President Bush have some explaining to do during next year-s election campaign, or do the voters still care? We hear the pros and cons of deficit spending and what-s happened to a hot-button political issue since September 11, from a fiscal policy watchdog, the representatives of two independent research firms that specialize in US and global economies and public policy issues. Making News: Saddam Hussein-s Sons, Uday and Qusay, Possibly Killed In the northern city of Mosul today, American forces may have killed two of the -most-wanted- Iraqis. Although the identity of four badly charred bodies has not been released, two of the dead are thought to be the sons of Saddam Hussein, Uday and Qusay. Both the President and the Pentagon have refrained from comment. Ann Scott Tyson, defense correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor, updates the story from Baghdad. Reporter's Notebook: Waiting to Intervene in Liberia? Yesterday in Monrovia, angry Liberians accused President Bush of failing to send troops to end the violence in their country. Today, the White House said Mr. Bush has still made no final decision about a peacekeeping role. Has the US missed a critical opportunity to intervene and stem the violence? We hear from two journalists, including one in the Liberian capital, and former State Department officials from the Clinton and Reagan administrations. We also hear from a journalist at the State Department about the political impact of the death of Saddam Hussein-s two sons.