For the Record

Report Card, Year One: Not since Lyndon Johnson has a U.S. President gotten his way with Congress as often as Ronald Reagan: 82 per cent of the votes Reagan called “important” went his way. It was 76.5 for Carter, 67 for Nixon. (LBJ, after Goldwater landslide, scored a big 93 per cent with a solidly Democratic Congress.) . . . Among Democratic senators, the most recalcitrant was Carl Levin (Mich.), who opposed Reagan 63 per cent of the time, followed by Eagleton (Mo.) and Sarbanes (Md.). Among Republicans, you guessed it, Lowell Weicker (Conn.) was biggest naysayer, followed by Mathias (Md.)—should we saw off Maryland? —and Roth (Del.). . . . Senate Minority Leader Robert Byrd summed it up, from his viewpoint: “A dismal year.” Said Speaker Tip, over in the House: Yep, “Congress gave the President everything he wanted.” . . . The people kind of liked him and her. In Gallup’s year-end rating of Most Admired Men and Women, Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II top the men’s list, Nancy Reagan and Margaret Thatcher the women’s. . . . Other polls: Roper finds seven out of ten Americans believe tax money that goes for “human services” is not used well. New York Times / CBS finds that 51 per cent of. the people feel Reagan’s economic programs have hurt the economy, but 60 per cent think they will eventually help the nation. . . . New York Times reports that for first time since end of WWII government employment (federal, state, local) is down —by close to a third of a million. . . . And, although the grumbling about cuts in guaranteed student loans was horrific, more students enrolled in college last September (12.1 million) than ever before.

A month into 1982, and politics is popping out all over. In New Jersey, Rep. Millicent Fenwick (ADA 53, ACU 34) made it official: She’ll run in the Republican senatorial primary in New Jersey. Jeff Bell’s announcement came a week later. Early polls show Fenwick slightly ahead of Bell, but former Rep. Andrew Maguire (the first Democrat to announce) thinks he’ll be facing Bell in November. … In Massachusetts, businessman Ray Shamie is running hard against Ted Kennedy, has already raised a half-million-buck kitty, is taking out full-page ads in New Republic, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post. He promises an aggressive, hard-hitting campaign. … In Connecticut, Pres Bush is off and running: he’s taking on Lowell Weicker without any assist from the Veep and the Prez. But Bush’s pollster is Richard Wirthlin; and Roger Stone, who was Reagan’s Northeast coordinator in ’80, is a consultant. December polls showed Bush ahead of Weicker among GOPers, and tied with Democratic Rep. Toby Moffett, 31 to 31. … In Ohio, Gov. James Rhodes has dropped out of contention in senatorial race, pretty much leaving the field to conservative Rep. John Ashbrook. Ashbrook will face Sen. Howard Metzenbaum, an oldtime big-spender whose prospects, says Kevin Phillips, are helped by Ohio’s high rate of unemployment. . . . The high jobless rate should also help Democratic Sens. James Sasser (Tenn.) and Don Riegle (Mich.), according to Phillips.

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Report Card, Year One: Not since Lyndon Johnson has a U.S. President gotten his way with Congress as often as Ronald Reagan: 82 per cent of the votes Reagan called “important” went his way. It was 76.5 for Carter, 67 for Nixon. (LBJ, after Goldwater landslide, scored a big 93 per cent with a solidly Democratic Congress.) . . . Among Democratic senators, the most recalcitrant was Carl Levin (Mich.), who opposed Reagan 63 per cent of the time, followed by Eagleton (Mo.) and Sarbanes (Md.). Among Republicans, you guessed it, Lowell Weicker (Conn.) was biggest naysayer, followed by Mathias (Md.)—should we saw off Maryland? —and Roth (Del.). . . . Senate Minority Leader Robert Byrd summed it up, from his viewpoint: “A dismal year.” Said Speaker Tip, over in the House: Yep, “Congress gave the President everything he wanted.” . . . The people kind of liked him and her. In Gallup’s year-end rating of Most Admired Men and Women, Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II top the men’s list, Nancy Reagan and Margaret Thatcher the women’s. . . . Other polls: Roper finds seven out of ten Americans believe tax money that goes for “human services” is not used well. New York Times / CBS finds that 51 per cent of. the people feel Reagan’s economic programs have hurt the economy, but 60 per cent think they will eventually help the nation. . . . New York Times reports that for first time since end of WWII government employment (federal, state, local) is down —by close to a third of a million. . . . And, although the grumbling about cuts in guaranteed student loans was horrific, more students enrolled in college last September (12.1 million) than ever before.

A month into 1982, and politics is popping out all over. In New Jersey, Rep. Millicent Fenwick (ADA 53, ACU 34) made it official: She’ll run in the Republican senatorial primary in New Jersey. Jeff Bell’s announcement came a week later. Early polls show Fenwick slightly ahead of Bell, but former Rep. Andrew Maguire (the first Democrat to announce) thinks he’ll be facing Bell in November. … In Massachusetts, businessman Ray Shamie is running hard against Ted Kennedy, has already raised a half-million-buck kitty, is taking out full-page ads in New Republic, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post. He promises an aggressive, hard-hitting campaign. … In Connecticut, Pres Bush is off and running: he’s taking on Lowell Weicker without any assist from the Veep and the Prez. But Bush’s pollster is Richard Wirthlin; and Roger Stone, who was Reagan’s Northeast coordinator in ’80, is a consultant. December polls showed Bush ahead of Weicker among GOPers, and tied with Democratic Rep. Toby Moffett, 31 to 31. … In Ohio, Gov. James Rhodes has dropped out of contention in senatorial race, pretty much leaving the field to conservative Rep. John Ashbrook. Ashbrook will face Sen. Howard Metzenbaum, an oldtime big-spender whose prospects, says Kevin Phillips, are helped by Ohio’s high rate of unemployment. . . . The high jobless rate should also help Democratic Sens. James Sasser (Tenn.) and Don Riegle (Mich.), according to Phillips.