On the Record

■ Can You Believe It? Dept.: Just weeks after Bush Administration accused Soviet soldiers of continuing fighting against Afghan guerrillas despite peace agreement, Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze publicly condemned USSR’s war in Afghanistan and called Krasnoyarsk radar a “clear violation” of 1972 U.S.-Soviet ABM treaty. “Fairly extraordinary” was official response from White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater, who added: “It’s difficult to say what grand meaning [the statements] have, but it certainly seems like a step in the right direction.” . . . Howard Phillips of Conservative Caucus has different outlook: ‘ ‘ In the midst of what Edward Jay Epstein calls ‘the sixth glasnost ’ [Shevardnadze’s] recent statement [on Afghanistan] is a deceptive effort . . . considering bombing raids by the Soviets in Afghanistan continue to this day.” Phillips cites a Washington Times report that Moscow is pumping $3 to $4 million per month in military aid to the regime of Afghan President Najibullah. . . . Richard Perle on ABC’s This Week with David Brinkley says, “I believe [the Krasnoyarsk admission is] because they want to press further restrictions on strategic defenses . . . the United States had taken the position . . . that we would not enter into a new treaty until they cleaned up the violation on the old one.” . . . On same show, when asked by George Will if he still counts himself among skeptics concerning the Soviet Union’s violation of ABM and SALT II, Sen. Joe Biden responded, “Well, SALT II is long past as a practical matter.”

■ As conventional wisdom in U.S. is calling for more taxes, Sweden’s Finance Minister Kjell-Olof Feldt recently said, “We don’t believe we can get this economy to function if we increase the tax burden.” In addition to dropping tax rates, the government is about to allow citizens to make their own choices among different hospitals, schools, and day-care centers in hopes that competition may improve these institutions’ inefficient performance. . . . Pork time: At House-Senate conference, House earmarked some $9 million in last-minute funds that HUD Secretary Jack Kemp had hoped to eliminate. The money is directed to 14 community projects, ten in districts of House Appropriation members, four in district of subcommittee chairman Bob Traxler (D., Mich.). Traxler is responsible for obtaining nearly $1 million for park improvements in Bay City; nearly $1 million for job-training center in Saginaw; $600,000 for low-to-moderate-income housing development in Saginaw. Rep. Jim Chapman (D., Tex.) plugged in $800,000 for economic revitalization in his district. Louis Stokes (D., Ohio) tapped $800,000 for housing in his district. The list goes on.

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■ Can You Believe It? Dept.: Just weeks after Bush Administration accused Soviet soldiers of continuing fighting against Afghan guerrillas despite peace agreement, Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze publicly condemned USSR’s war in Afghanistan and called Krasnoyarsk radar a “clear violation” of 1972 U.S.-Soviet ABM treaty. “Fairly extraordinary” was official response from White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater, who added: “It’s difficult to say what grand meaning [the statements] have, but it certainly seems like a step in the right direction.” . . . Howard Phillips of Conservative Caucus has different outlook: ‘ ‘ In the midst of what Edward Jay Epstein calls ‘the sixth glasnost ’ [Shevardnadze’s] recent statement [on Afghanistan] is a deceptive effort . . . considering bombing raids by the Soviets in Afghanistan continue to this day.” Phillips cites a Washington Times report that Moscow is pumping $3 to $4 million per month in military aid to the regime of Afghan President Najibullah. . . . Richard Perle on ABC’s This Week with David Brinkley says, “I believe [the Krasnoyarsk admission is] because they want to press further restrictions on strategic defenses . . . the United States had taken the position . . . that we would not enter into a new treaty until they cleaned up the violation on the old one.” . . . On same show, when asked by George Will if he still counts himself among skeptics concerning the Soviet Union’s violation of ABM and SALT II, Sen. Joe Biden responded, “Well, SALT II is long past as a practical matter.”

■ As conventional wisdom in U.S. is calling for more taxes, Sweden’s Finance Minister Kjell-Olof Feldt recently said, “We don’t believe we can get this economy to function if we increase the tax burden.” In addition to dropping tax rates, the government is about to allow citizens to make their own choices among different hospitals, schools, and day-care centers in hopes that competition may improve these institutions’ inefficient performance. . . . Pork time: At House-Senate conference, House earmarked some $9 million in last-minute funds that HUD Secretary Jack Kemp had hoped to eliminate. The money is directed to 14 community projects, ten in districts of House Appropriation members, four in district of subcommittee chairman Bob Traxler (D., Mich.). Traxler is responsible for obtaining nearly $1 million for park improvements in Bay City; nearly $1 million for job-training center in Saginaw; $600,000 for low-to-moderate-income housing development in Saginaw. Rep. Jim Chapman (D., Tex.) plugged in $800,000 for economic revitalization in his district. Louis Stokes (D., Ohio) tapped $800,000 for housing in his district. The list goes on.