When the Cheering Died

The President makes his final budget proposals, and the battle begins

"I urge the members of Congress to remember that last November the American people's message was loud and clear. The mandate for change, expressed by the American people, was not my mandate; it was our mandate."

With that ten-ton hint, Ronald Reagan last week sent Congress the second and final installment of his budget-slashing proposals for the next fiscal year. The President's meaning was unmistakable: the public wants deep cuts in both spending and taxes, and any legislator who tries to keep the...