LOBBYING REFORM . . . MAKE WAY FOR CLINTON

Remember that June handshake in New Hampshire when Bill Clinton and Newt Gingrich pledged to form a commission to help rid Washington of influence-peddling once and for all? Today, declaring his impatience with Republican "delay, debate and division" on the issue, Clinton ordered Attorney General Janet Reno to craft an executive order that would bar federal employees from meeting with lobbyists unless they comply with tougher registration requirements. "I will use the power of my office to bring the sunlight of full disclosure to the lobbying process in Washington," the President said.TIME's James Carneysays the order, one of a spate to be issued on "front-burner" issues this month, is part of a broader White House effort to portray Clinton as a "can-do" President when Congress returns from its August recess to all-but-certain budget gridlock. "This is very much a political strategy Clinton has launched to show himself doing things that the American people want done while Congress isn't finding common ground."