(00:00:01) Thank you Arthur and good morning. Everyone will get to our special edition of the Saturday morning program in just a moment. But first we want to pass on to you the latest weather information that we have at nine o'clock. The temperature in the Twin Cities was 35 degrees Fahrenheit. That's to above Celsius with light snow falling in st. Cloud right now light snow and fog and 33 Fahrenheit one above Celsius and in Rochester foggy with freezing rain and visibility down to about three-quarters of a mile 31 Fahrenheit. That's one below Celsius. There is a winter storm warning out for the Eastern and Southern portions of Minnesota for today and that winter storm warning will continue in effect for the Southeastern part of the state of Minnesota for tonight snow continues to fall over most of Minnesota, especially the southern portions as of 8:30 this morning the latest weather radar summary, we have from the National Weather Service and the movement of that storm is to the Northeast at about 25 miles per hour Travelers in our region should Cautiously on the roads and highways especially in areas where there is an accumulation of new snow as it is quite slippery this morning that according to the highway patrol. There's also a winter storm warning in effect for Northwestern Wisconsin for today and tonight and a heavy snow warning is also in effect for Southeastern South Dakota for today. Well, we want to welcome listeners from around the entire MP our broadcast area who are with us this morning for a Statewide calling program with US senator Rudy boschwitz. Senator boschwitz is in Washington DC this morning joining us through the facilities of national public radio, and we should mention that that's because the reason that was a Senator boschwitz is in Washington is because we're is the reason we're coming to you a half-hour early this morning and we're hoping that the senator boschwitz is on the line with us now Senator. Can you hear me? (00:01:50) Yeah, I can hear you. Well, let me give you the weather report and down here in Washington. Okay, I think just generally it's always about 25 degrees warmer down here. The very pretty day. The snow is pretty much melted around our house and pretty much melted around Washington. And so the weather here is a little better than it is in Minnesota. At least at this time of the year. However in the summer, it's hot and humid and sticky and that's when Minnesota (00:02:18) shines. So you've done. Selves out from the blizzard of ten days (00:02:22) ago. Well, we just waited for it to melt I see was that the the snow down here is is wet and heavy and and unpleasant. It's hard to dig yourself (00:02:34) out. Huh? We haven't had a chance to talk before we came on here this morning. And so maybe I can take just a moment to explain to you and to our listeners what we plan for this morning. We're going to go around the Sixth Station Minnesota Public Radio Network and talk to reporters reporters of NPR stations and they'll get a chance to ask you a question. And then we're going to open up our telephone lines here in St. Paul and invite listeners from around the Twin Cities and around the region to call you and and ask you questions fine. But before we go to our first caller, I'd like to ask you probably perhaps one of the softer questions of the hour and that is what's it feel like now that you've been in Washington for a couple of weeks a couple of months I should say is it what you thought it would be being a u.s. Senator (00:03:17) a little confusing. I find that I have to make decisions very rapidly about enormous amounts of money without having a real in depth of knowledge about every aspect of it, which I'm used to having and my own business experience and it's a little thin I think the people down here pretty good conversational conversationalists about many many items, but don't have an in-depth knowledge of very many of them. It's a lot of fun. It's a turn-on every day. It's it's just your own kind of a continual. Hi. I like the job very much. (00:03:56) Well, very good. Let's go to Chris rig now of station que él se at Rochester and let him ask you his first question of the day Chris (00:04:08) morning Chris. There's been a great deal of attention paid to the current conservative mood of the country some observers call this mood a new political force and have even labeled at neoconservatism. Do you? Leave the Republican Party nationally can take advantage of this conservative food. And also what does it mean for politics in the state of Minnesota? Well, I'm not so sure. It's a conservative mood. That's GI get a little play back here on this recorder here, but I'm not sure it's a conservative mood so much neoconservative. I know exactly what that means. There's no question that this Senate at least appears to be somewhat more cautious than the preceding Senate not going to approach things in the standpoint that you can spend your way to Prosperity. That's something I agree with that you cannot and that there is a move towards a perhaps more conservative Viewpoint. It's interesting the Republicans as I think about it now will take advantage of that because 1980 there are 34 Senate seats up across the country of those that attend our Republican incumbents 24 our Democratic incumbent so that we have a great opportunity to pick up some seats and become perhaps even a majority, you know in 1978, there were 35 Senate seats up around the country and of those 3517 were Republican incumbents and 18 were Democratic incumbents and the Republicans won Nationwide 20 out of 35 of those seats so that if we do that, once again, we'd be the majority and in 1980. We have a very good opportunity to do that 1982. Incidentally. There are 33 seats up a 23 of them are Democrats and only 1000 Republicans on the next four years. If there is such a conservative movement, it could well result in a republican control of the Senate. How about politics in the state of Minnesota? Do you see any changes there? Yes, I the same kind of thing. I think applies a I have to agree Chris with you that there is a more conservative mood. There is a feeling that some of the economic problems particularly inflation have been begotten by the government and as such I think that conservative move will be mood will be reflected in better results at the polls. The Republicans know of course, the challenge is upon us to deliver. Thank you Senator. (00:06:38) And thanks Chris rig of station que él se in Rochester. Next we go to station K RS. W at Worthington where Jimboy the station manager cash K RS W is standing by Jim. Good (00:06:48) morning. Good morning. Rich and good morning Senator morning Jim Senator. I'm going to address myself to the Interstate Commerce Commission and they've come under increasing fire lately calling for reform along more modern lines here in Minnesota, especially in the southwest portion. We are concerned about railroad branchline abandonment. Sure. You've seen or heard some of the discussion regarding our area and one of the charges against the ICC is that it prevents railroads from competing effectively by discouraging initiative depressing rates. Prolonging service on money-losing lines and other is the chippers unprofitable lines subsidize those on the low volume branchline The Carter Administration has proposed rail deregulation, which would weaken the icc's authority over rail rates and over branchline abandonment. First of all, do you agree with the charges in general against the ICC and secondly write that in regard to a weakening of the icc's authority. Well, you know, the ICC was the first regulatory body that was created in this country in 1888 and in a sense, it's a good warning for us of what happens at the 90 years of Regulation at become so complex become so difficult to deal with that as a result. It does have a self-defining effect. I can remember many days when I was handling railroad traffic for my brother and in Wisconsin going through rates and going back to 1914 and 1916. Building rates try to figure out what a rate is from one place to another because of course there are thousands and thousands of goods and they're just really hundreds of thousands of rate combinations. When you consider from Worthington, the Minneapolis and Worthington to all the other places in the country and then from all those places to all the others, it becomes an infinite number and it's very very difficult to regulate. I believe that there should be a decrease in regulation. You have to be very different but have to be very careful when you unregulated something that's been regulated for such a long time. That's not the only problem. The railroads have the railroads also have the problems of long and difficult Union contracts. They have the problem of having a being little stultified themselves many instances. They have all kinds of problems that were not only upon the regulatory system but upon their own operations my judgment and have them having For them perform many many years. I think you have to deregulate but you have to deregulate very slowly. If you do regulate to quickly, whether it be in trucking or whether it being in the rails that you're going to injure particularly the smaller communities of the country, you know, Airline regulation is held up as a very wonderful thing. I'm not quite so sure that that it's going to result so positively as it's been advertised to date but the difference of course is that the airline business is price elastic if you lower the price you're going to get more business the railroad business the trucking business is price inelastic. If you lower the rates, everything is already being shipped. You're not going to get new business you're going to have a redistribution of business and I'm not sure that that's going to help the transportation system. Particularly. I uh, I know that many short lines have been taken over by Private operators and have been made become profitable. They have not had confessed Kotori Union type of agreements to do to deal with they have not because they've been intrastate and they've gone only from Worthington to Mankato from I know of some in Wisconsin where independent operators bought short lines that has worked out. It has worked out that communities together with the state and federal governments have decided that they would rebuild the road beds and and amortize them over a period of years. I think all those things have to be have to be looked into and developed rather than just D controlling a deregulating out of hand. Thank you (00:11:04) Senator and thanks Jim Boyd of station care SW and Worthington. Next we go to John it's t who is a reporter and producer with Casey CM radio in Moorhead John. Good morning. (00:11:15) Good morning. Rich and good morning senator. Senator boschwitz you mentioned at the outset that one of the problems in being a center is Senator is that you have to make decisions on complicated issues that you aren't given enough information about one of the issues that's going to be coming up soon before the Senate is petite arms limitation treaty with the Soviets. I wonder if you've been able to study the progress of that treaty so far and if you've come to any conclusions about the merits of the treaty or what criteria you have if you intend to approve or disapprove it when it comes before the Senate, well John, I haven't seen the treaty most of the people who've already made up their mind haven't seen the treaty. The matter of fact the treaty isn't out. I'm a member of three groups down here that are discussing the treaty the pro salt group the neutral troop, and then there's one that leans anti salt and Go to their luncheons and I go to their breakfast and I listened and it's very very difficult to do know exactly. I'm just beginning to learn the vocabulary. I have a very open mind on salt. I like the idea of salt the idea that that you can not only see the sea and impurity sure but that you should come to some kind of reasonable negotiated settlement. However, the again the treaty is not out. I don't think that anybody can make a conclusion other than that kind of conclusion at the beginning then you have to understand that salt is not going to have the effects that some people think it's going to have some people think well if we sign salt everything is going to be wonderful. We have signed a couple of treat treaties and everything has not been wonderful. They feel that if we sign salt there were going to have lower. Ohms budgets that has not been the case in the past in the past when salt treaties are when's arms limitation treaty. You have been signed. It only covers the the arms that are already developed and Nations go on to building bigger and more sophisticated arms with the result that that alms budgets by and large have gone up in the Secretary of Defense and the the chief of staff and a budget Committee hearing the other day said just said that that the ohms we should not believe that we're going to be spending Less on defense because we get involved in the salt to treaty the matter of fact, they said that if we don't get involved in the salt to treaty the difference is two or three or perhaps four billion dollars a year not an insubstantial amount by any case but nevertheless not a large amount when it's considered in relationship to the overall budget the advantage of the SALT Treaty might be that that we stopped the momentum that the Russian seem to have despite the fact that people think that we spend an inordinate them amount for defense in this country a Viewpoint that I generally do not Here we spend very very much less than the Russians. We spend four point seven percent of our gross national product at the lowest percentage of our gross national product spent on defense since before the second world war the Russians on the other hand spent thirteen fourteen fifteen percent. We have to make some estimates of their gross national product for defense as a result. They have a great deal of momentum and where we were 10 or 12 or 15 times ahead of them 15 times ahead of them at the time of the Cuban Missile Crisis, perhaps today. We are on parity. Maybe we're a little bit ahead. It depends who you talk to very frankly your where we are, but people should not get the idea that if we sign salt that we're going to spend less on defense. We are not we will yes, we will halt the the arms raised to some degree but the history of these kinds of agreements is that it doesn't slow down the all Raise very much Senator will total question Anna Anna. I can support me. I'm getting a terrible feedback here. Okay, pour me one more time another question on another subject. How is that? Can you hear me? Sure. Yeah, I just get a little feedback here. I an echo. Okay during the campaign when you were like when have anything when you were in Moorhead one day during the campaign Senator. You mentioned that I'm sorry. I can't hear anything at the present time. (00:15:46) Maybe we should step in Rich deep in here again in the studios. And st. Paul. Can you hear me now (00:15:52) senator? Now I can hear (00:15:55) OK what we're doing to explain to listeners. What we're doing is the senator is not here in st. Paul with us. He's in Washington DC in the Studio's of national public radio. And the problem may be the time lag between the the signal gets begin here. But that is in Washington and it may be just a fraction of a second it makes it sound like there's an echo somewhere. I wonder if John it's D is still on the line. He had a question John. Are you still there? I'm still here Rich. Okay. Go ahead (00:16:21) Senator John. Where are you? Where are you? I wasn't I am from Moorhead of my head. Yes. I know you write when you're up in Moorhead during that campaign. You mentioned that one of the things that you're going to do immediately after being elected was to go around the state and set up listening posts many of the regions so that you can keep in touch with the constituency, but that often Senators go off to Washington for six years, and they don't don't come back until it's time to be elected as opposed to the way Congress. Been out to do it and get involved in much more constituent Services. Have you gotten anywhere and setting up? Oh, yes, we have we've identified a large number of people who are ready to become involved in the listening post program. I we have not gotten as far with it as we would like to things don't work quite as fast we find as we would like them to and one of the things that has has a kind of goofed us up a little bit as a mail man alive. We get 500 550 600 letters a day and just coping with that and getting our systems in order to cope with that has slowed us down a little bit and one of the things that has been set back a little bit is a listening post project and you're quite right John that we have to get on it because it is a an important project, you know in my travels throughout Minnesota since the election and the since I've been down here in Washington, what I do do is I go back. Town and I go to a cafe or I go to a high school or both or I go to an employer to a factory where people are working and just have listening hours there and not so much I went to one city hall in Hibbing and only two people showed up people like meet the Senators. I believe at places where they're accustomed to going every day. So we haven't got as far John as we want to get but we will do that and we will do it very thoroughly the idea. Let me just expand on the listening post idea again. The idea is that in every County every community and a community can be a community of people of special interests as well as a geographic Community. We will have a listening post so that people who are unaccustomed really to contacting the Senators will have an easy conduit to doing so people who want to contact me directly in my name is in the phone book in Washington so they can call me at home if they like Or if they want to contact my office, so they want to contact somebody in my office. They can continue to do that. This is not a substitute. However, some people are reluctant to write letters to Senators other people are concerned about the phone call and the cost of the phone call. So for that purpose, we want to have local people and if you call that local per person, they will get in touch with us or me and we'll get back in touch with the person who wants to contact the senator. That's the purpose of the listening (00:19:22) post with Senator. We have a number of people already on the phone lines here in the in st. Paul and we still want to go to one more reporter at the station in the NPR Network and that's dick daily. @ws CD in Duluth. Good morning (00:19:35) dick. It's good morning Rich. Good morning Senator, the the subject you were just discussing with John UFC and Moorhead is a perfect entree for what I wanted to ask about you were in Duluth recently at a press conference and you adjust to our Northern Minnesota and said you were kind of surprised to find that the people in the northern part of the state where Not talking to you about some pet project in their Community. Their Chief concern just seemed to be that the government leave them alone. And I detected that you seem rather sympathetic to that point of view. Where are you? Oh, yes. Oh, yes. I was you know, the people of Northeastern Minnesota particularly stung by The Boundary Waters support dispute by the coastal zone management attempt to to once again regulate the use of land to the Mississippi Watershed the idea of making it a Scenic River all kinds of the wolf. The timber wolf measures Park Rare to all of these programs like my real question Senator is that you of course were supportive of the The Boundary Waters the the Wilderness legislation on the buses matters might you take a different tack on a future bills in this general area of the youth in control of public land II believe. That The Boundary Waters an absolutely unique area and therefore needs to be preserved. I continue to believe very very strongly in the private ownership of land. I recognize that the beauty of Northeastern Minnesota the shore of Lake Superior The Boundary Water Area and the other areas in the Upper Mississippi is due to the fact that the people up there been taking good care of those lands and that they are as interested as anybody else. I think that people should should not live in the fear that the government is going to in some way appropriate their lands and the use of their lands and i would support very very avidly the idea of private ownership and not additional government acquisition of land but they might find you an ally in future such fights of this nature which surely will occur. I think. Oh, I think so. Yeah, you know and that's entirely consistent D. If there is a Scenic River that is of such beauty and of and of course everybody thinks every Foot of the way is of great Beauty, but really an unusual area like The Boundary Waters and then I think it should be protected whether it be by Rare to whether it be by the scenic Rivers bill as a coastal zone management bill, but the by and large, I believe very strongly that the whole basis for our country is the is privacy is the enjoyment of property rights. And so I am unchanged in my viewpoint Senator. Thank you (00:22:23) and thanks dick daily of station WS C D and Duluth the time is coming up on seven minutes now before 10 o'clock and you're listening to a live phone and program with our guest this morning, Senator Rudy boschwitz of Minnesota. And the senator as we said before is in the Studio's of national public radio in Washington, and if you'd like to ask him a question you can do so by calling us here at 2211550 in the Twin Cities area 2211550. If you live outside the Twin Cities, but in the Of Minnesota, you can call us toll-free at 1-800-669-9133 1-800-662-2386. And before we go to the first caller who's on the line, we want to also ask you to limit your question to a minute in length, and we ask that because we expect it will get a lot of phone calls this morning and we'd like to give everybody a chance to get his or her call in. So please limit your question to a minute in length, and we're ready now to (00:23:22) table. I'll try to be more succinct my answers to (00:23:25) okay, thank you. It's time to take the first call. Good morning. You're on the air. (00:23:30) Good morning, Senator. This is a tank and going from Golden Valley. Well, hi Ed. How are you? Good. How are you? How's your family? Very fine in here. Good good. How's the girls? They're just wonderful ask me a question how indeed this one is dear to my wife Garden to mind. I think everybody getting on in age as you know, you getting on in age. Well, you better your contemporary of mine. Well, I still feel I'm getting on in age great great. Great. Some of us are covered by pension plans that provide very inadequate benefits something like 30 $40 a month on retirement and wondering we're things stand on a bill that would allow people covered by these small plans to put additional money into an IRA account since give them at least a quality when those who have no pension plan and can put up to $1500 a month away. I know there was a bill in the House of Representatives last year HR 1 3 3 4 Seven which we didn't really get very far. I'm wondering if you know of anything in action or whether you contemplate anything or think there's a possibility of this coming through, you know in reasonable time and I don't know the answer to your question. I know that Senator Javits is very active in it during the course of the campaign. I spoke about the pension plans about the fact that pension plan should be so constructed that they travel from employer to employer which Senator Javits I know has sponsored in the past. I'm not familiar with the the legislation that you speak of not sure exactly where it is and the cost of business of the Senate and I'll find out and let you know. Okay, let's (00:25:13) move let's move along to our next question or good morning. Can you tell us where you're calling from? Please (00:25:17) going from (00:25:18) Minneapolis? Okay the Senators listening for your (00:25:20) question. Okay. My question is very simple. I'm a native of Washington Washington DC and I'm concerned that people move to Washington to serve in public office and then don't live in the city. Or send their kids to private public school, and I'd like to know where the senator lived and where his children going to school. I live in McLean Virginia and my kids go to one kid goes to Langley High School and the other one goes to Churchill Churchill roads both public schools out there. And you know an answer let me expand on that question when you come from Minnesota and I had I lived out in Plymouth and I had to 16 20 acres and suddenly you're thrust into downtown Washington. It's a culture shock. So in MacLean, you can as opposed to Maryland you can you can have a little larger piece of land a little closer in and that's what I opted for. Thank you very much. (00:26:14) Thank you for calling. Let's go to another listeners question. Good morning. Where are you calling from, please? Okay the shatters listening. Go ahead. (00:26:21) Okay, so device which the Minnesota Legislature has before it now an Amendment to the US Constitution that would permit those living in Washington DC to elect their own senators and representatives. You think this amendment should pass I waffle on that question. I want to tell you I very frankly there's no question that people should be entitled to vote and I have to go back and look at the history of why the people folks in Washington weren't allowed to vote and I suppose that the reasons that were Least at that time would now apply the McLean Virginia where I live to because as I recall those reasons it was that the bureaucracy should not have a right to pet you ate itself or by the by The Ballot Box on the other hand. I'm also a partisan. I must tell you and that's to be perfectly honest. If we if we give the statehood rights to the District of Columbia. They're going to be two more Democrats in the Senate and there's going to be a further imbalanced. I'm not sure that that suits their my partisan interests and so to some degree it's a partisan Affair and I'm Perhaps shouldn't say that but nevertheless it is and from the standpoint of it my partisan interest. I don't like it and the standpoint of the fact that people should have the right to vote. I do like it and I really haven't come to a conclusion on that and it doesn't, you know, it's already moved out of the Senate from it's already moved out of the Congress and down here. And so I haven't felt particularly pressured to come to a conclusion (00:27:53) Senator. We have another listener on the line for you. Good (00:27:56) morning. I'm sorry. I apologize for don't like to Waffle on issues. Not only I'm phoning from Minneapolis. I realized that we're currently about five states away from getting a resolution through calling for a constitutional convention. That would think it's seven states away seven. I think I read five the other day could be wrong and I was simply wondering how you felt about that particular issue and what kind of implications I Constitutional Amendment limiting our federal debt would imply Well, I oppose the I do of amending the Constitution for that purpose. I would hope that the senators and representatives down here could discipline themselves fairly. Obviously, we have to balance off our Affairs. It's not quite so easy to do when you have the enormity of the federal government as it is in our own business or perhaps home, but for the same reasons, we have to do it in business or at home. We have to do it in the federal government as well little harder to project income with the federal government particularly. For instance in this year. The president projects a twenty nine billion dollar budget deficit. I was sitting at a budget Committee hearing the other day and leaf Olsen who's a senior Economist of the First National City Bank of New York City is going to be 74 billion because they project the recession and therefore lowering of the of the income side a government. I believe that the People like myself have to discipline themselves and have to discipline the government so that there are not deficits if that cannot happen. I would support legislation. I would hope that we could have legislation that would rather limit the growth of government to the growth of the gross national product rather than a constitutional amendment. I hope we could do it by legislation rather than by Constitutional Amendment because obviously if there is a constitutional amendment a great deal of flexibility as we moved if there is a constitutional amendment, I would only support it in the event that said that a two-thirds vote of both sides of the Congress of the House of Representatives and the Senate could override the that in other words of two-thirds of the house and two-thirds of the Senate voted to have a deficit we could have a deficit I think that in certain time certainly in war certainly in times of severe recession. God forbid depression the It's are in order in order to stimulate the economy. So I would like to retain the flexibility that that would be removed by Constitutional Amendment. (00:30:42) You're listening to a Statewide phone in program with the senator Rudy boschwitz on MPR. The time is 1 minute past ten o'clock and we have another listener on the line. Go ahead with your question (00:30:52) party centered on calling from st. Cloud. Yeah, I noticed that Cuban floating the name of General Haig as a possible 1980 Republican under and I admired General hague's a military man, but I'm very disturbed by his role not directly in the Watergate thing. But as Chief 822 President Nixon in terms of how we handle Arts ball cock and Leon Jaworski in terms of making promises and really everything that I've read delaying and you know slowing up the process and I wondered if you could explain his role in that for us. Well, I'm not familiar with his role exactly in that. I know that he came through the Watergate debacle clean. I understand that the Watergate tapes are going to be coming out in the more complete format so that we'll be able to get a more in-depth look into it. I don't recall his treatment of mr. Jaworski Archibald Cox. I mean that was a Saturday night Massacre. That was so cool. Well that predated. Hey, I know can I make one suggestion that you really should take a look at the worst case book all the right and the power and okay. He has some very disquieting things as far as I'm concerned about the role of General Hague in this affair. Say the name of it again. Would you be under water skis book the right and the power? Oh, yeah. I'm familiar with it, but I haven't read it. I will I will what I am impressed about with General Haig and I heard him at the I heard him at one of the salt groups the other day. He really is an impressive guy is the fact that he has at 18 months in the white house. He came out of it generally unscathed now, I will write I will read you one skis a book and I must say I got tired of reading all those Watergate books and I read a bunch of them, but I'll read that now look for that the specific passages if you can. Senator yeah, we have another caller on the line and that's right. Let me but General Haig has a lot going for him. I think that from what I understand, he came out of the Watergate period clean furthermore. He was four years to deputy secretary kissing her which I think gives them tremendous background. He was four years. Now the head of NATO prior to that. He was an aide to mr. Califano and the Secretary of Defense McNamara. So he has had remarkable experience and I think we would buy tremendous contrast with the incumbent has had four more remarkable experience, which I think would hold him in very good stead both to be very tough-minded and very decision oriented and those are things I like and I've met him once and I've heard him speak just once I was impressed (00:33:47) Senator Mike Flaherty is on the line with us now. Mike has a system. (00:33:51) Let me tell you two that I mentioned in the same breath as Senator Baker who have To really like and admire and I think that he's a very excellent minority leader of the Senate. Yeah my clarity (00:34:03) My Clarity who is the assistant editor of the land which is a publication of the Mankato Free Press is on the line with this now. The land is an agricultural publication that's distributed through South Central Minnesota. And he has a question for you Mike. Good morning. (00:34:16) Good morning. Good morning, Senator morning. Yes, Senator a beef Prices rose another seven percent in January and soy beans pork beef Broiler chickens and cows took record jumps and December January and February. Do you see any sentiment about Washington to attempt to stem those price hikes say like in the form of increased Imports or Price controls? Oh, I hope not. I know that food prices have gone up recently most most of the increases in food prices have all come caused by through the processing through the fact that that people have wanted more convenience type foods and Those have been the increases in cost of recent years. Most recently Farmers have been doing better. I support that I think that minnesotans should support it and I can tell you that the Minnesota economy will really be be booming along and we'll have some we won't have any fears of a recession if it develops later on in the year if agriculture is in good condition. So I do not support the idea of of any type of price controls in general and certainly not in the case of Farming Farming families of Minnesota Mike. Did I would you restate that question? I'm not sure that I get an awful ring in this microphone here and I'm not sure that I heard it quite as you said it no. No, I think you answered it adequately. I just wondered if you knew it of any sentiment about Washington to attempt to stem those price hike no I know of No Such sentiment and I would not be supportive as of Sentiments do you see any farm programs being eliminated by Washington and its attempts to trim government spending and reduce inflation? Well, there's a movement afoot to to trim eliminate some of the conservation programs and I will do my best to prevent that from happening. I don't think that in trying to control the growth of government that we necessarily have to undo worthwhile programs. I think that the rate of growth of those programs has to be cut the government has been growing at a rate of 12 percent in the last six years and the average while the economy has been growing at somewhere around four percent about a third of the growth of government government has been growing at a rate three times as fast as the economy this year President Carter has submitted a budget that calls for growth of government by 7.7% I support that concept of slowing the rate of growth. Of course, the government can grow a little bit. Stir them the economy though. Hopefully it will the growth will approximate the growth of the economy as a whole but the government can grow a little faster without being terribly inflationary though. It's taken out of the hides of the consumers because everybody is jacked up into higher tax brackets in the government is is growing in Income At a rate faster than the growth of the economy itself. That's another thing. I'd like to have an impact on but you can't have an impact on that right away (00:37:24) Senator. We have all of our phone lines here in the studio and steep all lit up and that means that people are waiting to ask you questions. So we'll go to another listener right now. Good morning. You're on the (00:37:33) air. Yeah, this is Janet golden at st. Paul Minnesota last year, Senator Anderson got my husband the a any he's a blind amputee and at present. He's at the school for the Blind and Rochester Michigan and in February. My husband was taken automatically off of the AMA for no reason at all, and we'd like to know why he was taken off the inning. Janet I am not familiar with that program and I don't know why and if you could call my office in st. Paul whose number is to to 109 04 and talk to every over there. She will get into that with you and if you like she will get me involved and confess. (00:38:23) Okay, so the woman can call your Saint Paul office. Let's go to another listeners (00:38:27) question and I don't mean to give that lady short shrift at all. But I honestly don't know that program and and we'll have to look into (00:38:36) it another listeners waiting to ask you a question. Good morning. You're on the (00:38:39) air. I'm calling from fiddly and since peace in the Middle East is so important to all of us and one of the areas of disagreement is the occupied territory. And in view of the fact that Israel in defiance of a UN resolution continues to occupy the West Bank of the Jordan. Do you favor termination of us Aid to Israel unless a thesis the occupation of the West Bank. No, I do not and I don't agree that there has been a u.s. Resolution. Well, I may have been a u.s. Resolution a UN resolution. But of course the UN resolution, I'm not sure that it combined. Nations such as Israel or any other Nation you have to understand if I may take more than a minute to answer this question. You have to understand the the predicament that I believe Israel finds itself in the West Bank comes as close to the Mediterranean Sea as Minneapolis downtown is the Minneapolis st. Paul. It's a very thin and very small country. And so they are very concerned about their security. Not only that in those eight to ten miles from the sea to the West Bank. There is a great rise, so that 10 or 12 miles from the sea the you look down at the Tel Aviv, or you look down at Netanya as some of the other cities from Heights of a thousand 1,200 1,500 feet. You also have to look at the history of the area the history of the area very briefly is that the Ottoman Empire the Turks are occupied it up until the first world war and then the League of Nations began to cut up the area and Area was cut up in such a way that the Syria and Lebanon and Jordan and all and and Israel were created and before 1920 to none of those countries existed and indeed and 1920 48 when Israel was created. It included the area that is now called West Bank and immediately after Israel was created the Arab armies entered into Israel so that the judge ordered jordanians conquered the area that is now known as the West Bank. So if they have title to that area it is by virtue of the 1948 Conquest not by virtue of of any historic fact and then of course of 1948 to 1967 was occupied by the jordanians during that period there was no talk about a Palestinian Homeland whatsoever. There was no rights granted to the Palestinians during that time and interest. Only the only Arabs in the Arab world who now have a right to vote have a free press have a right of assembly have adequate hospitals and schooling of the are the Arabs in Israel. Perhaps also the Arabs and Kuwait and Saudi Arabia where they have so much money, but in 1967, there was another War and the lines change once again and they changed the pre 1948 line. So I think that the Israelis feel that there is no historical legal basis for the West Bank not being part of Israel. I might tell you I disagree with the settlement policies of Israel. I think that it's a mistake and it exacerbates the problem. I hope that they make peace. I think that they want to make peace and I think that they're prepared to return the West Bank Jordan. I think that they're prepared to and returned as the wrong word there, but they're prepared to give the West Bank to Jordan. Would I think that they want to limit the autonomy they're very frankly. They're they're just concerned about their about their Nation about their very livelihood because of the geography involved that I spoke of in a person first instance. So I think that it's a most complicated problem as a most of the problems. I encountered down here. I think that the people of Good Will can solve those problems and hopefully something is going to happen over this weekend. I'm not very optimistic (00:42:52) Senator. There are still many listeners waiting to ask you a question. So we'll go right to another one now. Good morning. You're on the air. (00:42:58) Yes Senator does the US government pay interest on its deficit and you betcha if the deficit becomes bigger, it gets bigger and bigger every year will it get to the point where we'll only be able to pay the interest on it and not be able to eliminate the deficit? Well, it's interesting to note that it takes all of the taxes of two out of three individual taxpayers in this country just to pay the interest on the deficit in this country. The interest on the deficit is a third largest item in the federal budget and it takes I forget how much it is 50 billion 55 billion dollars a year and hopefully we'll be able to could tell the the growth of the of the deficit so that we can curtail the amount of money that the nation owes itself. So to speak of the deficit the deficit is enormous, but to say that it's going to be paid back is probably probably a pipe dream. (00:44:02) Senator on the line with us now is Mike Meyer who is the legislative correspondent for the Detroit Detroit Lakes Tribune up in Northwestern Minnesota. I know my has a question for you my good (00:44:12) morning. Thank you Rich Maria. Really? How are you? Good. Good. How are you? Mike, huh Fred real good Rudy the energy Department yesterday announced that they're using gasoline price regulations and so-called experts are predicting a $1 a gallon gas price within the next 18 months. Well this action prompt accelerated Federal interests a and developing alternative fuels and energy forms. I guess I'm particularly looking at grain alcohol gasohol process. I hope you know, I'm on the research subcommittee of the agriculture committee for the specific reason of developing gasohol and other types of new forms of energy. I think that that we do have an You crisis. I think that the American public is simply has to use less energy. I have a plan that hope to work out with Senator Baker and that that will cause less energy in this country to be used and if we can curtail our usage of energy, there's no question in my mind that boil prices will come down. I think that OPEC is a week cartel. I think that OPEC would could not stand a decrease in demand, and there are all kinds of ways that we can cause that decrease to come about if things continue the way they are there's no question about the fact that there's going to be a dollar a gallon gasoline within a relatively short period I don't think that there's a tremendous shortage now, however, you know oil is a so-called fungible commodity and when a commodity is a little bit shorter supply and demand continues to increase price goes up very much you'll recall in 1973 1974. The food prices corn and all of the Commodities almost doubled and some cases they more than doubled and there was a Draught around the world and it was a shortage of food food production, but that shortage was only three or four percent that food production in those years was 97 percent as much as a year before. So when you have even a slight shortage, you have tremendous price repercussions. And so that's what's going to happen in my judgment and oil and that's what I see happening already. And I think that if we can reduce demand and this country with a solid conservation program, there is no need for rationing. There's no need $4 a gallon a price on gasoline. And I think the American people will do it if they are asked properly they will respond (00:46:47) Senator Senator. I have a question that follows up on that and that very briefly is that as you probably know energy agency director Schlessinger said this past week that the federal government might have to call for thermostat settings and also The weekend closing of some service stations. Do you think that that's terrible? You think that's terrible (00:47:07) sure, you know, there's a shortfall in the world today of 2 million barrels of oil per day there. There are stocks in the world today of 4 billion 900 million barrels of oil stocks in this country of well over 600 million barrels. I just don't think that there has to be a shortage. I think that they're there can be conservation of the American people do not have to be coerced that they can be reasoned with and I don't think that the Administration has done that at all and I hope that we are no side do it and I'm going to try to push that (00:47:42) it's 18 minutes now past 10 o'clock and you're listening to a live phone and program with Senator Rudy boschwitz. The senator is in Washington DC this morning in the Studio's of national public radio Senator. We have another listener on the line. Go ahead with your question, (00:47:54) please it's good morning, sir. I'm sorry Bruce and president of the NAACP here in st. Paul. You concerned with the appointment process for federal judgeships. And also we are especially concerned with the appointment of a judge from the Minnesota area. Do you know how could you tell us if you have any input into this process and which would be favorable of endorsing a candidate from Minnesota are a preferably of nrt, Canada. Thank you. I am I will support any qualified person for a judgeship as you know, they're going to be to Federal judgeships available in Minnesota. There's been a commission appointed to attend member commission. I appointed to people-centered the durenberger senator durenberger and I should say appointed a total of five and vice president Mondale pointed five people all kinds of people who are applying. I understand that many minorities and minorities that take many forms applying to be judges and I hope that The that that one of them have good qualified person be he black or wider taller shorter left-handed or right-handed be chosen as (00:49:09) judge Senator. When do you expect those recommendations (00:49:12) to I don't know. I honestly don't know I suppose a later on in the spring (00:49:17) so that the appointment might take place sometime say this summer or next fall. (00:49:21) I presume before that. (00:49:23) We have another listener on the line. Let's go to your question. Good morning. (00:49:26) Good morning Senator. This is Elbow Lake. I've just finished filling on my tax return and every year at this time. I get a little upset. I'm single I own a home and I pay all the taxes that go along with it and all the maintenance and upkeep and everything. I was wondering if there's anything that can be done. Why can't I sign as head of household that makes about two hundred dollars difference in my return. It would be helpful to me and during the year of something like this could be done. Well Elbow Lake I during my campaign and since I've been down here I Port the idea of a single tax table for all taxpayers also, I support the as you may know and talked about it during the campaign the camp through US job creations and tax cut act which would reduce income taxes by 10% a year or you can skip a year but we'll start the business of reduction of income taxes. Every two years the Congress passes a tax reform Bill quite frankly. I'm against tax reform because every time they reformed the tax bill, they make it more complicated and more difficult to deal with nature nor block opens a couple hundred more offices last time around the tax reform bill was 400 pages long in 1976. It was 1,200 pages long. I say don't give me any more reform no more credits exemptions deductions deletions rebates refunds. Just reduce the rate for everybody across the board. That's the camp broth approach and then as a second step the idea of having a single tax table. It's a much more the problem with the tax lawyers. It's so damn complicated that you have to you have to go out and hire people to help you put it together, and it's very very difficult. (00:51:14) Okay, let's go to another listener who's waiting to ask you a question Senator. Good morning. You're on the air. (00:51:19) This is Wayne cap, and I'm calling from New Brighton and I would like to address energy as an issue, which you already touched on some what and before I get to my question. I would like to also mention a book that I found very valuable in putting the issue in perspective. And that's the poverty of power property of power poverty poverty. I'm having again some feedback problems here on the mic go ahead the poverty of power and that's by Barry commoner and wins. I don't know if you're familiar with him, but sure I'm going into the field and you know, of course everything we do is dependent upon energy and I think it's at the heart of a lot of our economic problems. And as a couple of the other callers have mentioned like the farmers problems. I think a lot of that are their dependence on non-renewable resources. Which are just becoming increasingly dependent upon and like trying to solve it with this gasohol problem. A lot of the criticism has been well we use up too much energy and producing it and of course that gets back to the same thing of if we could use a non-renewable resource like a solar still you can you know, I saw one of those in operation down in Northfield and they work very well. So I would just like to know what because it was a still as you called it the the internal revenue confiscated it from this guy's property. Hell he was producing enough in a very simple solar skill that had a plywood back to it. I thought it was wonderful that he was able to run all of his farm machinery and also produce enough to keep his home heated, right? Is that mr. Crabby? Yeah, that's him. Yeah. I read about him. He's great. Third select know what some of your intentions are Perfectly as possible in terms of the energy issues. You mentioned you were on a committee for that gasohol in that. That's great. I'm on a committee for agricultural research and development where gasohol would be heard and I really support the idea of these on the form small type of usage has you know, the government has a tendency to just fund enormous projects rather than the projects of of individuals and interestingly, of course, the real forward steps that were taken in this country whether it was by Thomas Edison or any of the other real developmental Geniuses of our country were those kind of individual efforts like the one that we spoke about the Northfield and hopefully I'll be able to to help in directing funds and research efforts in that direction. I think in the end the I like very much solar energy because it's as you say it's just Has no limits down to its usage and furthermore. I like the idea of conservation interestingly the other senator who pump so hard for conservation was Hubert Humphrey and I hope I'm able to get it off the ground and and going a little bit more I think in conservation is is the solution the short-term solution to the energy problem. And in research, we will find new means of energy. I think that there's adequate supply of oil adequate supply of natural gas to last the world hundreds of years. I read recently interesting National Geographic article about the Gulf of Mexico where they thought there was adequate supply of natural gas to do Supply the United States for 450 years. Some people said even a thousand years interestingly in the course of the campaign. I talked to people from power companies. I said, we had a 25 year supply of natural gas on the other hand. Other people say it's 2,000 years not the head of common cause but Ralph Nader so there's two thousand years. I ask somebody who knows what is it? And he said well, it's somewhere in between I said I know but which way is it leaning? I think that the consensus is it's certainly leaning towards about Native you (00:55:32) Senator. We have two minutes left in our program this morning and Steve more wits who probably be our last questioner is on the line. He's an Anchorman and a reporter with K DL H TV in Duluth Steve. Good morning. (00:55:43) Good morning Rich. Good morning, Senator. Good morning. Steve Southerner boss. What's the upper Great Lakes Regional Commission furnaces seven million dollars annually in economic assistance to the northern portions of Minnesota, Wisconsin and Michigan at the commission's most recent quarterly meeting. It was proposed that a study be initiated to determine whether the upper Great Lakes commission should expand its boundaries to cover the entire three states. Now that move is as opposed by Governor Quinn 8th District Congressman Oberstar, they say such a move would The Metro major metropolitan areas of Detroit Milwaukee and the Twin Cities would funnel funds away from the rural areas of the three states. What is your reaction to such a I agree with Governor Quinn on that and I've talked to the upper Great Lakes a commission people. I'm very pleased at been Boo the failure former mayor of Duluth is now in charge of that. I think he'll give it New Direction. I think that in the last couple of years the direction of that commission has not been at creating new jobs particularly and I looked at the report of the upper Great Lakes commission to see that Minnesota was getting its proper share and I'll be pumping away to get a proper share possible just a little bit more because I see in some of the years we didn't get quite as much as some of our neighboring states and I think Ben boo is going to be just fine the alleged misuse of funds within the commission. Of course as a campaign issue back in November. Are you satisfied with the results of the investigation after the one indictment and conviction or do you believe it should go even further? Well II think that I don't have any control over that and that if other people are properly indictable, they should be indicted and if there isn't evidence to support that and I suppose it's going for enough that really is out of my hands, and I don't know exactly how to handle it (00:57:34) Senator boschwitz. Our time is up for this morning, and I want to thank you for coming to the studios of national public radio there in Washington to Be Our Guest this morning, and if you don't mind, we'll give out the phone numbers for your Offices here in the Twin Cities and also in Washington, so that listeners who didn't get through to you today can do so perhaps on Monday, and I'll give those numbers now in the Twin Cities. It's 2210904 and in Washington. It's area code 202 and the numbers to 245641. Thanks again for being with us this morning Senator. (00:58:08) All right. My home number is 7037340514. (00:58:13) Very good. Thanks. Much we want to also. Thank this morning David Carlton felon Dan John Lapland for engineering this broadcast and to marry Schaefer for handling the phone traffic and to National Public Radio in Washington for letting us make use of their facilities.