U.S. Government

"The budget request for the State Department for 2004 reflects the changing foreign policy priorities of an administration set on winning the global war on terrorism and the hearts and minds of the countries where terrorists recruit," UPI's Eli J. Lake writes. "It includes $30 million to launch the Middle East Television Network, an Arabic language satellite station. Also, the budget will double funding for the Voice of America's Indonesia channel. ... Big losers in the budget include both big and small programs.

In his State of the Union address, President Bush asked Americans to imagine what would have happened if the Sept. 11 hijackers had been armed with poison gas or germs. "However, U.S. officials and private analysts said Bush's suggestion that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein might give such weapons to terrorists - and the implication that the risk of American retaliation can no longer deter him - stretches the analysis of U.S. intelligence agencies to, and perhaps beyond, the limit," reports Warren P. Strobel.

The Council of American Muslims for Understanding, an organization created by the U.S. State Department, has been trying to impress Muslims abroad with glowing portrayals of religious diversity and tolerance in the United States. Unfortunately, the Bush administration's supporters in the Christian Coalition of America (CCA) have been sending a different message.

"The latest poll results testify to growing doubts about President Bush and the policies he is pursuing. The Gallup and Princeton Research Center polls cited above both have Bush's job approval ratings at 58 percent, the first time he has dipped below 60 percent since the September 11 tragedy," writes Ruy Teixeira. Bush's handling of the economy has the approval of only 48 percent of respondents; health-care policy, 43 percent; abortion, 39 percent; and 60 percent want the administration to take time to find an alternative to war with Iraq.