INSIDE WASHINGTON Reserve the Date The Jewish National Fund Council of Greater Detroit requests the honor of your presence at their Annual Dinner honoring HERDERT and DADS KAUFMAN WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 2, 1992 at Temple Beth El KEIBI IIATENE111 LEMUEL Dietory Laws Observed FILITCHNS!!! THEY'RE • Comfortable • Functional • Versatile • Affordable • FUN! It's a Bed COME SEE OUR 1N-STORE SPECIALS! i1 Wait Coast Putons 2544 Orchard Rd. • Sylvan Lake 681-5999 One mile west of Telegaph • Open 7 Days 16338 Mi . • Livonia 425-8860 1 1/2 Mats north of I-96 WE SHIP FURNITURE Vain Uwe, 6453 FARMINGTON ROAD W. BLOOMFIELD 855-5822 2523 W. MAPLE (at CRANBROOK) BLOOMFIELD HILLS 433-3070 2717 WOODWARD AVE. (JUST N. OF CATALPA) BERKLEY 542-2500 Jewish Groups Fear Balanced Budget Bill JAMES D. BESSER Washington Correspondent S ix months ago, it was one of those perennial proposals that nobody on Capitol Hill takes very seriously — a chance for a good sound bites, without any serious risk of passage. But today, with resentful voters threatening a wholesale Capitol Hill house cleaning, legislators have gotten serious about passing a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced federal budget. The measure is expected to come to the floor in both houses in a matter of days. Early indications suggest that backers are already very close to the two-thirds majorities needed to send the measure to the states for quick ratification. Is it good policy? For most Jewish groups, the answer is a worried "no." The amendment, they argue, will wreak havoc in an economy already hobbled by two years of recession, and add significantly to the economic inequities that threaten America's social fabric. "There would be huge cuts," said Diana Aviv, asso- ciate executive vice chair of the National Jewish Com- munity Relations Advisory Council (NJCRAC). This week, NJCRAC con:, vened a meeting of Jewish groups to discuss strategies , for defeating the amend- ment. "We would probably see caps on Medicare and Medicaid, cuts in aid to`- cities, cuts in refugee pro- grams. It's an absolutely devastating amendment for the Jewish community," she said. The mandatory balanced budget, she maintained:; would also deny government the tools it needs to respond to economic crises. A rigidc, balanced budget amendment - For most Jewish groups, the answer is a worried "no:' will also be a major blow to Jewish Federations whose resources have been strained' by the growing demand for services and shrinking government support. And the measure would jeopar- dize Israel's $3.2 billion an nual foreign aid allotment. "If huge budget cuts are mandated, foreign aid will be one of the first things' looked at," said one prom!- nent pro-Israel lobbyiSt. "For the pro-Israel commun- ity, this amendment looks like a disaster. Opposing it will be politically risky, but if it passes, foreign aid will: be highly vulnerable." ; Would-Be Successors To Cardin Lining Up The presidential race isn't the only election attracting the attention of JeWish ac- tivists around the country. In December, the Con- ference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations will elect a new chair to replace Shoshana Cardin, who is re- quired to step down at the end of her second one-year term. Increasingly, the chair of the Presidents Conference is regarded by the media and by many government offi- cials as the closest thing the Jewish community has to an official spokesperson. With U.S.-Israeli relations on an uneven course and Middle East peace negotiations lur- ching along, Mrs. Cardin has become something of a fix- ture on national news pro- grams. According to Washington` sources, several prominent, leaders are interested in the position — including Al'\ Moses, president of the American Jewish Corn- mittee; Robert K. Lifton, president of the American=- Jewish Congress and Lester Pollack, president of the Jewish Community Centers Association of North America. Some Jewish activists are ( also urging Maynard' Wishner, chairman of the- National Jewish Commun- ity Relations Advisory , Council, to throw his hat in the ring. Of course, it is considered` unseemly for Jewish leaders to publicly campaign for the job — although in the past, behind-the-scenes campaign- ing has been hot and heavy. :