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By Ryan Thornburg
Washingtonpost.com Staff
Monday, April 12, 1999

Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kans.) told high school and college students in Kansas on Friday that abortions are to blame for Social Security's impending insolvency. It works like this, he said: fewer abortions would mean more workers paying into the system to support the retiring baby boom population. "You need to think about having five or six more children in the family, instead of two or three," Brownback jokingly told the students.

"Sadly, the Clinton Administration is now taking us into a war without any apparent intention to win." – Former Reagan secretary of defense Caspar W. Weinberger, in an opinion column. (The New York Times, April 12, registration required)

If Brownback's theory is correct, the good news is that abortions have declined steadily since the 1970s, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The bad news is that 64 percent of women in their childbearing years use contraception, according to The Alan Guttmacher Institute.

• Brownback: Abortions Hurting Social Security Fund (The Wichita Eagle, April 12)
• Abortion Data (Centers for Disease Control)
• Contraceptive Data (The Alan Guttmacher Institute)
• Special Report: Social Security (washingtonpost.com)

La. Congressional Race Heats Up With Livingston Endorsement
Former congressman Bob Livingston (R) last week brought new interest to the race to replace him. He ended his vow of impartiality by endorsing David Treen. Livingston said he wanted to stay out of the race unless it appeared that former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke had a serious shot at winning.
• Term Limits Vows, Duke Stir GOP 1st District Fight (The Advocate, Baton Rouge, April 12)
• Political Junkie: The Hazards of Duke (Washingtonpost.com, April 12)

Things Calm Down in Iowa Senate After Punch
Iowa state Sen. Dennis Black (D) said that he was willing to forgive and forget that his 73-year-old Republican colleague, John Jensen, punched him in the arm last week during a debate over land conservation and property rights.
• Punched Senator: Best Just to Let Incident Die (The Des Moines Register, April 12)

California Governor Celebrates Victories of First 100 Days
He's no Roy Barnes – the uber-successful new Democratic governor of Georgia – but California's rookie Democrat, Gov. Gray Davis, has had a pretty good start to his administration. So, on the 95th day on the job, he held a party to celebrate the passage of his four-bill education plan, among other things.
• Davis Crows Over Triumphs Of First 100 Days (San Francisco Chronicle, April 12)

Ryan Thornburg can be reached at ryan.thornburg@washingtonpost.com