Now, the Tea Party Republicans are not talking jobs but rather are proponents of entitlement cuts, cuts, cuts.

The tax increases and some of the entitlement cuts will be locked into substantive law, and, barring a shooting war in the Persian Gulf, future defense spending is likely to be less than what the budget agreement promises.

Together, these proposed entitlement cuts are essential components of the Republican effort to balance the budget by 2002.

First, the Federal Government failed to enact the policy changes his budget was based on, removing pressure on the Legislature to make major entitlement cuts.

President Bush's five-year budget proposes $51 billion in entitlement cuts.

There's also an ominous problem with their proposed entitlement cuts of $50 billion, mostly in Medicare.

But he always shrank from making specific recommendations - tax hikes, entitlement cuts - that might anger his supporters.

In a test vote on a proposal to put caps on Government entitlement programs recently, 4 Democratic and 24 Republican senators voted against exemption of veterans benefits from proposed entitlement cuts.

His total request for state aid, which combines cash assistance with entitlement cuts, is valued at $950 million.

"While if they play their cards and do what they say privately must be done - like tax increases or entitlement cuts - they are exposed for advocating politically unpopular proposals."