Because the quarter ended on a stronger note than it began, stepped-up military spending may not be necessary to sustain the economic recovery in the weeks ahead.

Without a broad public consensus on priorities, stepped-up public spending will degenerate into wasteful, unfocused pork, Mr. Reich says.

Longer term, Mr. Lauer said he was counting on "a shot from stepped-up federal spending for weapons."

Out of that thinking came stepped-up federal spending on college scholarships, tuition tax credits and the like.

If Mr. Yeltsin chooses stepped-up spending over reform, the I.M.F. has several options.

The magnitude of the deficit is not the only barrier to a reflexive turn to Government jobs programs, stepped-up spending on public works and tax cuts.

And stepped-up spending for education has helped.

Super-low interest rates, mortgage refinancing, stepped-up military spending and some of the Bush tax cuts augur a temporary pop in economic growth.

Some of the stepped-up spending went to the military and to fighting terrorism, but significantly more went to highways, school construction, Medicaid, unemployment insurance and municipal projects.

Governor Clinton's plan calls for stepped-up spending to improve education and job training to give American industry better workers and to give American workers better jobs.