DAY CARE: MANUFACTURED CRISIS DU JOUR

This year's "crisis" is, we are told, a "silent" one. It is a "silent crisis" in day care for America's families. At least this is the story according to President Bill Clinton and his wife, Hillary, now emerging from a self-imposed absence from policy matters that lasted through the election of one year ago this week.

Citizens with more than a nodding acquaintance with the Constitution might wonder what on Earth business of the federal government it is to meddle in child care. Little matters such as the Constitution aren't stopping the Clintons, however. They even convened a White House conference on the subject week before last. You know: Lots of experts and stuff. Dissenters from the view that the Clintons' "silent crisis" exists were nowhere to be found.

"Nothing is more important than finding child care that is affordable, accessible and safe," said the first lady. "It is America's next great frontier in strengthening our families and our future." As much as anything, Mrs. Clinton said, the conference was meant "to start a conversation."

The president promoted a modest package of help, including a scholarship fund to attract workers to the field. He promises "a more comprehensive package" next year.

The Clintons are focusing on real concerns faced by many middle-class American families who have seen both parents forced into the work force. A principal reason that two incomes can't provide the standard of living that one did in the 1950s is the sharply higher taxes working families pay today. It is the cost of government that is pinching families' budgets today, as one spouse works almost full-time for the government. Plenty of families are just one nice-sized tax cut away from sending one spouse home to take care of their own children. Republicans must redouble their efforts to make this case to the same voters the Clintons are trying to sell on the idea of a "silent crisis."