Don't Underestimate Bert

As director of the Office of Management and Budget, Thomas Bertram Lance, 45, is managing three of President Carter's top-priority projects: balancing the budget by 1980, reorganizing the bureaucracy and preventing runaway inflation. Last week, as Lance weighed the final revisions of the fiscal 1978 budget, TIME Correspondent Philip Taubman called on him and sent this report:

Up by 4 a.m. and in the office by 7, he reviewed the budget changes, huddled with top Carter Aide Hamilton Jordan on Government reorganization, appeared on a radio talk show and chatted with Carter three times. Then he went over the CIA budget with Director-designate Stansfield Turner and reassured several business leaders, including General Motors Corp. Chairman Thomas Murphy, that the Administration would pursue moderate economic policies.

Some critics complain that Lance spreads himself too thin. Says an old hand at OMB: "I'm not sure he knows what the bottom line is on the budget." Lance concedes that he may be involved in too many projects. Says he: "I knew that I'd get involved in a lot of responsibilities, but I guess maybe it's been a bit more varied than I ever imagined." Still, he shows no signs of slowing down; nor are there any indications that Carter wants him to act any differently.

Lance, a friend of Carter's for more than 10 years, served as Georgia highway commissioner when Carter was Governor. His country-boy manner masks a shrewd, tough mind. Says New York Republican Barber Conable, ranking minority member of the House Ways and Means Committee: "Bert does a lot of talking about being a country boy. You know that kind--when he shakes your hand, you had better count your fingers." Cabinet members who appealed to Carter to restore Lance's cuts in their budgets were rebuffed. Says Jordan, no pushover himself as a bureaucratic infighter: "It's a serious mistake to underestimate Bert. He's more than a budget officer because he's so close to the President."

At OMB, Lance has liberally delegated authority, unlike his predecessor, James Lynn, who pored over every budget detail. Lance has turned most of the day-to-day supervision over to Deputy Director James Mclntyre, who served as Georgia's budget director under Carter. Says Lance: "I don't want to make any decisions someone else can make. I'll wait and deal with the tough ones." Informal, he sometimes answers his own telephone. Says he: "I'll talk to anyone. It's important for me to be accessible."

Lance has proved to be a consummate politician. Before submitting the Carter budget amendments to Congress, he made a soothing phone call to Senate Majority Leader Robert Byrd, who has complained of not receiving attention from the Administration. "Yessir, Senator," Lance drawled, "you just let me know who you want to have at our briefing."

Lance also works smoothly with the other members of Carter's economic triumvirate: Treasury Secretary Michael Blumenthal and Chief Economic Adviser Charles Schultze. Of the three, Blumenthal has had the least influence on the Administration's policies, chiefly because he has not yet developed Lance's close relationship with Carter or Schultze's Washington savvy. Once Blumenthal settles into his job, however, he is expected to increase his clout, particularly on tax matters and international economic policy. Schultze is the President's most trusted adviser on overall economic policy, while Lance runs the budget. Where the two areas overlap, Schultze and Lance have had no trouble cooperating.

Lance has had to forgo one activity: stepping out with Wife LaBelle into Washington society from their elegant rented house in Georgetown. They get plenty of invitations, from the Averell Harrimans, the Smith Bagleys and other social heavyweights. But Lance has been unable to get away much and shows up only for state functions that he cannot avoid. Laments LaBelle: "We haven't had one party yet. Bert's just been so busy with that budget."

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