American Notes REPUBLICANS

The Republican National Committee, which has been dizzyingly prosperous in the Reagan era, has suddenly fallen on leaner times. Faced with a $3 million shortfall in its $38 million annual budget, the committee last week laid off 40 of its 275 employees. Donations are down, say G.O.P. fund raisers, as a result of the Iran-contra scandal, disappointment with the Republican loss of the Senate last fall, and too many aspiring presidential candidates trolling for money from the same supporters.

But by Democratic Party standards, the Republicans are hardly bereft. The Democratic National Committee's budget for this year and next is only $21 million.