21.   But the vacuum at the top has become so obvious, and so persistent, that some are beginning to wonder how much longer the country can afford it.

22.   Conrad and other opponents claimed the cut was twice as large as the country could afford.

23.   In addition, arguments have already begun about whether the country can afford the tax cuts.

24.   Is America going to be protectionist toward Vietnamese products or insist that Vietnam conform to labor and trade standards only rich countries can afford?

25.   It has been widely assumed that poorer countries cannot afford them, and in any event do not have health systems that could use them effectively.

26.   It is Saddam Hussein who is willing to deny his citizens things that his country can easily afford.

27.   Lawmakers from both parties say that in light of the terrorism threat, the country cannot afford to be so dependent on imported fuel.

28.   Many of these benefits are linked to public policies that the country can no longer afford.

29.   Neither country can afford to treat the other as an enemy.

30.   Nevertheless, speaker after speaker said that drugs would not end the worldwide AIDS epidemic, in part because poor countries could not afford their cost.