News In Brief
The US
Federal courts cannot oversee negotiations between native American tribes and state officials, the Supreme Court ruled. This ends 160 years of congressional free rein in making laws affecting native Americans. (Story, Page 3.)
Senator Dole won the California, Washington, and Nevada primaries by a wide margin, completing a 25-state sweep. Pat Buchanan congratulated his rival on winning the Republican nomination, but vowed to carry his message to San Diego anyway. (See list at right. Related story, Page 1.) In California, proposals to set up no-fault auto insurance, allow cougar hunting in the state, and require losing parties in class-action suits to pay the winners' legal fees were defeated. And San Francisco voted to give the Giants a new stadium.
Republicans are dismissing President Clinton's budget demands for another $1.8 billion for social programs. In what has become political deja vu, the federal government faces another possible shutdown tomorrow while the White House and Congress struggle to compromise on the more than $160-billion spending bill. While a shutdown is considered unlikely, a 12th stopgap bill may be necessary, delaying Congress's scheduled two-week recess.
The House was set to pass legislation banning certain late-term abortions and send it to Clinton for a promised veto. It's the first time since the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalized abortion that Congress moved to outlaw a specific abortion method.
The Immigration and Naturalization Service issued a rule letting abused immigrant spouses and children apply for permanent US residence on their own. Before, immigrants had to rely on the family member who was a US citizen or permanent resident to petition on their behalf.
Canadian Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy is meeting with Secretary of State Christopher in Washington to discuss an increasingly prickly relationship. The Helms-Burton law, which punishes foreign companies making use of expropriated property on Cuba, is the major source of tension. Canada is one of Cuba's leading trade partners. Another sore point is Congress's demand for restitution for 1994 fines Canada imposed on some US fishermen.
Astronauts Linda Godwin and Michael Clifford (below) completed a spacewalk outside the Russian space station Mir. It is the first spacewalk by Americans outside Mir, and the first US spacewalk at a space station since astronauts strolled outside Skylab in 1974.
A third federal appeals court ruled that, for a decade, the Immigration and Naturalization Service illegally required airlines to take responsibility for passengers without visas who sought refugee status in the US. Airlines are seeking government repayment of millions of dollars spent on food, shelter, and guards.
Texas's attorney general says he's going to take the fight for affirmative action in university admissions to the Supreme Court. He says he will ask for a stay of the Fifth Circuit of Appeals decision, which struck down the University of Texas's admissions policy.
The Marines have grounded all nonessential air operations for 48 hours, a result of nine recent unexplained aircraft losses.
At least 3,000 hours of President Nixon's secret tapes are being released, The New York Times reports. The first 200 hours focus on Watergate and misuse of the FBI, CIA, and IRS.
Senate Democrats are blocking a bill that would allow expanded development and mining on federal land in Utah, while preserving 2 million acres as wilderness. The GOP says it may not have the 60 votes needed to to end debate. Clinton says he will veto the bill.
The economy seems to be on sounder footing than last month with good prospects for continued growth and low inflation, Fed chairman Greenspan says.
Three people were killed and eight injured when an explosion blasted apart part of the Beta Steel mill in Portage, Ind.
The World
An Israeli court sentenced Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin's assassin to life in prison. Yigal Amir also received an additional six years for wounding Rabin's bodyguard. He showed no remorse at the ruling and said he killed Rabin to save Israel from further violence. Separately, more than 300 international editors and media executives meeting in Jerusalem passed a resolution urging all governments to ban intelligence agents from posing as journalists.
The EU imposed a worldwide ban on British beef exports amid concerns over "mad cow" disease. And Britain is reconsidering slaughtering some of the country's older cattle.
A high-level US delegation arrived in Mexico for talks on expanding the war on narcotics traffickers. The talks will focus on reducing drug production and trafficking, tightening controls on money laundering, and increasing cross-border extradition of criminals. Above, American movie director Oliver Stone (right) rides into the jungle with Subcomandante Marcos to visit the Zapatistas' camp. Stone said he wanted to familiarize himself with the Indians' situation.
The International Monetary Fund committed $10.2 billion in loans to Russia over the next three years to thwart a revival of communism. It was the second-highest amount the lending institution has given. Last year, Mexico received $17.8 billion.
Two buses and a truck carried 54 Bosnians home from Hungary as the UN began helping Bosnian refugees return from outside the former Yugoslavia. And Defense Secretary William Perry rejected Republican suggestions that the Bosnian peacekeeping mission is expanding its role. A shift by US and allied forces from military tasks to assisting civilian reconstruction was envisioned in the 1995 Bosnia peace agreement, he said. (Story, Page 1.)
Chinese troops staged a new round of mock battles against Taiwan, the United Daily News reported, citing sources close to the Chinese military. About 180,000 troops are involved, compared to the 800,000 that participated in earlier rounds, the report said. China and Taiwan refused comment. Meanwhile, Taiwan's President Lee Teng-hui said Taipei wants high-level talks with China, but won't discuss its sovereignty or give up its campaign to join the UN, The Asian Wall Street Journal reported.
Bangladesh's Prime Minister Khaleda Zia yielded to demands for new elections. She requested a caretaker government run the country in the interim before May polls.
Defying today's lower court deadline to renew leases for US bases, Okinawa's Gov. Masahide Ota vowed to take the issue to Japan's Supreme Court. Prime Minister Hashimoto is expected to override Ota and sign the leases. And Japan's lower house of parliament approved a temporary budget to keep the government running. It is needed because of a parliamentary deadlock that delayed passage of a full budget. The deadlock ended Monday when the main opposition party ended a sit-in, but was too late to prevent the need for a stopgap budget.
Colombian President Ernesto Samper was questioned for nine hours about charges that he bankrolled his 1994 campaign with drug money. The testimony could be made public right away under a new law, sources said.
Desperate for hard currency, North Korea is encouraging its trade officials to sell opium in foreign countries, a defector said. The North is widely involved in drug trafficking, Choe Se Ung said in Seoul. South Korea said North Korean farmers are encouraged to grow opium.
An armed hijacker seized an Egypt Air jetliner with 145 passengers, mostly foreigners, and forced the plane to fly to Libya.
Etceteras
In the NCAA basketball tournament, it's down to the final fours. The women's semifinals match Tennessee vs. Connecticut and Georgia vs. Stanford. On the men's side, it will be Mississippi State vs. Syracuse and Massachusetts vs. Kentucky.
The legends of jazz are honoring Thailand's king of jazz. At 50 years, King Bhumibol Adulyadej is the world's longest-reigning monarch. He composes and plays the sax and clarinet. The world's jazz greats have been trooping to Thailand to honor this king of swing.
From the William Wallace monument in the Scottish highlands you can see more than mountain, castle, and sea. You can see clear to Hollywood. "Braveheart," Mel Gibson's Oscar-winning epic, is bringing a golden era of tourism to Scotland.
After 12 seasons, Angela Lansbury's "Murder, She Wrote" is shutting down. The last four original episodes will air in May. The show debuted in 1984 and was TV's highest-rated drama series from 1985 to 1994.
Primary Results
Here are Tuesday's primary results. In Nevada, publisher Steve Forbes, who dropped out of the race after mail-in voting started, beat Buchanan with 19 percent.
California
Dole 66
Buchanan 19
Nevada
Dole 52
Buchanan 15
Washington (with 99 percent of the vote)
Dole 63
Buchanan 21
- Associated Press
" He is simply the coolest king in the land."
- Vibes great Lionel Hampton after a jam session some time ago at the Thai palace with King Bhumibol Adulyadej.
