Image provided by: University of Nebraska-Lincoln Libraries, Lincoln, NE
About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 20, 1992)
1\JPW<1 nicPQl Associated Press X ^1 F ¥ C7 1 ^ XCL V J lr Edited by Roger Price Tsongas leaves race; Brown promises battle Funds run low for ex-senator BOSTON — A frustrated, debt laden Paul Tsongas pulled out of the Democratic presidential race on Thursday, narrowing the field to two and leaving Arkansas Gov. Bill Clin ton as the clear favorite to capture the nomination. Clinton’s sole remaining opponent is former Califor nia Gov. Jerry Brown, who is running an out sider’s campaign against the corrupt ing influence of special interest money on politics. Brown promised a head-to-head battle with Clinton “for the soul of the Democratic Party.” Tsongas blamed his campaign’s downfall on a shortage of cash for expensive primaries coming up in New York and elsewhere and said he did not want to remain in the race in the “role of spoiler.” “That is not what I’m about; that is not worthy,” said Tsongas, a cancer survivor. “I did not survive my or deals in order to be the agent of the re election of George Bush.” Party Chairman Ronald Brown said that with Tsongas’ departure, “there are a lot of people making the case that Bill Clinton has an insurmount able lead. The question is if Gov. Brown reaches that same conclusion, does he want to carry on the cam paign.” Brown said he was not calling on Gov. Brown to quit but would do so if Clinton won Connecticut, New York, Kansas and Wisconsin. Democratic consultant Victor Kamber said Tsongas’ withdrawal “makes Clinton the nominee, basi cally, today. The party is now going to try to coalesce around Clinton as quickly as possible.” Ann Lewis, another Democratic consultant, said, “He is, barring some thing totally new and unexpected, the nominee,” Tsongas, 51, said he left the race “deeply fulfilled. The obligation of my survival has been met.” He said his campaign was too broke to compete in New York, which votes primary Democratic National Convention l9 A J J 1991_”£2I April 7, and that his commitment to the Democratic Party was too strong for him to stay in the race at less than full speed. “To go ipto New York, defense less in terms of financial resources, would have meant that we could not compete... The message would have been so damaged, that all we had endured for would have been hurl,” he said. Tsongas congratulated both Clin ton and Brown, and said he was look ing forward to helping elect a Demo cratic president. “‘It’s been a hell of a ride,” he told a packed farewell rally at a Boston hotel. Brown said he and Clinton would do “battle for the soul of the Demo AP cratic Party.” He has waged a low cost outsiders’ campaign, refusing to accept campaign contributions of more than SI00 and railing against the corrupting influence of money on politics. Clinton said Tsongas’ decision meant “my strongest opponent is not going to be there anymore.” House postmaster quits amid scandal WASHINGTON — House Postmaster Robert V. Rota resigned Thursday, becoming the sec ond House official in a week to quit following allegations of mismanagement. Rota, who resigned on his 57th birthday, ran a mail facility that has seen three former em ployees recently plead guilty to embezzlement and a fourth awaiting trial on that charge. U.S. postal inspectors also have received statements from at least one employee of drug dealing and use by employees of the facility. The U.S. attorney’s office said its criminal investigation is continuing, while a House Administration Committee task force is prob ing allegations of mismanagement. The Washington Times reported Thursday that there was an illegal check cashing opera tion at the post office, a contractor for the U.S. Postal Service. It said congressional and law enforcement officials found that members reportedly cashed personal checks and cam paign checks at the postal facility. Last Thursday, House Sergeant at Arms Jack Russ, who ran the chamber’s former bank, resigned after the ethics committee found he misused his office. The committee found that Russ cashed 19 bad checks at the bank and failed to make promised reforms to end the facility’s liberal overdraft policies. The no-penalty overdrafts have cnsnarlcd House members in a major scandal. The cham ber’s ethics committee plans to release, in two stages, the names of 355 current and former House members who wrote bad checks at the bank during a 39-month period. Russ was in charge of the now closed bank the entire time. Speaker Thomas S. Foley, D-Wash., told reporters that Rota “had been talking for some time” about retiring. “1 don’t think there’s any connection ... at all” with the latest news reports. Rota gave Foley a two sentence resignation letter that mentioned none of the facility’s problems. “It has been an honor and pleasure to serve the members of Congress and this institu tion for these many years,” Rota wrote. He became postmaster an elected position, in 1972. His current term would have continued through the end of the current Congress. Unemployment falls; trade deficit shrinks WASHINGTON — The merchandise trade deficit narrowed slightly to $5.77 billion in January even though Ameri can exports, the economy’s star performer the past two years, fell for a third straight month, the government said Thursday. The Bush administration called the weakness in ex , ports temporary, but private economists wor ried that the lull could prove more lasting and imperil chances to mount a sustained recovery. In another economic report Thursday, the Labor Department said that the number of newly laid off Americans filing for unemploy ment compensation totaled 433,000 in the week ending March 7, a decline of 27,000 from the previous week. The Bush administration said the drop in jobless claims was just one of a number of reports in recent weeks pointing to an eco nomic rebound. Labor Secretary Lynn Martin noted that the weekly claims level is now 80,000below where it was a year ago during the depths of the recession and she said this improvement was a "hopclul sign of growing labor market stabil ity.” But private economists said they were still looking for the overall jobless rate, currently at a six-year high of 7.3 percent, to rise to around 7.5 percent by mid-year before starting a grad ual improvement. The Commerce Department said the Janu ary trade deficit was 3.9 percent lower than December’s $6 billion imbalance. Imports, held down by weak demand in the United Slates, dropped 1.4 percent to $41.30 billion while exports fell 1 percent to $35.54 billion. Israel forced to consider seeking economic self-sufficiency JERUSALEM—One out of every $10 spent in Israel comes from the United States, but there are growing signs that such largess won’t last for ever. The Bush administration’s refusal this week to provide $10 billion in loan guarantees has rekindled the debate over whether the Jewish state can cut the economic umbilical cord and begin striving for economic inde pendence. “There are signs that people are recognizing there has to be a change,” Robert Loewenberg, president of Jerusalem’s Institute for Advanced Strategic and Political Studies, said Thursday. Weaning itself from foreign aid could be difficult for Israel at a time when it is struggling to deal with a NelSraiskan Editor Jana Padarsan Art Director Scott Maurer 472-1766 General Manager Dan Shattll Managing Editor Kara Wells Production Manager Katherine Policky Assoc. News Editors Chrla Hoptensperger Advertising Manager Todd Sears Kris Karnopp Sales Manager Eric Krlngel - Opinion Page Editor Alan Phelps Classified Ad Manager Annette Sue per Wire Editor Roger Price Publications Board Copy Desk Editor Wendy Navratll Chairman Bill Vobejda Sports Editor Nick Hytrek 472-2588 Assistant Sports Editor Tom Clouse Professional Adviser Don Walton, 473-7301 FAX NUMBER 472-1761 The Daily Nebraskan)USPS 144-060) is published by the UNL Publications Board. Ne braska Union 34, 1400 R St., Lincoln. NE. Monday through Friday during the academic year, weekly during summer sessions Readers are encouraged to submit story ideas and comments to the Daily Nebraskan by phoning 472-1763 between 9 a m. and 5 p.m Monday through Friday. The public also has access to the Publications Board For information, contact Bill Vobejda. 472-2588 Subscription price is $50 for one year Postmaster: Send address changes to the Daily Nebraskan. Nebraska Union 34, 1400 R St .Lincoln, NE 68588-0448 Second-class postage paid at Lincoln, NE. ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT 1992 DAILY NEBRASKAN , ^ ., f<r* wave of immigration from the Soviet Union. Israel had sought the U.S. guaran tees to get favorable interest rates on international loans to build housing and create jobs for the newcomers. About 350,000 Soviet Jews already have arrived and Israel hopes to draw up to 1 million by the middle of the decade. The United States linked the guar aniees 10 a freeze on Jewish settle ments in occupied Arab lands. Bush sees the settlements as an obstacle in the Mideast peace process. Israel argues the two issues arc separate and re fused the trade-off. The guarantees would be over and above the $6 billion a year that West ern nations and Jewish charities al ready pump into Israel’s $52 billion economy. Last year, more than $5 billion came from the United States. The U.S. government provided $3 billion in military and economic aid, a spe cial $650 million grant to compen sate for Gulf War expenses and $400 million in loan guarantees to help with the immigrants. About $1 bil lion came from private American contributions to Israel bond drives and Jewish charities. cardinal appoints commission to study priests who sexually abuse children CHICAGO — A flurry of child sex-abusc scandals has drawn the Roman Catholic Church into a far ranging investigation of pedophile priests — a phenomenon critics say the church hierarchy has long kept muffled. In the last nine months, seven priests in the Chicago area have been re moved from parishes and one has been indicted because of sexual mis treatment complaints involving chil dren. Cardinal Joseph Bemardin ap pointed a three-member commission in October to decide how to deal with pedophile priests. He acted following publicity over the church’s recurring failure to remove a priest accused of sexual mistreatment of youngsters in three suburban parishes. “In the earlier days people would say, ‘He goofed, he’ll be OK, we’ll give him another chance,’” Deacon Chris Baumann of the National Con ference of Catholic Bishops said of pedophile priests. Until the Rev. Robert Mayer was indicted in December on charges oI criminal sexual abuse of a 14-year old girl, only one priest had been prosecuted for sexual abuse of a minor in Cook County since at least the late 1970s, said state’s attorney spokes man Andy Knott. , Some say the panel, made up ol a juvenile court judge, a former official with the slate Departmentof Children and Family Services and an auxiliary bishop, is indicative of the church s willingness to openly address the is sue.