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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 3, 1999)
News Digest Jordan questioned by House prosecutors WASHINGTON (AP) - Vernon Jordan was questioned for nearly three hours Tuesday in a secure area of the Capitol by House prosecutors in President Clinton’s impeachment trial. Senators also viewed Monica Lewinsky’s videotaped testimony, and a few Republicans said they saw little rea son to summon her before the Senate. “Based on what my staff told me, there is nothing new. If there in fact is nothing new, I would not expect her to be called,” Sen. Robert Bennett, R Utah, said. But Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, who viewed the tape himself, said he believed it might be helpfiil to have Lewinsky testify from the Senate floor. “It’s far better for the public to meet her and make up their own minds,” he said. “Personally, I found her to be « If there in fact is nothing new; I would not expect her to be called.” Robert Bennett Utah senator young, vulnerable and credible. I think she’d make a very effective witness.” Lead House prosecutor Henry Hyde acknowledged today that Lewinsky’s testimony delivered no bombshells, but he added that “con firming the accuracy and the reaffirma tion of her previous statement under oath is something worthwhile.” Hutchinson said he planned to meet with the other 12 House prosecutors to determine whether to try to summon witnesses for live testimony before the Senate or to call additional witnesses. “Those are issues we still have to address,” Hutchinson said As senators for the first time got access to Lewinsky’s videotaped depo sition, prosecutors were to focus their questions on some of the discrepancies that emerged between her grand jury testimony and Jordan’s last year. Tuesday marked the first time Jordan, a Washington attorney and longtime friend to Clinton, had testified since Lewinsky began cooperating with Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr. In contrast to Jordan, Lewinsky gave the grand jury specific details that linked Jordan to conversations about gifts she received from Clinton, destroyed notes to the president and a false affidavit in which she denied an affair. The trial is to resume Thursday, and unless the depositions yield new infor mation, the Senate will proceed to clos ing arguments and final deliberations that could meet the lawmakers’ target for ending the trial by Feb. 12, or sooner. Videotapes of the three depositions could be made public if a majority of senators vote to do so, or the witnesses could be called to testify live. Jury says Web site uses death threats PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - A federal jury ruled Tuesday that a Web site and “wanted” posters list ing abortion doctors’ names and addresses amounted to death threats, ordering the site’s authors to pay damages of more than $100 million. Striking a blow to militant online tactics in the fight against abortion, the verdict could redefine what is considered constitutionally protected political speech. The anti abortion materials contained no explicit threats of violence, only veiled messages, such as crossing through the names of abortion providers who were killed. “The jury saw the posters for what they are - a hit list for terror ists,” said Gloria Feldt, the president of Planned Parenthood, the main plaintiff in the case. “Whether these threats are posted on trees or on the Internet, their intent and impact is the same.” Defendants had said that they would not pay any damages, no matter what the verdict. One of the defendants, Catherine Ramey, sobbed as the verdict came in, after 4Vi days of deliberations. “This is a moral and constitu tional outrage,” Ramey said after ward. “There was no threat and they knew it,” Ramey said. She had testi fied that she would not so much as offer a tissue to an abortion provider if he or she was shot. At issue was the “The Nuremberg Files” Web site, which lists hundreds of “baby butchers” and invites readers to send in such personal details as their home addresses, license plate numbers and even the names of their chil dren. The similar Wild West-style posters offered a $5,000 reward for information about the “Deadly Dozen” doctors branded “Guilty of Crimes Against Humanity.” Three times, doctors whose names appeared on the list were killed, most recently last October when Dr. Barnett Slepian was gunned down by sniper fire in his home outside Buffalo, N.Y. His name on the Web site was promptly crossed through. Throughout the three-week trial, held under tight security, abor tion doctors on the list testified that they lived in constant fear, used dis guises, bodyguards and bulletproof vests, and instructed their children to crouch in the bathroom if they heard guntire. “This is terrorism,” plaintiffs’ attorney Maria Vullo said in closing arguments, pointing to a timeline of the four doctors and two clinic workers killed since 1993. “The message is, ‘Stop performing abor tion or wear a bulletproof vest.’” Attorneys for more than a dozen defendants, including the anti-abor tion umbrella group American Coalition of Life Advocates, con tended their clients were peaceful protesters engaged in a vigorous political debate. But on the stand, defendant Andrew Burnett, publisher of Life Advocate Magazine, conceded that doctors may have reason to fear the Web site because of the extent of anti-abortion violence. “If I was an abortionist,” he said, “I would be afraid.” Questions? Comments? Ask for the appropriate section editor at (402) 472-2588 or e-mail dn@unl.edu. THE DAILY NEBRASKAN Editor: Erin Gibson Managing Editor: Brad Davis Associate News Editor: Sarah Baker Associate News Editor: Bryce Glenn Assignment Editor: Lindsay Toung Opinion Editor: Cliff Hicks Sports Editor: Sam McKewon A&E Editor: Bret Schulte Copy Desk Chief: Tasha Kelter Asst Copy Desk Chief: Heidi White Photo Co-Chief : Matt Miller Photo Co-Chief: Lane Hickenbottom Design Chief: Nancy Christensen Art Director: Matt Haney Web Editor: Gregg Steams Asst Web Editor: Amy Burke General Manager: Dan Shatdl Publications Board Jessica Hofmann, Chairwoman: (402) 466-8404 Professional Adviser: Don Walton, (402)473-7248 Advertising Manager: Nick Partsch, (402)472-2589 Asst Ad Manager: Andrea Oeltjen Classifleld Ad Manager: Mary Johnson Unadilla groundhog: 6 more weeks of winter UNADILLA (AP) - Back in 1988, then-Lt. Gov. Bill Nichol tabbed this southeast Nebraska town as the Comhusker State’s groundhog capital. Well, Tuesday was Groundhog Day and Nebraskans were not to be outdone by those folks in Pennsylvania. About 80 people gathered before dawn in this community of290 about 30 miles southeast of Lincoln to see if the state’s version of the famed rodent, Punxsutawney Phil, would see his shadow and curse Nebraskans to six more weeks of winter. One significant difference, Nebraska’s groundhog - named Unadilla Bill in honor of Nichol - is stuffed. The central committee han dling this groundhog did see his shadow, and apparently more winter is in store for Nebraska. “We recycle it every year,” said Bob Brandt, the president of First National Bank in Unadilla. “We’ve had him for 11 years. We don’t have to pen a groundhog up for a year and bring him out for one day.” Phil, on the other hand, this time around, saw no shadow in Punxsutawney, Pa., where thousands gathered to see the event. The Groundhog Day tradition has its roots in Germany. It was a German folk belief that held if an animal casts a shadow on Feb. 2, bad weather will come. German immigrants brought the old belief to America. About 110 years ago, the Groundhog Day obser vance began in Pennsylvania. Since then, the morning of Feb. 2 has evolved into an elaborate show. Tourists to walk on water ■ An Israel park is planning an attraction to simulate the aquatic steps of Jesus. JERUSALEM (AP) - Retracing Jesus’ footsteps on Holy Land pil grimages is nothing new - but the tours have not extended onto water, until now. Israel’s National Parks Authority said Monday that it had authorized a private contractor to build a sub merged bridge into the Sea of Galilee that would allow tourists to simulate Jesus’ miraculous walk on water. “In the beginning we thought it was a joke,” the authority’s head of planning, Zeev Margalit, told The Associated Press. Margalit said that after canvass ing church authorities about the idea and reviewing the plans, he conclud ed it would “not hurt the feelings of the Christian tourists and it would not be too kitschy, so we decided to go with it.” The bridge is one of a long list of projects approved by Israeli authori ties for the millennium, when an anticipated four million pilgrims are expected. Some church authorities said they were reserving judgment on the bridge until August, when it is due to be in place at Capernaum, the leg endary site of Jesus’ walk on water. “It is problematic,” said Wadia Abu Nassar, director of2000 celebra tions for the Roman Catholic Church in Israel. “It will lead to various inter pretations.” He said the church had yet to decide whether to list it as an official site. The 13-foot wide, 28-foot long crescent-shaped floating bridge will be submerged two inches below water, and will be able to accommo date up to 50 people. It will not be railed in order to enhance the “walking on water” effect, and lifeguards and boats will be in attendance in case a walker slips off. The site of Jesus’ reported walk on water at the Sea of Galilee - actu ally a freshwater lake in north Israel - has been a pilgrimage point since at least the third century, and is marked by an ancient church. ■ Washington Gephardt announces he won’t run in 2000 The Associated Press -Leaving one less hurdle for A1 Gore, House Democratic leader Dick Gephardt has decided to skip the 2000 presidential campaign and try instead to win control of the House and become speaker, sev eral allies said Tuesday. He will announce his decision today in a meeting of House Democrats, most of whom urged the Missouri lawmaker to remain in Congress and help eliminate the Republicans’ paper-thin hold on the chamber. ■ Washington U.S. warplanes attack Iraqi missile launchers The Associated Press - American warplanes on Tuesday attacked Iraqi anti-ship missile launchers newly deployed along the Persian Gulf. Pentagon officials said the Iraqi weapons had been moved to the area as a threat to ships in Kuwaiti coastal waters. This was the first time during a recent escalation of tensions with Iraq that U.S. planes targeted Iraqi weapons designed to strike ships. The other, almost daily, U.S. attacks have been against anti-aircraft missile launchers and radars used to threaten U.S. and British planes patrolling Iraq’s skies. ■ Yugoslavia Albanian rebels agree to attend peace talks PRISTINA (AP) - Ethnic Albanian rebels reluctantly agreed Tuesday to take part in weekend peace talks aimed at ending the bloody 11 -month conflict in Kosovo - a decision that focused international pressure on the hard-line Yugoslav government Rebel participation had been thrown into doubt after a spokesman recommended not sending delegates. However, the main Kosovo Liberation Army spokesman, Jakup Krasniqi, told reporters in central Kosovo that the KLA would name its delegates today. ■ Colombia Earthquake victims running out of food ARMENIA (AP) - Emergency food supplies are dangerously low for the more than 200,000 people left homeless by last week’s earthquake in Colombia, authorities said Tuesday. The officials said private cfcpations were dropping off sharply and appealed for more aid to fill the gap between what Colombians need and what the government and international relief agencies have rushed in. Aid officials were trying to avoid a repeat of the first few days after the Jan. 25 earthquake, when shortages were widespread. ■ United Kingdom Lawyers say Pinochet should be sent home LONDON (AP) - Lawyers for the Chilean government concluded their case in Britain’s highest court Tuesday, saying Gen. Augusto Pinochet should be freed and sent home even though Chile has not requested his extradition. A formal extradition request is irrelevant since the former Chilean dic tator “is not a fugitive,” lawyer Lawrence Collins said. The 83-year-old general was arrest ed Oct 16 in London at the request of a Spanish magistrate.