Free Republic

For First Lady, A Controversy In Plane Terms Possible N.Y. Bid Redraws Line Between Official, Political Roles By John F. Harris Washington Post Staff Writer Saturday, July 3, 1999; Page A01 When first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton flies to Upstate New York Wednesday to formally begin her Senate exploratory campaign, she'll be riding on the first big controversy of the nascent campaign: a gleaming blue-and-white Air Force passenger jet. A candidacy without precedent in history is raising murky ethical questions. The first lady's military travel -- which White House officials say is a security requirement and Republicans are protesting as ...

THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary ________________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release July 1, 1999 June 30, 1999 Presidential Determination No. 99-31 MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF STATE SUBJECT: Eligibility of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to be Furnished Defense Articles and Services Under the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act Pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 503(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, section 3(a)(1) of the Arms Export Control Act, and section 422 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 ...

PRISTINA, Yugoslavia (AP) - For a place where many government offices have been bombed and most of the rest have been looted, Kosovo suffers from an odd affliction: too many governments. There's the government of Hashim Thaci, the Kosovo Liberation Army chief who says a coalition of political parties picked him as ``prime minister'' to lead the province to freedom. There's the government of Bujar Bukoshi, since 1991 the ``prime minister'' of the unrecognized ``Republic of Kosovo.'' And there's the government of Zoran Andjelkovic, the Yugoslav governor of Kosovo before the bombing started. And then there's the U.N. administration ...

JERUSALEM (July 4) - For the first time since his election, Prime Minister-elect Ehud Barak spoke with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat on Friday. He also rebuked US President Bill Clinton for statements that hinted at US support for a Palestinian "right of return." These were the first diplomatic steps taken by Barak, who last week completed forming his coalition. He plans to present his government to the Knesset on Wednesday. During their conversation, Barak and Arafat agreed to meet soon after Barak's cabinet is approved. Barak's office characterized the talk as "friendly" and said Arafat congratulated him on ...

Monday June 21 1:25 AM ET Cisneros Case Focuses on Tapes By MICHELLE MITTELSTADT Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Attorneys for former Housing Secretary Henry Cisneros are heading to court seeking to thwart prosecutors' use of 88 tapes of telephone conversations secretly recorded by his ex-mistress. The pretrial hearing, which begins today and could stretch into the week, is pivotal for both sides. The government's special prosecutor wants to use the tapes at Cisneros' September trial to corroborate witness testimony that the former Cabinet officer conspired with one-time lover Linda Jones to conceal his ``hush money'' payments to her, ...

Interestingly, Independence Day is the anniversary of the death of three Presidents and the birth of one. The first is, for my money, one of the greatest minds ever produced by this country. Thomas Jefferson, at the age of 83, died on the 4th of July in 1826, fifty years to the day after the original 4th. He was but 33-years-old when he penned the Declaration of Independence. He was a remarkable man whose achievements in virtually any science of the time would have caused him to be remembered today. He was an architect (of all the historic homes that ...

Harsh 'confessions' Welfare worker turned author rages against the system and its recipients Jonathan Martin - The Spokesman-Review Spokane _ A state welfare worker in Spokane is sounding off about those stereotypes about oversexed, conniving people feeding off the public dole. He says most welfare recipients he sees really are oversexed and conniving. Chuck Burbank's book, "Welfare and the Ideology of Power: Confessions of a Welfare Worker" has co-workers buzzing, national welfare activists fuming and supervisors squirming. The 149-page paperback is on its second printing, and a Seattle marketing campaign is in the works. All this from a first-time ...

For educational and discussion purposes only; not for commercial use. JULY 04, 12:21 EDT Govt Agencies Fight for Forfeitures By JOHN HENDREN AP National Writer When Arkansas state troopers found $3 million in cash in trucker Roberto Zamarripa's cargo, they declared the ``tainted'' money property of the county. By the time county prosecutors got to court, they found another claimant: the federal government. As Congress weighs whether to make it harder to seize citizens' property, federal and local agencies fight in courtrooms throughout the country over the spoils of asset forfeiture. The disputes reveal this incentive: Cash-strapped law enforcement agencies ...

Wednesday June 30 12:12 AM ET Elite Presidential Guards Shot Dead In Mexico By Caroline Brothers MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Gunmen shot dead two members of the elite presidential guard and wounded one other on Tuesday in an ambush in Mexico City that stunned a nation still reeling from the killing of a popular TV personality. At least six unidentified gunmen jumped out of two cars and opened fire on the white sedan carrying the victims, Mauricio Tornero, chief of Mexico City's investigative police told a news conference. The guards returned fire, wounding one of the gunmen. The ambush occurred ...

Friday July 2 8:06 AM ET Court Rejects Diana Probe Requests By NICOLAS MARMIE Associated Press Writer PARIS (AP) - A French appeals court today rejected requests for further inquiries in the investigation into the car crash that killed Princess Diana. The ruling means that Judge Herve Stephan's investigation could be officially over by the end of August, judicial officials said on customary condition of anonymity. Lawyers for Mohamed Al Fayed, whose son Dodi also died in the crash, and for the family of driver Henri Paul, another victim, had presented their requests in May. Al Fayed was hoping Stephan ...

USA WEEKEND ADVERTISEMENTS Home Celebs Health Personal Finance Wit &Wisdom Quick Polls Make ADifference Day Special Reports Classroom Site Index Search E-UpdateSubscribe to our weekly e-mailed newsletter. Issue date: July 4, 1999 In this issue: Key findings More key findings Regulating entertainment Gun control Amending the Constitution Searches and law enforcement Last months National Debate USA WEEKEND's Third Annual America's Poll Our exclusive July Fourth poll finds Americans ready to trade some cherished freedoms for greater safety for themselves -- and their children. ust two MONTHS after the Columbine High School massacre in Colorado, horrific gun crimes by the ...

The colonists of the first Fourth of July were pretty nervous about standing up to an English king and demanding their rights. Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence is the most passionate document in our national anthology, and it galvanized the 13 colonies. Today, despite our government's objections, the U.S.-subsidized World Bank is assisting China in its cultural colonization of Tibet. Why in the world is the World Bank involved with this? It wants to give China a $40 million loan to relocate 58,000 Chinese farmers to the Tibetan Plateau, an area of western China that was once part of ...

A new doctoral thesis by Brian A. Patrick out of the University of Michigan tends to confirm heavy press bias against the National Rifle Association. In analyzing 1,500 gun-related news articles and editorials in the "elite media" (The New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal and Christian Science Monitor), Mr. Patrick found: -- That 87 percent of editorials and op-eds dealing with the NRA were negative. -- That about 27 percent of news headlines dealing with the NRA used belittling jokes or puns -- more than double the rate for other interest groups. -- That anti-gun groups were ...

Father, all powerful and ever-living God, we do well to sing your praise for ever, and to give you thanks in all we do through Jesus Christ our Lord. He spoke to men a message of peace and taught us to live as brothers. His message took form in the vision of our fathers as they fashioned a nation where men might live as one. This message lives on in our midst as a task for men today and a promise for tomorrow. We thank you, Father, for your blessings in the past and for all that, with your ...

WHAT IS A REPUBLICAN? Thomas Jefferson stated that "The Republican is the only form of government which is not eternally at open or secret war with the rights of mankind." "Men by their constitutions are naturally divided into two parties: (1) Those who fear and distrust the people, and wish to draw all powers from them into the hands of the higher classes. (2) Those who identify themselves with the people, have confidence in them, cherish and consider them as the most honest and safe, although not the most wise depository of the public interests. In every country these two ...

These arrowed things have evolved into a kind of holiday staple, so in honor of America's independence, let's shoot. Remember as always that this is the conventional wisdom, which is fickle. UP: Bill Clinton--First he wins a war. Then he finds an extra trillion lying around and decides to save Medicare and Social Security, add prescription drug coverage to Medicare and maybe cut taxes. He's set to pick the architect for that library along the river downtown. He might even offer to be our U.S. senator and take out Tim or Mike, depending. How can you not like a ...

MOSCOW, Jul 3, 1999 -- (Agence France Presse) President Boris Yeltsin singled out regional conflicts Friday as a threat to Russia in an address to senior defense officials. Yeltsin also called for ratification of the START II strategic arms reduction treaty and negotiations on START III, which would provide for further cuts in the strategic arsenals of Russia and the United States, according to deputy. "The threat of a large-scale military aggression against Russia remains possible only in theory. But the danger of regional conflicts is real," Yeltsin was quoted as saying by the ITAR-TASS news agency. Moscow fought ...

Audit: Report says lax county oversight contributes to widespread cheating by both recipients and agency officials. Fraud by welfare recipients and social services officials may be costing the public as much as $500 million annually, according to a report by the Los Angeles County Grand Jury. In a blistering 58-page audit released Wednesday, the grand jury reported that "the potential for fraud . . . in the Los Angeles County Department of Public Social Services is enormous." The report found 16 deficiencies in the department, including overpaying recipients, allowing a huge case backlog and ineffectual investigation of fraud by ...

This morning on "This Week", Sam Donaldson said he did not think that the Bush L.A. Times story was a story...for anyone who feels the same and wants to voice an opinion, the email address is: Richard.Serrano@latimes.com Here is the email that I sent to Mr. Serrano: Dear Mr. Serrano: I read your article in today's LA Times regarding Gov. Bush's service in the National Guard. As Sam Donaldson said this morning on "This Week", I don't think there's a story here. Neither George W. or George Sr. broke any laws or rules. They did nothing to attempt any influence. ...

WASHINGTON, Jul 3, 1999 -- (Agence France Presse) Russia has declared a US military attaché in Moscow "persona non grata" and ordered him to leave the country this week, the Washington Times reported Friday, citing US military sources. Lieutenant Colonel Pete Hoffman, the assistant army attaché, was notified last week by the Russian Foreign Ministry of the expulsion order, the report said. The Pentagon and State Department had no immediate comment on the report. The newspaper said the Pentagon was puzzled by the action, the latest sign of military friction between Russia and the United States. The Times cited ...