Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.news,americast.usa-today.news From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: news Wed, Sep 30 1992 Date: Wed, 30 Sep 92 04:52:36 EDT Message-ID: DECISIONLINE: News USA TODAY Update Sept. 30, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network BUSH PROPOSES FOUR DEBATES: President Bush Tuesday challenged Bill Clinton - and Ross Perot, if he joins the race - to four televised debates, one on each Sunday night between Oct. 11 and Nov. 1. Bush offered a compromise on the debate format three days after ruling out a compromise. But Clinton called Bush's plan "just a last-minute deal." At issue are the format and timing of debates. CLINTON WILL AGREE WITH TWO: Bill Clinton said Tuesday he'd agree only to debate this Sunday and Oct. 15 - dates initially proposed by a bipartisan debate commission and rejected by President Bush. Bush offered to debate twice with a single moderator and twice with a panel of reporters. Bush also suggested two debates between vice presidential candidates Dan Quayle and Sen. Al Gore. STOPGAP BILL IS BEFORE CONGRESS: Congress will act calmly Wednesday to keep the wheels of government from shutting down Thursday. Congress must approve a stopgap spending bill needed to keep federal agencies afloat for the start of the 1993 fiscal year. That's because 12 of 13 spending bills are in various stages of legislative undress. Without the short-term bill the government would stop at midnight Wednesday. NEGOTIATIONS WILL BE CUT: Democrats who spent two years picking fights with the White House have capitulated to President Bush's demand that none of the spending bills exceed his limits. As a result, most of the measures emerging from House-Senate negotiations are likely to be slimmed down and ready for Bush's signature. The bills being considered Wednesday represent about half of the $1.5 trillion budget. HOUSE MAIL COST $49M: House members spent $44 million to send an estimated 287 million pieces of mail to constituents in 1991. In addition, they spent $5 million for printing, according to a USA TODAY:Gannett News Service computer analysis of 1991 House spending. For the first three months of 1992, House members spent $10.8 million for mail. House members defend the mailings, saying they're a service to voters. SENATE OKS $34B TAX BILL: The Senate approved a $34 billion tax bill Tuesday, but the heavy lifting is still to come. The measure funds tax breaks for savers, investors and special interests while increasing taxes on business, real estate and the wealthy. It faces opposition for tax-deductible individual retirement accounts for all taxpayers and to extended higher taxes on the wealthy. `GAG RULE' BEGINS THURSDAY: The Bush administration Thursday begins enforcing a ban on abortion counseling at federally funded health clinics - but many clinics say they won't comply. They say they'll continue to tell women about abortion, while taking federal money - $150 million annually to 4,000 clinics, serving 4 million poor women. They'll wait to see how strictly the "gag rule" is enforced. MAGIC RETURNS TO LAKERS: Earvin "Magic" Johnson announced Tuesday that he's coming out of a brief retirement to weave his magic in the Forum again. Johnson, who retired last November, disclosing that he was HIV-positive, is making a hardly surprising move to those close to him. He said after the Barcelona Olympics he decided to return. Johnson plans to play 50 to 60 of the Lakers' 82 games this season. MILK WARNING CRITICIZED: Concerned experts are taking exception to Tuesday's statement from a prominent pediatrician that "we should all stop drinking milk today." The American Medical Association says it is alarmed by the allegation that milk is dangerous and there is no scientific proof. Recent studies suggest cow's milk given to infants can cause juvenile diabetes, iron deficiency or allergic reactions. PENTAGON WANTS TO RESUME RELIEF: The Pentagon said Tuesday it's ready to soon resume U.S. relief flights into Sarajevo, even as the besieged Bosnian capital came under heavy artillery fire. The announcement came as U.N. officials warned that the coming winter could dwarf the war's death toll, warning that up to 400,000 people in Bosnia could die from exposure and lack of food. PATRIOT MISSILE DOUBTED: The dispute over Patriot missile success against Iraqi Scuds in the gulf war flared again Tuesday with release of a congressional report saying hard evidence exists for only 9% of reported hits. The General Accounting Office says there's evidence for just four Patriot hits. Rep. John Conyers, D-Mich., said the GAO report shows Congress and the public "were misled" by reports of success. STORM TAKES BITE OUT OF FLORIDA: A tropical depression 145 miles south-southeast of Jacksonville, Fla., Tuesday chomped up some Florida beaches. Coastal protection efforts were useless, says Nassau County emergency official Mike Greene. "We are only putting a Band-Aid on a hemorrhage," he says. High winds and above-average tides carried off 30 to 35 feet of Amelia Island. The weather system is moving away from the USA. CHOPPERS COLLIDE, FOUR DIE: Two sightseeing helicopters collided Tuesday near Niagara Falls, killing four people and fueling concerns over air safety. One helicopter severed the tail of the other, sending it "tumbling down like a rock," said parking lot attendant Michael Folemsbee, 22. The pilot and three passengers were killed. The other helicopter made an emergency landing. The pilot was slightly hurt. DOW JONES OPENS ON DOWNSWING: The Dow Jones average of 30 industrials opens at 3266.80 Wednesday after closing down 9.46 Tuesday. The New York Stock Exchange composite opens at 228.90, up 0.20. The American Stock Exchange market value opens at 375.61, down 1.64. The NASDAQ OTC composite opens at 577.63, up 2.29. NORTHWESTERN READINGS DIP: Unsettled and cooler conditions move into the Pacific Northwest Wednesday, ending a span of unseasonably warm readings. Warm, sunny weather will continue throughout the Desert Southwest into the Great Basin and northern portions of the Rockies and Plains. Comfortable weather will grace the mid-Atlantic, while high pressure perches over much of the Southeast. News Editor: Kate Coughlin. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution purposes violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM