INSIDE WASHINGTON WHERE DO HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS GO TO KEEP THEIR BUSINESSES HEALTHY? markowitz and small , p.c. Crockett Leads Charge Against PLO Office Closure Measure Certified Public Accountants (313) 855-2155 \MESA ARTS JAMES BESSER Washington Correspondent T AMERICAN SOUTHWEST • Paintings • Kachinas • Pottery • Sculpture • Jewelry • Folk Art N Gallery Hours: Tues.-Fri. 10-4 p.m., Sat. 11 a.m.-5 p.m. or by appointment 14 MILE RD w MESA ARTS 32800 Franklin Rd., Franklin, MI (313) 8519949 s Check your bank I for its CD rates then check our rates. Our "CD Plus" program offers CDs issued by commercial and savings banks or savings and loans. FDIC or FSLIC insurance up to $100,000. No commission is charged. In cases where early withdrawal is permitted, a penalty may be required. But you can sell under specified conditions without interest penalty. For more information, just call or send in the coupon below. *Subject to availability. Prudential-Bache Securities, 30700 Telegraph Rd., Birmingham, MI 48010 Attn: Linda K. Stewart, Account Executive Deborah M. Horton, Account Executive 313-645-6450 Please send me further information on your "CD Plus" program. Name Address City State Clients, please give name and office of Account Executive. Zip Phone ( ) he issue of the closing of the Palestine Liber- ation Organization's U.S. offices continues to smolder in Washington. In the wake of the United Nation's vote to force Wash- ington into international ar- bitration over the issue, there appears to be rising senti- ment on the Hill for a legislative reversal of the clos- ings — although it is far from clear how such a move would fare in an election year. Rep. George W Crockett, Jr. (D-Mich.) introduced a bill to rescind the closing of both the New York and the Washing- ton offices of the PLO. The Washington office was shut down last fall by a State Department action; the New York office, attached to the PLO's UN observer mission, is due to be closed this month as a result of congressional action in December. AIPAC Invisible AIPAC, which is known for being on the cutting edge of evolving issues, has been sluggish in responding to the current crisis in Israel, accor- ding to Jewish activists on the Hill. Moreover,' a recent AIPAC "Action Report" and a set of "talking points" on the cur- rent crisis irritated some Jewish activists by compar- ing Israel's current disorders to U.S. handling of "civil rights riots and anti-war pro- tests." Liberal members, especially, took umbrage at the idea that the civil rights demonstrations of the '60s resembled the rock-throwing melees of the territories. A factor in AIPAC's new- found reticence, according to several AIPAC-watchers, may be the group's preoccupation with the tangle involving the closing of the PLO offices, which has diverted resources and energy from the effort to help Israel deal with the ongoing disorders and their political fallout. Peace Groups Lobby On Hill Prudential-Bache Securities' Rock Solid. Market Wise. AIPAC's low profile may have provided an opening for groups representing a more dovish point of view on the Middle East. Recently, con- gressional offices have been lobbied heavily by a coalition Rep. George Crockett: Seeks a reversal. of peace groups, led by the America Israel Council for ISraeli-Palestinian peace. The group, according to Cor- inne Whitlatch, their Wash- ington representative, sent some 70 people to canvas House and Senate offices. "Basically, our theme was to promote a 'sense of the Con- gress' resolution asking Israel to allow municipal elec- tions on the West Bank and in Gaza," Whitlatch said. "We also emphasized that these elections could not be seen as an end in themselves, nor as a replacement for comprehen- sive negotiations — probably an international peace con- ference." The group also stressed its belief that the PLO should be part of any negotiations. To date, the group has found no takers in its quest for a spon- sor of the "sense of the Con- gress" resolution. 'Hate Crimes' Bill Added With two bills already in the hopper, Rep. Peter Rodino (D-N.J.) has added a third — a measure designed to establish a "commission" to study the growing problem of violence committed out of racial bigotry. Some Jewish activists here are worried that the Rodino measure will divert attention from a bill offered by Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich.), which involves the collection of statistics on hate crimes. The Conyers bill has faced tough going because it uses a broad definition of the victims of hate crimes; what rankles conservatives is its inclusion of crimes committed because of the victim's sexual preference, along with the more traditional kinds of racial and religious hatred. The Rodino measure focuses only on racial violence; it would establish a one-time commission to study racial incidents like last year's Howard Beach affair, and make recommendations. The third bill, introduced by Rep. Dan Glickman (D-Kan.), passed the House in the fall but is currently stalled in the congested Senate Judiciary Committee. The Glickman bill would make it a federal crime to engage in certain types of violence on the basis or race or religion. Books To Moscow Carl Levin, the Michigan Democrat, is currently in the Soviet Union on an official visit, and his baggage con- tains several boxes of books to help create an informal Jewish library in Moscow. In- cluded is an assortment of books in Hebrew and Yiddish, prayerbooks and other Jewish materials. During his visit, which is centered on the INF treaty with the Soviets, Levin will be meeting with a number of leading refuseniks. Bennett Wants Vice Presidency Secretary of Education William Bennett, whose ad- vocacy of school prayer and tuition cash credits has made him a controversial figure, has been in the news recent- ly for his call for military ac- tion to stem the flow of drugs into this country and his sharp criticisms of condom advertising as a response to the AIDs crisis. But there's a method to the Secretary's recent media blitz. According to experienc- ed political tea-leaf readers, Bennett has his eye firmly on the Vice Presidency, especial- ly if the GOP nominee is the current Republican frontrun- ner, Vice President George Bush. Republican strategists view a Bush-Bennett ticket with pleasure. Bennett enjoys strong support from the Christian Right, a group that has traditionally been a weak spot for Bush. Paradoxically, the Educa- tion Secretary also enjoys con- siderable support from the Jewish conservatives.