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PLO AID page 57

Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson, D-
Calif., joins 9 House Democratic
colleagues on the list of retirees
— a fact that is producing glee in
Republican circles, gloom among
Jewish organizations that are at
the forefront of the battle against
big GOP budget cuts.
"I am deeply concerned and dis-
heartened about the current state
of the political process in the Unit-
ed States," Mr. Beilenson said last
week. "In the ideological and of-
ten mindless politics we seem to
be consumed with today, I have
come to feel that I can no longer
make the kind of meaningful and
useful contribution that is re-
quired of a responsible legislator."
He bemoaned the sharp de-
cline in trust in government and
called for "less anger, frustration,
distrust and ideology."
Like many veteran Democrats,
the 10-term Mr. Beilenson is re-
portedly frustrated by his new
and unaccustomed role as mem-
ber of the minority party.
No doubt another element in
his decision was the fact that Mr.
Beilenson routinely faces tough
races in a district regarded as
marginal by the Democrats.

No Joy Over Hate
Crimes Decline

Federal authorities reported a
sharp decrease in hate crimes
last year, but Jewish groups are
not jumping for joy.
Instead, the Anti-Defamation
League — the group that led the
fight for the Hate Crimes Statis-
tics Act, the legislation that forced
the government to start collect-
ing information on crimes based
on racial, religious or gender prej-
udice — is arguing that the re-
ported decline is a function of
poor reporting and bureaucrat-
ic foul-ups.
The report shows that 5,852
hate crime incidents were re-
ported to authorities in 1994, a
sharp drop from the 7,684 re-
ported in 1993.
"We're dubious about these
numbers," said Michael Lieber-
man, ADL's Washington counsel.
"This year, the government is
showing a 23 percent decline.
That does not correlate with our
own audit of anti-Semitic inci-
dents or the reports from the
states."
Three states appear to be the
primary culprits: California,
Massachusetts and Illinois. Cal-
ifornia officials are just now be-
ginning serious data collection;
hate crimes experts expect that
fact to be reflected in next year's
numbers. In Massachusetts,
which has cooperated with the
data collection effort in the past,
apparent bureaucratic snafus
kept the numbers down.
ADL is calling for "a reaffir-
mation of the federal commit-
aTent-- to bile Hate Crimes
Statistics Act," Mr. Lieberman
said.

Powell Decision Is Bad
News for Jewish GOPers

Jewish Republicans were
singing the blues last week after
retired Gen. Colin Powell decid-
ed against a run for the 1996
GOP presidential nomination.
"There was a lot of hope that a
Powell candidacy would catchr-
fire," said a Jewish Republican
activist this week. "He would
have won strong support from
Jews; none of the other candi-
dates seems to be generating any
enthusiasm in our community ex-
cept among party diehards."
Sen. Bob Dole, R-Kans., the
fading front-runner, has won the
lions share of contributions from
Jewish Republicans. But Mr.
Dole, a lackluster campaigner
who has often been at odds with
pro-Israel forces, seems unable
to galvanize strong support from
Jewish voters.
There are rumblings that busi-
nessman-turned-presidential <
candidate and flat-tax advocate
Malcolm S. Forbes Jr. is begin-
ning to attract the attention of
Jewish politicos.
"He has strong ties with the
Jewish community, and he's re-
garded as a social moderate," said
Charles Brooks, executive direc-
tor of the National PAC, a pro-Is- <
rael funding organization. "But
it's still too early to say whether
this candidacy is likely to go any-
where."
There were reports this week
that Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa.,
the only Jew in the presidential
contest and the last best hope of
Republican moderates, is gettingc- \
ready to drop out of the race be-
cause of continuing money woes.
California Gov. Pete Wilson,
an early favorite in Jewish Re-
publican circles, is already just a
footnote to the 1996 race.
All of this was good news for
the National Jewish Democratic
Council, which raised more than
$600,000 at a recent Washington
gala featuring President Clinton
and all eight Jewish Democratic
senators, who were collectively
awarded the group's Hubert H.
Humphrey Humanitarian
Award.
More and more, this event
demonstrated that many Jews
are looking closely at what the
Republicans are doing in Wash-
ington — and "they don't like
what they see," said Elizabeth
Schrayer, a Washington political
consultant and NJDC's acting di-
rector. "So Jewish activism in the
party is going to be more critical
than ever — especially in terms
of House and Senate races." 0

Publicity Deadlines

The normal deadline for local news and
publicity items is noon Thursday, eight
days prior to issue date. The deadline
for birth announcements is 10 a.m.
Monday, four days prior to issue date;
out-of-town obituaries, 10 a.m. Tues-
day, three days prior to issue date.

