The Michigan Daily -Wednesday, January 24, 1990 - Page 5
Congress faces old,
new issues in 2nd session
WASHINGTON (AP) - The
101st Congress convened its second
session yesterday, facing an agenda
suddenly expanded by the emergence
of democracy in Eastern Europe and
a plan to cut Social Security taxes at
home.
Lingering issues also abound, in-
cluding child care, capital-gains taxes
and deficit reduction.
Not waiting for President Bush to
send up his own budget and legisla-
tive proposals, the Senate almost
immediately began debating a far-
reaching plan for cleaning up the air
- a bill that is more costly and
more sweeping than the president
wants.
The House made plans for an-
other confrontation today, an attempt
to override Bush's veto of legislation
aimed at preventing the deportation
of Chinese students who have
sought refuge in the United States.
The House originally passed the bill
on a 403-0 vote.
Republicans were generally con-
ceding Bush faces a one-sided defeat.
The president, traveling in the
Midwest, said he is hoping to renew
a spirit of cooperation with
Congress. But he attacked as "a
sheep in wolf's clothing" an anti-
crime bill sponsored by Sen. Joseph
Biden Jr. (D-Del.), chair of the Sen-
ate Judiciary Committee.
"It will be tougher on law-en-
forcement than on criminals," Bush
said of the bill. The measure gener-
ally would prohibit use of tainted ev-
idence, bar racially discriminatory
executions and ban sale of assault
weapons.
Also in the Senate, Sen. Daniel
Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.) formally
introduced a bill to reduce Social Se-
curity taxes - an idea that had
prompted a full-scale White House
attack when he proposed it last
month. Moynihan says workers are
being deceived because their Social
Security taxes are being used to
make the federal deficit appear far
smaller than it is.
"These are insurance contribu-
tions, they are premiums paid,"
Moynihan told a news conference.
"They do not belong to the govern-
ment. If we are not going to save
them we should return them."
His bill, which has drawn
widespread interest but few sponsors,
would roll back the tax increase that
took effect January 1 and reduce an-
other scheduled for next year.
The Bush administration says
such cuts would lead to reduction in
benefits or to efforts to raise other
taxes.
In advance of Bush's budget,
which will be submitted on Monday,
and his State of the Union message,
which will follow on January 31,
three of the president's top aides met
with Republican senators to discuss
the wealth of issues facing Congress
in this election year.
10,000 East German skilled workers rally for free-market reforms
EAST BERLIN (AP) - More
than 10,000 skilled workers held a
rally yesterday to denounce commu-
nism for killing East German
craftsmanship and demand free-mar-
ket reforms to revive it.
"We absolutely and uncondition-
ally need conversion to a full market
economy," Burkhard Schmidt,
spokesperson for the Craftperson a
Union, told the Associated Press be-
fore the rally. Many of those attend-
ing also favored reunification with
West Germany.
"Better to close for four hours
than forever," said Lutz Scheibner,
and electronics repairperson. "W :
need to show the government u
know what needs to be done."
The rally was called on short no-
tice over the opposition to top union
leaders still loyal to the Communist
system that rewarded them with
comfortable bureaucratic positions.
While Hans Modrow, the Com-
munist premier, and opposition lead-
ers dicker over how to share power
before free elections May 6, the gej
eral attitude toward compromise hl;
soured.
Pro-democracy advocates from the
Social Democratic Party and New
Forum declared yesterday they were
not prepared to negotiate a role in
the interim government and said
coalition talks have been postponed.
Opposition reluctance to prop ui
the government reflects the atm(
sphere of uncertainty in East Gc;
many, which does not have a unify-
ing pro-democracy figure likc:
Czechoslovakia's Vaclav Havel or
Lech Walesa of Poland.
Since they have no obvious al-
ternative to the distrusted Commu-
nists, East Germans increasingly
look to the West and call for unifica-
tion with prosperous West Germany.
Up to 2,000 East Germans flee to
the West every day, bleeding the
country of skilled workers and un-
dermining chances for economic re-
covery.
Weekly rallies by hundred of
thousands of people have moved
from demanding reform to outright
rejection of the Communist system
that has guided the nation through
its entire four decades.
I
11
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Others Take A Bus, Some Walk, All
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I V 1 ]; Herds of students
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Braving brutal weather conditions and forfeiting
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weaving 101 and there were no lines." School
officials expect this phenomenon to die down
after January 28 because that's when the
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