The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, April 19, 1994 - 9
Democrats
debate
Mitchell
health plan
WASHINGTON (AP) - Senate
Majority Leader George Mitchell
sparked fresh debate among fellow
Democrats by suggesting ways to
make President Clinton's health care
plan less costly. The White House
said it wasn't endorsing any compro-
mises.
Rep. Pat Williams (D-Mont.) said
yesterday the House subcommittee
o e chairs will begin work Thursday
n a version that does not include one
of the most controversial elements of
Clinton's plan.
Alliances envisioned in the Clinton
plan would pool large groups ofpeople
to give them purchasing clout in buy-
ing health insurance at better prices
than they could negotiate individu-
ally.
Clinton press secretary Dee Dee
Myers welcomed Mitchell's alterna-
tives to the president's plan as "yet
another sign that things are moving
along." And Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-
W.Va.) said Mitchell had "established
himself as someone who's going to
ram (reform) through the United States
Senate."
"Mitchell did a real fine job of
outlining three different versions of
mployer mandates," said Sen. John
reaux (D-La.) whose plan would
avoid forcing any business or indi-
vidual to buy insurance. "I don't think
there's a majority of support for man-
dates before we move on (other) re-
forms."
All of Mitchell's alternatives
would retain Clinton's idea of mak-
ing employers help pay for their work-
ers' coverage. They would lighten the
Crden by tinkering with the benefit
package, the subsidies and the em-
ployer share.
He got help from senior White
House advisers in framing his options
for less expensive ways to achieve
health coverage for all Americans.
Ira Magaziner, the senior White
House adviser who took part in the
Democrats' discussion at a weekend
qetreat, said of Mitchell's suggestions,
Lorrie McHugh, a Clinton spokes-
person on health, said that although
the White House helped Mitchell with
the details, "we're not negotiating at
this point nor endorsing any specific
alternative."
Anti-peace plan
groups continue
bombing in Israel=
JERUSALEM (AP) - Amid
taunts and loud heckling from right-
wing legislators, Prime Minister
Yitzhak Rabin told Parliament yes-
terday that peace is closer than ever
despite attempts by extremists to
thwart it.
As he spoke, the Islamic funda-
mentalist group Hamas claimed re-
sponsibility for another attack on an
Israeli commuter bus that left four
Israelis wounded. It was the fourth
attack this month on an Israeli bus.
"Our sensitivity to losses is not a
secret, and the terrorist and rejection ist
murderers are trying to break us
with attacks, with knives, bombs,
armed ambushes and car bombs,"
Rabin said.
"But they don't have a chance....
The Israeli people are not panicked,
they are not broken ... and more ter-
rorist attacks will not stop the convoy
of peace."
In yesterday's attack, a Palestin-
ian armed with an ax and two fire-
bombs wounded two Israelis on a bus
in Jerusalem's Neveh Yaacov
neghborhood before a soldier shot
him in the legs. Two other Israelis
were wounded by shots fired by the
soldier. The Palestinian assailant was
hospitalized in fair condition.
The attack follows two suicide
,n
AP PHOTO
Nelson Mandela, right, is campaigning for South Africa's all race elections. Smuts Ngonyama, left, is regional chair
of the African National Congress.
Buthelezi rescinds demands for
e di
AP
bomb attacks on buses and one shoot-,
ing at a bus stop that have killed 13
Israelis and wounded 77 since April
PRETORIA, South Africa (AP)
- A breakthrough agreement to re-
solve South Africa's political crisis
appeared imminent yesterday when
Zulu leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi
dropped his demand for a delay in
next week's election.
Buthelezi, President F.W. de Klerk
and African National Congress leader
Nelson Mandela may approve today a
proposal that would bring Buthelezi's
Inkatha Freedom Party into the April
26-28 election, said a government
source close to the talks.
Ending the Inkatha boycott would
be a key to ending violence between
pro- and anti-election forces that has
killed hundreds of people and threat-
ened to make voting impossible in
some parts of the country.
"I can say the discussions have
gone very well," Buthelezi said after
several hours of talks with de Klerk.
He added that he hoped to have an
announcement today "that might be
very positive."
One of Buthelezi's conditions for
taking part in the vote has been a
delay in the election, but yesterday he
conceded that ANC and government
opposition to a postponement made
this impossible. "I don't think there is
any possibility of postponing the elec-
tion, although I would prefer a post-
ponement, but I am a realist,"
Buthelezi said.
When asked if Inkatha could
mount an effective campaign with
only one week to go, he said, "It
would mean campaigning in just a
few days. Physically speaking, of
course, it is possible."
Neither he nor de Klerk would
give details of their talks.
"I think things are going rather
well," said a smiling de Klerk in a
separate news briefing. "I think, yes,
some progress has been made, and
I'm relatively optimistic further
progress can be made tomorrow."
The government source, who
spoke on condition of anonymity, said
a proposal to end the boycott had been
accepted by all three sides during the
talks. The ANC secretary-general,
Cyril Ramaphosa, represented the
ANC at yesterday's talks and was to
present the proposal to Mandela be-
fore today's summit.
Mandela and de Klerk have for
months been trying to bring Buthelezi
into the election, but Buthelezi and
Zulu King Goodwill Zwelethini have
been holding out for guarantees of
post-election autonomy for their
KwaZulu homeland.
Acceptance of the April 26-28
date, coupled with Buthelezi's plan to
continue talks with de Klerk and
Mandela, were a signal Buthelezi has
had a change of heart, perhaps be-
cause of his failure to win support
from international mediators.
A mediation team headed by
former Secretary of State Henry
Kissinger and former British Foreign
Secretary Lord Carrington left the
country last week after refusing to
take up Buthelezi's fight for an elec-
tion delay.
Buthelezi could continue his boy-
cott and risk total isolation after the
election, which is expected to be won
easily by the rival ANC.
6.
The attacks were claimed by the
Islamic fundamentalist groups Hamas.
and Islamic Holy War.
Supreme Court to consider
banning guns around schools
WASHINGTON (AP) - The
Supreme Court stepped into the na-
tional debate over gun control yester-
day, saying it will consider reviving a
federal ban on possession of guns
within 1,000 feet of any school.
The justices agreed to decide
whether a federal appeals court erred
when it essentially threw out the 1990
Gun-Free School Zones Act as un-
constitutional.
The Clinton administration is ask-
ing the high court to reinstate both the
law and the conviction of a former
San Antonio, Texas, high school stu-
dent who admitted he took a gun to
school in March 1992.
Alfonso Lopez Jr. told authorities
he was to be paid $40 for delivering
the gun to someone else to use in a
gang war.
Dennis Henigan of the Center to
Prevent Handgun Violence expressed
hope yesterday the court will rein-
state the law. Gun violence at schools
has become a national problem,
Henigan said, adding that the 1990:
law was a "sensible public safety
measure."
More than 200,000 children carry
firearms to school every day, accord-
ing to Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis), spon-
sor of the invalidated law.
Larry Pratt of the Gun Owners of
America said the lower court was
correct in throwing out the law.
rr
Thanks to the
Because thjs
"It's a free country'
stuff only
goes 0o far.
4-. uSA
Business and Edit
Staffs of
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Your hard work
and
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