The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 19, 2001- 7 Nation's capital under tight watch for anthrax Los Angeles Times WASHINGTON - The side of the Capi- tol known as "the People's House" abruptly shuts down in midweek. Vital congression- al office buildings are sealed off. Concrete barriers seem more abundant than tourists. These are only the most obvious signs of the security clampdown altering the land- scape of the Capitol complex, perhaps the world's foremost symbol of representative democracy. Repeatedly in recent days and weeks, lawmakers have vowed to stand up to ter- ror. They massed on the Capitol steps on the evening of Sept. i1 to sing "God Bless America," projecting a reassuring image of a Congress and a government unbowed. But congressional leaders acknowledge that the opening this week of an anthrax- filled letter in a Senate mailroom and the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon will inevitably force tight and lasting security measures on Capitol Hill. Already, key lawmakers are drafting a package costing as much as S667 million to bolster security and speed up construction of a new visitors center to improve screen- ing of people who enter the legislative complex. Sen. Robert Bennett of Utah, ranking Republican for legislative appro- priations, said, only half in jest, the mea- sure would include "everything the Capitol Police ever asked for." Other lawmakers are peering ahead into the darkest scenario -- the devastation of a large part of the Capitol complex in a war or a terrorist attack. They are seeking a constitutional amendment to give governors the right to appoint members to the House of Representatives - instead of calling special elections - in the event that a mas- sive number of vacancies leaves the House without a quorum. Amid these efforts to protect both the Capitol and the continuity of government, there are laments about the loss of public access to a building that first opened for government business two centuries ago and has long been a magnet for tourists. Nearly 3 million people visit the Capitol each year, according to the Architect of the Capitol. Yesterday, the same Capitol steps that had been site of the stirring gathering of members of Congress the month before were eerily empty. So was the famed Rotunda - the result of a decision Monday to cut off tours indefinitely and reevaluate security. Ordinarily, on a brilliant fall day, both sites would be thronged by camera-toting tourists eager to capture a snapshot of a busy Congress heading toward the end of the legislative year. Noting the vacant halls and nearly empty galleries, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) remi- nisced on the Senate floor about the thrill he felt as a teenager visiting the Capitol on a trip to Washington with his parents. "Now I have to think about a whole lot of parents and their children who can't do that," Leahy said. The Capitol, he said, should be open to show the world that "this symbols stands. This symbol shines. This symbol is open for business." Security scares have struck Congress before. A gunman broke into the Capitol in 1998, shooting and killing two police offi- cers. Bombs exploded in the Senate wing in 1983, 1971 and 1915. A century earlier, the Capitol was torched by invading British in 1814 and had to be largely rebuilt. In each instance in modern times -and during the Persian Gulf War and in the aftermath of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing - Congress has reinforced secu- rity. Several side streets on Capitol Hill have been restricted or closed off. Metal detectors have been installed at building entrances. Concrete bollards have been placed at strategic points to block truck bombs, and more have been put in place since Sept. 11. Heavy truck access also has been restricted. Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) remembers one scare well. He was a 16-year-old page on the House floor in 1954 when Puerto Rican nationalists sprayed gunfire into the chamber from the galleries, wounding five congressmen. "I was answering a call on the floor when the shots rang out," he recalled. "One of the shots hit a column that was maybe 10 or 15 feet above my head. I got sprayed with some of the marble. I hit the floor like everyone else." Kanjorski was also in the Capitol Wednesday when the House took the extra- ordinary step of recessing because of fears of bioterrorism. He agreed with the deci- sion to pause for a security sweep, even though the Senate opted to remain open yesterday. "I think we should work to remain as close to normalcy in operations as possible, be intelligent, take precautions and use modern devices to test against attacks and threats, but not to hunker down," Kanjorski said. But in coming years, the experience of visiting the Capitol will change dramatical- ly. A new visitors center is planned for the eastern front of the 276-acre Capitol com- plex. Expected to open by 2005, the $265 mil- lion center will be part museum and part screening post. Lawmakers point out that an off-site visitors center will help defend against suicide bombers or gunmen. In recent years, some Republicans have been skeptical of public funding for the center. But that resistance has now evaporated, Lott and others say. Crossing the bridge If you are pursuing a degree in: Electrical Engineering + Physics " Mathematics - Computer Science Mechanical Engineering Aeronautics/Astronautics or a comparable field, our technical staff members welcome the opportunity to consider you for an on-campus interview. For more information about our scheduled on-campus recruiting activities, please visit our website or your Career Services Office. Put some power behind your ideas. At MIT Lincoln Laboratory, your research and ideas will be transferred directly into the development of leading-edge, real-world applications, including air defense, space surveillance, communications and air traffic control systems. If you are looking for a way to power up your career, forward your scannable resume by e-mail, fax or mail to: resume@ll.mit.edu; Fax: 781-981-2011; Human Resources, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, 244 Wood St., Lexington, MA 02420-9108. Job Code CN01. An Equal Opportunity Employer, M,'F/D/V US Citizenship is required. I LINCOLN LABORATORY COLLEGE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY PRSIMN DAVID KATZ/Daily Students at the University's Flint campus cross from the a campus parking lot to academic buildings yesterday. Universy endowment rises; new interim president expec REGENTS Continued from Page 1 The University's overall investments total $5.4 billion. Almost three-quar- ters of that, $3.6 billion, is invested in the University's long-term portfolio. Lundberg said the University looked to be in good shape. The Uni- versity uses benchmarks such as the Nasdaq and the Standard and Poor's 500 to measure the University's per- formance in certain investment sec- tors. While the University's total mar- ketable securities fell by 2.2 percent in the last fiscal year, the benchmark fell by 6.7 percent. That relationship was mirrored in the individual sectors of domestic and international equi- ties, fixed income and absolute return. The University's investments fell a lit- tle less and gained a little more than its benchmarks, which is what the Univer- sity is programmed to do, Lundberg ted today said, and the overall outlook is positive. "It is difficult to predict, espe- cially the future, of difficult and volatile markets with undifferentiat- ed returns across asset classes. Eventually normalcy is going to return and the University as investors will be rewarded for assuming risk prudently," he said. The University is prepared to stay on course with its investments, Lund- berg said. cine!TT!A7, PRESENTS A SPECIAL ADVANCE ,SCREENING RESEARCH Continued from Page 1 men for anthrax is 60 days. At Princeton University, a 20-minute drive from Trenton, university spokeswoman Marily Marks said FBI agents vis- ited the campus Wednesday. In contacts with researchers, "the thrust of their questions was were we doing research on campus that used anthrax" and "the answer is no," said Marks. She said the FBI spoke to the head of the Environ- mental Health and Safety Department and others. Tests have concluded that the anthrax in the letter sent to Brokaw was of the same strain as the anthrax sent to an Amer- ican Media Inc. in Boca Raton, Fla., where one man has died. Health officials were still testing the anthrax sent to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle in Washington. Tests to deter- mine the source of the anthrax in all three letters were continu- ing. "It looked to be run-of-the-mill, sensitive to all antibiotics," said Dr. William Winkenwerder, an assistant defense secre- tary. Investigators said they were intrigued by the fact that the anthrax sent to NBC in September was in a heavy granular substance that would not likely go airborne. A federal bioter- rorism official said Wednesday the Daschle letter's anthrax was professionally made and possibly refined with additives to make it more easily airborn. But another official said that was not confirmed. "There was no evidence, based on what we know thus far, that it was any different from other samples at this time," said Winkenwerder. Given that the similar handwriting and envelopes suggested a single sender, the differing anthrax specimens suggest the sender may have received sophisticated assistance in between the Brokaw and Daschle letters, government officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Some of the traditional evidence-gathering was slowed because the envelopes were contaminated with anthrax, mak- ing tests such as fingerprinting, DNA analysis and saliva more risky for lab technicians. "The contamination issue very clearly affect this," Postal Inspector Dan Milhalko said. Law enforcement officials said one possible source of evi- dence - DNA from saliva on the envelope seal or stamp - may be missing. The sender probably understood that licking a stamp or the envelope could prove deadly given the anthrax spores and could be tested for DNA, The envelope sent to Daschle's office was sealed instead with tape and both the Daschle and Brokaw envelopes were prestamped by machine imprinters and didn't need an adhesive stamp. Fingerprint evidence was being sought from the envelopes. ATTACKS Continued from Page 1 able Wazir Akbar Khan neighborhood. There was no immediate confirma- tion of the number of deaths. The United States has expressed regret for civilian casualties, insisting that it only targets bin Laden and his Tal- iban allies. Taliban officials said at least 12 people were killed and 20 injured during the day of strikes on Kandahar - a claim that could not be indepen- dently verified. Planes also targeted Arghandab, a small town about 12 miles to the northwest, witnesses said. Taliban sources claimed there were no military targets there, but Afghan opposition fighters pushing toward the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif battled Taliban forces at the airport, said Ibrahim Ghafoori, an opposition alliance official in Uzbekistan. American special operations troops are in position aboard the USS Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier in the Indian Ocean, ready for helicopter- borne missions in Afghanistan, mili- tary officials say. Defense officials said an unmanned American spy plane armed with missiles, the low-flying RQ-1 Predator, has been used for the first time in combat missions over Afghanistan. Four Osama bin Laden followers New York City court. President Bush ordered the raids Oct. 7 to uproot bin Laden and his al- Qaida network -- blamed for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States and punish Afghanistan's ruling Taliban, who have harbored him. The London-based Islamic Obser- vation Center reported yesterday that a U.S. strike near Jalalabad on Sun- day killed an Egyptian veteran with al-Qaida, known as Abu Baseer al- Masri, and injured two of his col- leagues. Afghan sources in Islamabad, Pak- istan, said al-Masri had been in Afghanistan for about 10 years and was close to bin Laden's chief lieu- UEEWEIUHI flit lUAU HI UIIINIIEIK IEIAIIIUENUIUIIEIVUI . fh