NEWS
The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, June 1, 2004 - 9
,Bush, Kerry honor Memorial Day with
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) - Presi-
dent Bush declared yesterday that
"America is safer" because of its
fighting forces while Sen. John Kerry
went to the Vietnam Veterans Memor-
ial in somber but historically asym-
metrical Memorial Day tributes.
"Through our history, America has
0gone to war reluctantly," said Bush,
speaking at Arlington National Ceme-
tery after laying a wreath at the Tomb of
MCRI
Continued from Page 3
campaign because they claimed its
petition form was misleading. MCRI,
they argued, is attempting to alter an
existing provision in the state constitu-
tion guaranteeing equal protection but
not informing signers of the petition.
The court case still resides in the
state Court of Appeals. Oral argu-
ments are scheduled for June 8,
MCRI Director of Outreach Chetly
Zarko said. The decision could come
down days afterward.
With a deadline of 317,757 signa-
tures due by July 6 - and, according
to MCRI estimates, 425,000 signa-
tures by June 15 - the initiative faces
considerable difficulty in achieving
its goal.
But, despite statements by at least
four of senior MCRI officials and the
alleged illness of Connerly, Zarko said
the campaign will press forward, hop-
ing to make the deadline for the
November ballot this year.
"It's doable," he said. "We're waiting
for the court decision before we make
the Unknowns. "In places like Kabul
and Kandahar, in Mosul; and Baghdad,
we have seen their decency and their
brave spirit," he said.
A charcoal sky and light mist hung
over the remembrance as if to under-
score the solemnity of Bush's speech,
Kerry's visit to the Vietnam monu-
ment and a parade along historic
Independence Avenue.
A smattering of World War II vet-
erans marched with people, in some
cases, three generations younger,
capping a weekend highlighted by
the formal opening of the National
World War II Memorial on Saturday.
Frances and John Carter, both 82,
were separated by an ocean during
World War II; he was a paratrooper and
she was a "Rosie the Riveter," one of the
thousands of women who went to work
at home to support the soldiers abroad.
It was a day when political rhetoric
was somewhat muted, eclipsed here by
public tributes and the playing of Taps.
Bush did take a moment to praise Secre-
tary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld for
his "great leadership," however.
Rumsfeld has heard calls for his
resignation in connection with the
prisoner abuse scandal. And Kerry
resumed his political campaign in
earnest later yesterday in Virginia.
speeches
Traditional Memorial Day obser-
vances including picnics and parades
were played out coast to coast - half a
world away from U.S. fighting forces
in Iraq and Afghanistan. But overseas,
the conflict raged.
Two Americans died yesterday as
U.S. troops clashed with Shiite
militiamen in fighting that strained
a cease-fire called last week around
the holy cities of Kufa and Najaf.
1..
a formal decision either way."
The campaign currently has a raw
count of about 20,000 to 40,000 signa-
tures collected by volunteer circulators.
A paid circulator effort began last
week, slightly behind schedule because
of the numerous legal delays, and is
expected to collect the necessary sig-
natures to complete the initiative.
The appellate court ruling expected
in the beginning of June could poten-
tially invalidate MCRI's current peti-
tion form, which MCRI is still using. If
this occurs, MCRI would have to
appeal to the state Supreme Court,
who may or may not accept the case.
In any event, legal proceedings could
extend far beyond July 6, when all
petitioned signatures need to be in.
Zarko has continually said that the
group is waiting on a definitive ruling
to provide some direction. In March, a
circuit court struck down the petition
form. Judge Manderfield then wrote
that the purpose of MCRI's campaign
was "in essence to 'undo' what the
U.S. Supreme Court did in upholding
certain protections guaranteed by the
Equal Protection Clause."
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