Britain's Labor Party won in a landslide. The ruling Conservative Party plunged to its worst popular-vote showing since 1832 (about 30 percent) and surrendered more than half its seats in Parliament. Analysts concluded that the Tories lost the election more than Labor won it. The agreed-upon culprits: restlessness after 18 years of Tory rule, contempt for the Tories' internal quarrel over Britain's integration into Europe, and disgust with sex and money scandals. Incoming Labor Prime Minister Tony Blair is credited with a Clintonian victory: a landslide without a mandate, owing to his vacuous, center-hugging campaign. The similarities between Blair and Clinton are held to bode well for British-American relations. (5/2)

The White House and congressional leaders are converging on a budget deal. Key elements: higher premiums for Medicare, reduced Social Security inflation adjustments, a cap on Medicaid spending, a capital-gains tax cut, a $500-per-child tax credit, college-tuition tax credits, estate-tax relief, and expanded health care for poor kids. Analysts agree that while both Clinton and the Republican Party will claim credit for balancing the budget, neither deserves it: In truth, unabated economic growth is closing the deficit by boosting tax revenues and reducing benefits paid to the nonworking. Most Republicans are celebrating the emerging package, while liberal Democrats are lambasting it as a treacherous Clinton back-room deal with the GOP. The predictable interest groups (e.g., the American Association of Retired Persons) are already lining up to eviscerate it. (5/2)

The government reported that teen-age sex in the United States has declined for the first time in more than 20 years. Also, teens are now more likely to use birth control during sex, particularly condoms. Experts attribute this progress to programs that exhort teens to postpone sex and protect themselves against pregnancy and AIDS. (5/2)

Ellen DeGeneres' TV character came out as a lesbian. This makes her the first openly gay lead character in a TV series--a widely acknowledged cultural milestone. The episode climaxed months of PR foreplay and attracted 42 million viewers, the best rating scored by an ABC series in more than three years. Far from eschewing the episode's racy and controversial subject matter, the network and many advertisers shrewdly milked it for publicity. Gays organized parties to watch and celebrate the episode. The New York Times declared it a triumph of art, courage, and enlightenment. (5/2)

Titillation and dismay over DeGeneres' coming out (in contrast to the media's chorus of affirmation and high-mindedness with regard to the TV episode) was reserved for her real-life girlfriend, Anne Heche. Skeptics noted that the couple met just a month ago, that Heche claims to have had no prior lesbian relationships, and that she previously had "crowed with glee over filming sex scenes" with famous men (the Washington Post). The Times chided DeGeneres for "exploiting" the ratings potential of the coming-out episode "by her ostentatious display of affection with her lover in front of President Clinton at the White House Correspondents Dinner."(5/2)

JonBenet Ramsey's parents came out of hiding and declared their innocence in her murder. They finally submitted to interrogations, first by the police, then by the press. John Ramsey said the couple had previously refused to be interrogated because they were insulted by investigators' suspicion of them. Patricia Ramsey said she had no regrets about parading JonBenet around the kiddie-beauty-pageant circuit. Skeptics dismissed the Ramseys' remarks as part of a PR campaign aimed at intimidating the cops and perhaps influencing future jurors. Network TV reporters skewered the couple for speaking only to local reporters and refusing to take questions on the facts of the case. Results of DNA tests on human tissue lodged beneath JonBenet's fingernails are due next week. (5/2)

Miscellaneous: The Senate confirmed Alexis Herman as the next labor secretary. This leaves the CIA directorship as the only senior administration post yet to be filled. Chelsea Clinton has decided to attend Stanford University. (The apparent runners-up were Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and Brown.) Still no surprises in the Oklahoma City bombing trial. Prosecutors continue to bombard the jury with witnesses vouching for Timothy McVeigh's aggressive interest in explosives, among other signs of guilt. (5/2)

A military jury convicted former Army Staff Sgt. Delmar Simpson of raping six female trainees under his command. Each of the factions that has been arguing about women and sex in the military seized on the verdict as proof of its grievance. Women's-rights groups said it confirmed the need for an investigation of the military's handling of sexual-misconduct cases. The NAACP also demanded an investigation, on the grounds that black sergeants were being targeted by military prosecutors. But most coverage focused on traditionalists' reactions. One is that the standard by which Simpson was convicted of rape--he had prohibitive power over his prey by sheer dint of his authority, although he didn't brutalize them and some didn't resist his advances--will "cheapen" the meaning of rape. The other is that the tales of rampant sex, predation, and lying that have come out of the Army's probe prove that men and women should never have been thrown together in the military. (4/30)

Columnist Mike Royko died. Obituaries lauded his fearless criticism of corrupt leaders on behalf of the little guy. The Chicago Tribune recalled his vigilance and vitriol against "sycophants, stumblebums and thieves, poseurs and self-appointed princes," and added that "Royko had the righteousness of the best liberal and the skepticism of the best conservative." While acknowledging recent criticism that Royko was insensitive to gays, blacks, and Hispanics, defenders suggested that he wasn't a bigot, and that what critics saw as insensitivity was in fact bracing candor. Jesse Jackson certified him as "an equal-opportunity shot taker."(4/30)

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission banned employers from inquiring about job applicants' mental-health history. Interpreting the Americans With Disabilities Act, the EEOC further ordered companies to make "reasonable accommodation to the known physical or mental limitations of a qualified individual," unless this entails "undue hardship" for the company. The EEOC explained that traits such as bad judgment, tardiness, and belligerence "may be linked to mental impairments," and that employees' request for time off because they are "depressed and stressed" should be interpreted legally as a request for "reasonable accommodation." The EEOC and various experts concluded the guidelines might require, for example: 1) noise-reducing office dividers to accommodate schizophrenics; 2) shifting the work hours of an employee who is groggy in the morning after taking anti-depressants; and 3) refraining from punishing a worker who is rude and disheveled but otherwise does the job. (4/30)

The European Union voted to restore diplomatic relations with Iran. This comes after a German court found that Iran had authorized assassinations of Kurdish dissidents in Germany and the EU responded by suspending relations with Iran. European diplomats voted for a continuation of the arms embargo and suspension of high-level contacts, but said they were rejecting the U.S. plea for a total break in relations because: 1) they hope to cultivate Iranian moderates through constructive engagement; 2) Western isolation would drive Iran into Russia's orbit; and 3) in the words of German Foreign Minister Klaus Kinkel, "You cannot reproach us for following our economic interests." The German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung derided the EU's policy as "wobbly jelly."(4/30)

Texan separatists seized hostages near El Paso and demanded a statewide referendum on independence from the United States. The hostages were subsequently freed in exchange for the release of a jailed separatist. Richard McLaren, the self-described "ambassador" from "the Republic of Texas," proclaimed the 1845 annexation of Texas illegal, declared his group "at war with the United Nations and all foreign entities," and claimed that militia groups outside Texas were coming to his defense. Federal agents played the situation cautiously in hopes of avoiding a repeat of Waco or Ruby Ridge. (4/28)

Politicians and celebrities rallied for volunteerism. President Clinton, Colin Powell, and former Presidents George Bush and Jimmy Carter helped clean up a Philadelphia neighborhood in hope of inspiring community service across the country. The cleanup kicked off a three-day summit, which kicked off a campaign (led by Powell) to channel volunteers and corporate donations toward tutoring poor kids, giving them medical care, and teaching them job skills. Cynics dismissed the summit as an insubstantial political PR stunt and asked: Who could be against volunteerism? Answers: Conservative pundits charged that organized community service is a slippery slope toward bigger government. Liberals worried that big government would lose precious popular support if volunteers assumed its duties. (4/28)

Time magazine reported that a Hong Kong businessman helped finance Republican campaigns in 1994 and 1996. The businessman, Ambrous Tung Young, put up $2 million in collateral to secure a bank loan for a think tank headed by then Republican National Committee Chairman Haley Barbour. The money was passed through (as repayment for a previous loan) to the RNC and used in the elections. Then Barbour's think tank defaulted on the bank loan, evidently forcing Young to cough up $500,000 to cover GOP expenses. Time suggested that the story would increase pressure on Congress to include the GOP in its investigation of Asian campaign money. (4/28)

The honeymoon is over for Zairian rebel boss Laurent Kabila. International relief groups and the United Nations accuse his Tutsi troops of "ethnic cleansing" and a "final solution" against Hutu refugees, who are allegedly being killed, starved, and isolated from outside aid. The United States is now taking diplomatic measures to prevent Kabila from ousting current dictator Mobutu Sese Seko by force. The Washington Post concluded that if Kabila doesn't shape up, "there will be scant reason to think he will be any improvement."(4/28)

Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld says he will accept President Clinton's offer to become ambassador to Mexico. Analysts note that the marriage isn't so surprising, since Weld shares Clinton's views on NAFTA and legal immigration and would bolster Clinton's image as a drug warrior, and in light of Mexico's drug-money corruption scandals and Weld's law-enforcement credentials. Clinton's apparent motive: adding to his administration's aura of bipartisanship (which started with Republican Defense Secretary Bill Cohen). Weld's apparent motive: boredom. (4/28)

--Compiled by William Saletan and the editors of Slate.