The week's big news, and how's it's being spun.
Aug. 3 1997 3:30 AM

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Police foiled an apparent plot to detonate five suicide bombs in New York City on buses and subways. Two of the apparent culprits carried Jordanian passports and identified themselves as Palestinians. A third is from Egypt. The FBI is investigating whether the suspects are connected to Middle Eastern terrorist groups. One of the suspects referred approvingly to this week's suicide bombings in Jerusalem. The suggestion in much of the coverage was that the same thing that happened in Jerusalem could have happened here. (8/1)

William Saletan William Saletan

Will Saletan writes about politics, science, technology, and other stuff for Slate. He’s the author of Bearing Right.

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Israeli-Palestinian relations are in a meltdown following a suicide bombing attack that killed 15 people and injured more than 150 at a vegetable market in Jerusalem. Israel arrested dozens of suspects and announced that it would arrest the Palestinian Authority's police chief, cut off the Authority's tax revenue, and possibly send commandos into Palestinian-controlled territory. A senior Palestinian official called the announcement "a declaration of war against the Authority and against the Palestinian people." Everyone fears that a clash between Israeli commandos and Palestinian police, who have vowed to resist any Israeli incursion, will ignite an explosion. President Clinton is considering whether to send Secretary of State Madeleine Albright to try to resuscitate peace talks. (8/1)

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White House and congressional negotiators agreed on a fiscal rescue plan for the District of Columbia. The benefit: billions of dollars in aid in the form of subsidies, tax breaks, and federal assumption of pension liability. The cost: transferring much of the authority of Mayor Marion Barry and the city council to a federally appointed control board that already supervises the district government. Barry called the new plan a "rape" of democracy but expressed gratitude for the payment. Editorialists lamented the evisceration of self-rule but faulted the voters' choice, Barry, for bringing it on himself. Having dispensed with Barry, federal officials began grousing that the control board can't fix the city either. (8/1)

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Sports bloopers: Broadcaster Marv Albert's name and former phone number were found in the address book of a murdered dominatrix. A police source said Albert is not thought to be involved in the woman's death, but didn't say whether or how Albert was involved in her life. "We have no further comment to make, nor will we as the dominatrix story unfolds," said Albert's spokesman. Two National Basketball Association referees have pleaded guilty to filing false tax returns. The New York Yankees demoted Japanese pitcher Hideki Irabu to the minor leagues after he was repeatedly shellacked following the signing of his $13 million contract. The New York Times rehashed local jokes about the over-hyped major-league rookie, including "Ira-boo" (fans' response to his pitching) and "Ira-boo-boo" (his pitching). (8/1)

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Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has become the company's "shadow CEO," says the Wall Street Journal. According to reports, Jobs is basically running the company for the time being, but refuses to take the CEO job officially because he just wants to save Apple, not run it. This completes the return and vindication of Apple's prodigal son, who had lost a long-ago power struggle with former CEO John Sculley. Pessimists speculate that Jobs' caustic perfectionism will make it hard to hire a good CEO. Optimists argue that Jobs is supplying Apple's immediate needs: strategic vision and a morale boost for employees and investors. (8/1)

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President Clinton and congressional Republicans struck a budget deal. Clinton had demanded tax cuts for the working poor (as well as for the middle class), while the GOP had demanded tax cuts for the upper-middle class, and congressional Democrats had demanded more spending for their pet programs. Thanks to the booming economy (and unspecified future spending cuts), all sides got what they wanted. Meanwhile, the negotiators threw out proposed premium hikes for wealthy people on Medicare. The consensus is that both parties have once again fed us our dessert (while telling us it's nourishing and fat-free) instead of our spinach. (7/30)

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Update on the campaign-finance hearings: Witnesses detailed how Charlie Trie laundered $1.4 million in foreign money for the Democratic Party. Johnny Chung told the Los Angeles Times that the $50,000 check he handed to Hillary Clinton's chief of staff at the White House had been solicited by Mrs. Clinton's staff. Chung explained, "I see the White House is like a subway: You have to put in coins to open the gates." Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott called Attorney General Janet Reno"Stonewall Reno" for 1) opposing immunity for Buddhist nuns whose testimony might implicate Democratic officials, and 2) refusing to appoint an independent counsel. Former GOP chairman Haley Barbour testified against accusations that he laundered money from Hong Kong. Pundits vouched that Barbour was a swell buddy of theirs and that he had acquitted himself brilliantly. Reviews of the senators so far: Thompson--fair and brave; Glenn--petty and partisan; Lieberman--honest and constructive; Torricelli--servile and sanctimonious. For Slate's take, see Jacob Weisberg's "Dispatch."(7/30)

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The Khmer Rouge tried Pol Pot for genocide and sentenced him to life under house arrest. Editorialists denounced the trial as a "charade" on several grounds: 1) He was tried by his own murderous faction instead of an international tribunal, evidently to gain credibility for the Khmer Rouge within and beyond Cambodia. 2) The "trial" consisted of two hours of pep-rally-style denunciations and audience response, without due process. 3) There's no reason to think that the sentence will be enforced, and the Khmer Rouge refuses to hand him over to anyone else for a real trial. Commentators who saw video of the trial noted that the aged defendant didn't look like a man who killed so many people single-handedly, that the henchmen who had helped him do it are escaping justice, and that one of them (dictator Hun Sen) is on his way to becoming the next Pol Pot. (7/30)

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Bill Cosby has taken a blood test to determine whether he is Autumn Jackson's father, according to Cosby's lawyer, John Schmitt. The results are not yet in. Schmitt said the purpose of the test is to end "Bill's trial in the court of public opinion" by proving that he is not Jackson's father. Since paternity cannot be established unless Jackson is also tested, Schmitt challenged Jackson to comply. This comes after Jackson was convicted of trying to extort $40 million from Cosby. (7/30)

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Bill Weld resigned as governor of Massachusetts to campaign for the job of U.S. ambassador to Mexico. He has been nominated by President Clinton, but Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has vowed to quash the nomination on the grounds that Weld is soft on drugs. Analysts agree that 1) Helms' opposition guaranteed that Weld had almost no chance of getting the job to begin with; 2) Weld's caustic remarks about Helms in the last couple of weeks have further doomed his chances; and 3) Weld's resignation won't help him. The subtle theory is that Weld knows he will lose but is positioning himself for a GOP presidential run in 2000. The crude theory is that Weld just loves a good fight, particularly with Helms. (7/28)

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Case closed: Alleged "spree killer"Andrew Cunanan, who was being hunted by the FBI for the murder of fashion designer Gianni Versace and others, killed himself. The premature anticlimax disappointed the media, but they continued to milk the story anyway. A jury cleared Carroll O'Connor of slander for calling his deceased son's cocaine supplier "a partner in murder." The pusher portrayed the verdict as a victory for celebrities. The jurors portrayed it as a defeat for scum. Reputed Mafia boss Vincent "Chin"Gigante reported to prison after being convicted of racketeering and conspiracy to murder. (7/28)

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The scandal over deaf Mexican slaves widened. First, police found 57 deaf Mexicans in "virtual slavery" in Queens (New York Times); then similar rackets were busted in North Carolina and Chicago. The Mexicans were smuggled into the United States, miserably housed, and forced to peddle $1 trinkets (in places like the subway) to make money for their "pimps." The media bemoaned the vulnerability of illegal immigrants (trapped by their fear that outsiders will discover they're illegal) and congratulated Mayor Rudy Giuliani for rescuing the New York slaves. Eventually, the Times conceded that the conditions in Mexico, which these immigrants had fled and to which none so far want to return, were just as bad. "In a country of many poor and marginalized people, the deaf are almost invisible," grieved the Times. (7/28)

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Miscellany: Retired Supreme Court Justice William Brennan died. Liberals called him the greatest hero in a century of jurisprudence. Conservatives noted their disagreements with him but remembered him as a man of principle and a truly nice guy. Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori is in deep trouble: Citizens are angry over his alleged illegal wiretapping and suppression of journalists, and newly discovered documents indicate that he may have been born in Japan rather than Peru, which would make him ineligible for his job. The Army discharged a 20-year decorated veteran one week before he would have been eligible for retirement benefits, because investigators discovered evidence of his homosexuality after an arsonist torched his home. Jan Ullrich became the first German cyclist to win the Tour de France. (7/28)

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DNA evidence shows that Neanderthals were not our ancestors. Some analysts argued that the research supports two politically important theories: 1) Humans have had so little time to diverge genetically that the differences between human "races" are trivial, and 2) our common ancestors came from Africa (Cro-Magnons) and drove the Europeans (Neanderthals) to extinction. Why didn't we interbreed with the Neanderthals when they were still around? Because they were ugly, says the Los Angeles Times. (7/28)