Section A·Page 8
The University Daily Kansan
Monday, August 23, 1999
Nation/World
GOP rivals ask Bush to tell the whole story
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON—As questions about past illegal drug use continue to dog Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush, some GOP rivals said yesterday that he should answer them directly and get the issue behind him.
But at the same time, his competitors and supporters maintained that past indiscretions, including possible use of illegal drugs, should not disqualify the Texas governor or anyone else from becoming president.
Noting that Bush has
addressed the issue partially, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said Bush should "just answer the darn question and get rid of it."
"If there wasn't anything here, then George Bush should have just said there wasn't," Hatch said on NBC's "Meet the Press".
"If there was, I think he, at this point, should answer it, get it behind him, because the polls show most of the American people are forgiving," Hatch added.
There has been no evidence or credible allegation that Bush ever has used an illegal
drug, although he has admitted to formerly drinking heavily and "mistakes" as a youth. Questioned repeatedly on the drug issue, Bush said last week that he had not used illegal drugs within the past 25 years, but would not elaborate.
Except for Bush, all of the GOP candidates have said unequivocally that they never have used illegal drugs. Democratic rivals Vice President Al Gore and Bill Bradley both have admitted to experimenting with marijuana during their youth.
Rains threaten Turkey quake zone
The Associated Press
ISTANBUL, Turkey—Bulldozers and jackhammers tore into flattened buildings still entombing thousands of earthquake victims in Turkey yesterday, rushing to clear decomposing corpses before expected rains increase the risk of epidemics.
Just how many people remained buried across populous north western Turkey was still unknown nearly a week after Tuesday's enormous quake. The official death toll has surpassed 12,000 and some officials have predicted as many as 40,000 may have died.
Amid the tears, an astonishing ray of hope: A 57-year-old stroke-crippled woman unable to cry for help was found alive after nearly five and a half days trapped in rubble in the town of Golcuk, about 110 miles southeast of Istanbul.
Another woman, 52, was pulled out by Israeli, Turkish and Bulgarian rescue teams from the rubble of her home in Cinaricak, southwest of Golcuk, according to an Israeli army statement.
In many places, however, the search for the living was scaled back and there was only the roar of machinery ripping into the wreckage where rescuers once carefully listened for any signs of life.
Survivors, some with family members still buried, watched helplessly.
"We can't even get our dead," said Osman Bakay, who has two relatives still caught in a collapsed five-story building in Yalova, about 30 miles south of Istanbul.
The stench of decomposing bodies across the quake zone was an obvious reminder that serious diseases could flare any moment. Typhoid fever, cholera and dysentery topped the list of concerns. Officials have sprayed disinfectants, distributed water purification tablets and started spreading antiseptic lime in the region.
Rains forecast to begin
today could bring contaminated runoff into streets. They also could contribute to other health risks—for example, carrying down toxic particles pumped into the sky from a huge fire that burned several days at Turkey's biggest oil refinery after Tuesday's quake.
Health Minister Osman Durmus urged people to leave the area near the refinery in Izmit, about 90 miles southeast of Istanbul.
Up to 25,000 beds were available at hotels and resorts around the region, government officials said. Food, plastic sheeting and buses also were sent in. Tent cities have been erected in some areas.
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