18A
Wednesday, August 16, 1995
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Senator says Packwood intimidated accuser
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — A Senate critic of Sen. Bob Packwood says the Oregon Republican is trying to intimidate a woman who recently accused him of sexual misconduct
Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., took issue on Friday with a Packwood statement that used the accuser's name and cast doubt on her story.
"Senator Packwood's comments can only be interpreted as an attempt to intimidate her and any other potential victims who may come forward," said Boxer, who
has been trying to force public hearings in the 2 1/2-year-old case.
The woman, who recently contacted the Senate Ethnic Committee, was the first person to file a sexual misconduct complaint against Packwood and was a minor when the alleged incident occurred.
The former intern in Packwood's office was 17 years old in 1983 when, she says, Packwood hugged and kissed her at her parents' home in a Washington suburb.
Her story was told in The Washington Post in February 1993, but the woman was not identified. She
said the incident occurred when Packwood had personally delivered a college letter of recommendation he had written for her.
Packwood issued a statement Friday
Bob Packwood
that named the woman and said he had read her deposition to Ethics Committee staff.
exception to her version of the event," Packwood said, adding that for the moment he would give his side only to the ethics panel.
"Having now read it, I take strong
The woman's lawyer, W. Neil Eggleston, said it was outrageous that Packwood would deny her allegations and that he identified the woman in his statement.
"This is the type of invasion that she had sought to avoid," Eggleston said.
Packwood representative Bobbi Munson said the woman's name was included because her identity was mentioned in news stories.
The Associated Press published
her name in a news story in Oregon based on a state newspaper's account, but it did not transmit the name nationally.
"Upon further reflection, we thought better of using her name," said Eva Parziale, the AP's Oregon bureau chief. "All things considered, there was no overriding news value in using her name when she and her lawyer requested that it not be used."
The Ethics Committee has found substantial credible evidence that Packwood may have violated Senate rules.
In a document akin to an indictment, the committee charged him in May with 18 instances of sexual misconduct with 17 women between 1969-90; trying to obtain jobs for his then-wife from lobbyists and businessmen with an interest in legislation; and altering his personal diaries when he learned they would be subpoenaed.
The panel postponed deliberations on possible penalties until September. Possible punishments of Packwood include censure, loss of his chairmanship of the Senate Finance Committee and expulsion from office.
Perot hasn't ruled out '96 presidential campaign
The Associated Press
DALLAS — As his supporters waged a spirited debate over whether to form new political parties, Ross Perot said Sunday he had little zeal for the "hitch in hell"
of another presidential campaign but was not ready to rule one out.
There is no urgency to decide, Perot said in a brief interview as his weekend United We Stand America
Ross Perot
conference drew to a close. There was considerable urgency, however, in the tone of many Perot supporters as they discussed the direction United We Stand — and the broader independent movement — should take heading into the 1996 election cycle.
Deeply skeptical of the promises made by Democratic and Republican leaders in two marathon days of speechmaking here, some Perot loyalists made the case that he was the only hope if Washington is to clean up its politics and put the country's fiscal house in order.
Others,however,believe United
We Stand's power — and Perot's influence — are greater if he does not run.
"I just think it makes sense for us to be a swing group that has the power to scare both parties so that they get things done," said Deborah Lehmann, a hardware store owner and United We Stand activist in southern California.
Perot said that would be his preferred outcome, too.
Appearing on NBC's "Meet the Press," Perot said, "My worst nightmare would be to have to live in the White House and have my cat attacked every day by everybody in the world, you know, much less my family."
Perot offered no timetable but said one factor in his decision would be whether Congress enacts campaign finance and other political reforms by Christmas. But he said that if he ruled out a 1996 run now, the odds of passing the reforms would be zero.
come out of this with maybe Ross Perot and (retired Gen.) Colin Powell on the ticket, but that didn't happen," said Thomas Richardson, who owns several rental properties in San Antonio, Texas.
Russ Verney, the national United We Stand executive director, said a decision on another independent run could wait until late spring 1996. If Perot wanted to run as the candidate of a new national party, he would have to act sooner because of earlier ballot deadlines. But Perot said he had no interest in that approach.
Back in their states, many Perot supporters are helping form new third parties, and they spent the weekend looking for help.
Tom Blomquist, a leader in the infant New Jersey Conservative Party, said Perot supporters from 12 additional states had pledged to form third parties. For now, these efforts will proceed independently and focus on state races, but if they are successful in a good number, they'll meet and figure out how to convert it into a national party.
"I was hoping to see a third party
Speaking for many of the those at the Dallas meeting, Blomquist said he wasn't swayed by the bipartisan parade of congressional leaders. "There are the people who screwed up the second half of the 20th century," he said. "Why would we trust them to lead us into the 21st?"
The conference did not draw as many United We Stand members as Perot had hoped, but most of those who did come sat intently through 12-hour days of presentations from the party leaders and policy experts and called the conference a huge success because of the wide-ranging issues discussion.
Airport radar outages to be studied
Officials to replace aging computers and update training
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Technical experts are to visit each of the nation's air traffic control centers in an attempt to stop the power outages that knocked out radar in the West and Midwest this month.
The visits will begin Monday and end by Nov. 1, Transportation Secretary Federico Pena said Friday.
Last month, computers failed three times in one week at the Chicago-area center, forcing controllers to use an aging backup system.
traffic control] center went dead for the first time ever. Pilots flew by sight during an hour-long outage that interrupted radar over northern California, western Nevada and 18 million square miles of the Pacific Ocean.
Radio contact also was lost for about 15 minutes during the outage, which occurred at a Federal Aviation Administration facility near Oakland, Calif.
"The severity of the Oakland, Calif., power outage was an unmistakable signal for more action," Pena said in a written statement. "I have directed the FAA to take immediate steps to ensure that our skies remain the world's safest."
And on Aug. 9, an American air
The FAA also will hire 116 new air traffic control technicians by Sept. 30, and managers have been asked to update all emergency operating
procedures, transportation officials said.
Aging computers will be replaced in five of the nation's most critical air traffic control centers — Chicago, Cleveland, New York, Washington, D.C., and Fort Worth, Texas — 16 months earlier than planned. Pena said.
All technicians have been asked to study local backup system capabilities, the statement said.
According to the statement, new training courses will help technicians maintain older equipment. Refresher training for air traffic controllers in the use of backup systems will begin next month.
Pena said an effort to revamp the FAA and streamline government procurement procedures should make it easier to replace aging equipment quickly.
Protest blocks holy Navajo bridge
line.
The Associated Press
BIG WATER, Utah — The world's largest natural bridge has been blocked by Navajos who claim the sacred site is being misused by national park officials and must be cleansed through ceremonies.
About a dozen Navajos on Friday used homemade signs and rope to block the only feasible entrance onto the Rainbow Bridge National Monument, located on a Navajo Reservation about 30 miles from this small town near the Arizona state
About six of the protesters, with a group called Protectors of the Rainbow, remained Saturday. The group had planned to stay through Monday to hold the cleansing ceremonies.
"Many desecrations and defilements have been permitted by the Park Service during the 25 years in which the Navajo Nation has allowed the Park Service to conduct tours there," the group said in a statement.
National park officials said they were trying to negotiate with the
Navajos but would not try to force them off the bridge, which is next to Lake Powell. The sandstone bridge, 275 feet wide and 290 feet high, usually attracts 1,000 visitors a day.
The bridge is the focal point for many Navajo legends. The Navajos believe it was a rainbow that turned to stone.
The bridge is accessible from only one side, where a dock and a walkway lead up to it. To reach the bridge from the other side would require a 17-mile hike through the Navajo Mountain.
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