THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
MONDAY, MARCH 3, 2008
NEWS
3A
》 STUDENT SENATE
Mindy Ricketts/KANSAN
Coalition to address spending
Adam Wood, president of Students of Liberty, wants to address spending by the University and Senate. Wood has never served as student senator at the University.
BY BRENAHAWLEY bhawley@kansan.com
A new Student Senate coalition started last week with the main goal of addressing financial issues at the University of Kansas, Students of Liberty came from a split in the Ron Paul Meet-up group, while the other part of the group went to campaign for local candidates.
Adam Wood, Lawrence junior and Students of Liberty presidential candidate, said he wanted to campaign to get involved in local politics.
Although he has never been a student senator at the University, Wood was convinced his inexperience would not be a roadblock.
"If you work at it, you can figure it out," Wood said.
Wood said he had a problem with the way people in the country spent their money and did not conserve it, and said Student Senate was also affected by that problem.
Student Senate has about an $18 million budget, much of which comes from the fees students pay each semester. Wood said he would like to overhaul the campus required fees and cut back as much as possible.
"I don't go to the Student Recreation Fitness Center, so I don't want to pay for it." Wood said.
Wood said he thought Senate would operate better with less money because they would be forced to be efficient with their funds and he would act as a watchdog for overspending.
Eric Hyde, Lawrence sophomore and vice presidential candidate, said he and Wood had been thinking about starting a coalition since last fall.
He said Senate has increased its budget every year, but when Hyde went to Senate with a bill to fund a Greensburg relief project, he was denied funds.
Hyde said he also thought the greeks had been in power for too long and they always had the money to back up their campaigns.
"We want to show them we can get things done with less money," Hyde said.
Colin Barnes, Overland Park sophomore, will design the coalition's Web site and run for a regular Senate seat. He said he had an extensive background in economics, so he would look closely at Senate's and the University's budgets. He said he wanted to increase transparency in both budgets so students could see where their money was going.
Barnes said the problem with the current coalitions was that they didn't start with a platform so they
"There is too much of the same people getting into the same positions in Senate," Barnes said.
had no real reason to be together as a group with common ideas.
Wood said the group, which had about 10 students, didn't have the money to make T-shirts or buttons like the other coalitions did, and said it might hurt his chances. He said they would set a table in front of Wescoe Hall and promote their group and also put up flyers around campus. Barnes said the Web site would not be up for about another week.
NATIONAL Ship dedicated in honor of Sept. 11 attacks
AVONDALE, La. — The USS New York, an amphibious assault ship built with scrap steel from the ruins of the World Trade Center, was christened Saturday as a source of strength and inspiration for the nation.
Thousands of people, including friends and families of those who died in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, gathered near the hulking gray ship, trimmed in red, white and blue banners.
The bow stem, which contains 7.5 tons of steel from the site, bore a shield with two gray bars to symbolize the twin towers and a banner over that declaring "Never Forget," a slogan among New Yorkers.
Story after story of lives lost in, and touched by, the attacks peppered the ceremony, held under the blazing sun and broadcast on large screens. It all brought back painful memories for New York Police Lt. Matt Murphy. But the reason for his being here, though, was a source of pride, he said.
"I tell you, it's a fantastic day. Sometimes you think you're over something," he said, his eyes welling up as he looked off toward the ship, "and then you realize you're not completely."
INTERNATIONAL Bush defends military presence in Iraq, won't promise withdrawals
CRAWFORD, Texas President Bush declined Saturday to promise more U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq before he leaves office, and underscored the need for a strong military presence during Iraqi provincial elections in October.
Security has improved markedly since last summer when the last of five Army brigades arrived in Iraq to complete the president's buildup of 30,000 troops. One brigade has already returned home and the four others are to leave by July. What remains unclear is whether Bush will order
"There is going to be enormous speculation," he said. "My sole criterion is, whatever we do, it ought to be in the context of success."
additional drawdowns in the final months of his presidency.
The president spoke at his Texas ranch where he hosted Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen for talks about NATO's complex mission in Afghanistan, climate change, Iran and other trans-Antlantic issues. They took time, though, for a two mountain bike rides at the dusty ranch at sunset Friday and again at sunrise Saturday.
Israeli troops cause 54 Palestinian deaths; some call killings a 'genocide'
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli troops turned heavy firepower on rocket squads bombarding southern Israel Saturday, killing 54 Palestinians in the deadliest day in Gaza since the current round of fighting erupted in 2000.
Two Israeli soldiers were killed and seven were wounded in the clashes, the military said.
The violence took a heavy toll on Gaza civilians. Moderate Palestinian leaders called the killings a "genocide" and threatened to call off peace talks.
"The response to these rockets can't be that harsh and heinous," said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. "It is nowadays described as a holocaust."
The spasm of violence came days before Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was to arrive in the region to nudge Israel and Palestinians closer to a peace accord. But the rising tensions threatened to mar her visit.
PRESIDENTIAL In days before Tuesday's primaries, Clinton downplays Obama's experience SAN ANTONIO — Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton turned her attention Saturday to the mechanics of delivering voters to the polls in a round of primaries Tuesday that could hold the key to the future of
her presidential ambitions.
Clinton also sharpened her criticism of rival Barack Obama, hoping to give her backers a jolt of energy.
"His entire campaign is based on a speech he gave at an antiwar rally in 2002," Clinton told reporters aboard her campaign plane as she flew between events in San Antonio and Fort Worth, Texas. "The speech was not followed up by action, which is part of a pattern that we have seen repeatedly."
It was the second day she has made national security the focus of her closing argument to voters, seeking to portray Obama as inexperienced and untested.
Obama fired back at rally in Providence, R.I., telling supporters: "Real change isn't voting for George Bush's war in Iraq and then telling the American people it was actually a vote for more diplomacy when you start running for president."
McCain claims NAFTA re-negotiations would hurt Canada relations
ROUND ROCK, Texas — Republican John McCain said the desire by Democratic presidential rivals Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement would jeopardize crucial military support from Canada.
McCain used a town-hall style meeting Friday at Dell Inc. headquarters to emphasize his support for NAFTA.The effects of the 1994 trade pact are still hotly debated, but studies indicate the deal has resulted in record exports from Texas to Canada and Mexico.
Trade and national security are "interconnected with each other," the Arizona senator said.
"One of our greatest assets in Afghanistan are our Canadian friends. We need our Canadian friends, and we need their continued support in Afghanistan," McCain said. Canada has 2,500 troops serving in Afghanistan along with 29,000 U.S. soldiers,
Associated Press
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SENATE
March 3, 2008
JANE GOLDS
THIS WEEK ON CAMPUS
Start and End at Macelli's, 1031 New Hampshire. One mile Walk and 5K Walk/Run. Registration 7-8am. Stretch and run with Red Dog, at 7:50am. Walk steps off at 8am. A full breakfast, sponsored by NetworQ, will be served for returning participants from 8:30-10am. Awards Ceremony 10am. Registration is online at www.douglascountyaldsproject.org
Saturday, April 12th
Center for Community Outreach challenging. educating. empowering.
Looking to volunteer? Center for Community Outreach can help!
We have 15 volunteer programs working throughout Lawrence and can connect you to many local programs.
Contact us!
405 Kansas Union (in the SILC office)
864-4073 $ \cdot $ cco@ku.edu
www.ku.edu/~cco
Location: Pine Room in 6th floor of KS Union
National Society of Collegiate Scholars
Event: NSCS general meeting
Date: Tuesday, March 4 Time: 8 pm
Contact: Anna Kathagnarath-annatkat@hotmail.com
Wishing spring was here? Come join CCO EARTH to discuss plans for the Campus Garden!
March 6,2008 4-5 PM
Kansas Union Governor's Room
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