The Battalion
Vol. 92 No. 24 (12 pages) “Serving Texas A&M Since 1893” Thursday, October 1, 1992
Bush loyalists protect
family leave bill veto
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON - President
Bush's loyalists in the House said
Wednesday
they had
enough votes to
sustain his veto
of the family
leave bill. Con
gress also con
fronted the
White House
on China policy
as it pushed to
resolve final is
sues standing
in the way of
adjournment.
“We had plenty of votes before
and we should have plenty this
time," said Rep. Bill Goodling, R-
Pa., who was leading opposition
to the family leave bill. "I'm pre
dicting victory."
Democrats acknowledged they
had picked up only a few more
votes in several days of lobbying,
seemingly leaving them short of
the two-thirds majority needed to
override Bush's 32nd veto and en
act the bill into law.
"I wish things looked better,"
said Rep. Patricia Schroeder, D-
Colo., a sponsor of the family
leave bill. "We may get some
changes. We've been trying
hard."
The House, meanwhile, voted
overwhelmingly as expected to
override another Bush veto of a
bill that would slap conditions on
renewal next year of China's trade
status with the United States.
Most Favored Nation status, en
joyed by China and most other
U.S. trading partners, imparts the
lowest available tariffs on a coun
try's exports to America.
The vote was 345-74, well over
the two-thirds needed. Bush ve
toed a similar measure previously,
and attempts to override fell short
in the Senate. A similar outcome
was expected this time. The veto
battles were among the major bills
to be acted upon before the 102nd
Congress adjourns early next
week. The family leave bill would
require businesses with 50 or
more employees to give workers
up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-pro
tected leave, with full health bene
fits, to care for a sick family mem
ber or for the birth or adoption of
a child.
Bush vetoed a similar family
leave bill in 1990 and the latest bill
in September. He contended the
measure would be costly to busi
ness and proposed instead giving
a tax credit to businesses that al
low their workers time off.
The Senate voted 68-31 last
week to override Bush. He so far
has a perfect record of making his
vetoes stick. But the Senate vote
marked the first time in his presi
dency that body has voted to
override. Democrats have been
plaiming for the override vote for
a year or more, and presidential
nominee Bill Clinton has ham
mered at Bush on the issue.
But even so, it appeared that
Democratic House leaders had not
worked as strongly or effectively
as they might have to gain the
votes of their own members.
House Speaker Thomas Foley
urged an override but acknowl
edged that even some Democratic
committee and subcommittee
chairmen, and some deputy De
mocratic whips, were voting to
sustain the president.
Bush
Judge runs for high court
Woman vies to become first female justice in Texas
By WILL HEALY
Reporter of THE BATTALION
Judge Rose Spector hopes to be the first woman
elected to the Texas Supreme Court in its 150-year
history.
Having a woman on the court
will bring a different perspective,
she said during her visit to Bryan
on Wednesday.
Spector, a Democrat, said the
Clarence Thomas hearings have
had an impact on women today.
"I think it put in the forefront
the lack of women in the decision
making process," said Spector.
The "year of the woman" has
shown that more people need to
be involved in the political Spector
process, she said, and it is time for
women to be included.
Spector said the Texas Supreme Court has made
conflicting decisions with regard to the public school
system.
The school year started with voters paying a tax
that has been ruled unconstitutional and there is not
a school finance system in place. The decisions on
school finance are up to the legislature, Spector said.
"What the court needs to do is to interpret the law
in such a way that everyone knows what the law is,"
she said.
Spector said privacy — including abortion — will
be a major issue in the future. She acknowledges that
abortion might come before the Texas Supreme
Court, but declined to say how she may rule.
"The whole issue of privacy is going to be before
all of the supreme courts, Texas included," Spector
said. "The whole duty of the Court is to look at an
individual case, and I think it's inappropriate to gen
eralize about what they may do in a particular case."
Spector said she believes the bench should contin
ue to be an elected position in Texas, because judges
take election experiences with them into office.
"Appointments are not non-political," said Spec-
tor. "When you run for public office, you go around
to Bryan, Austin, and a lot of other places in Texas,
and you talk to people, and it's a very humbling ex
perience."
Specter's Republican opponent, Eugene Cook,
was appointed by Gov. Bill Clements before he left
office.
"I do believe his lack of experience as a trial judge
is demonstrated in some of the opinions," she said.
She said that being a trial judge has given her "a
degree of common sense with reality-based experi
ences."
Not having that experience leads to a "ivory tow
er attitude," which prevents a judge from seeing
how judicial decisions affect people's lives, she said.
Spector received her law degree at St. Mary's Uni
versity Law School, magna cum laude in 1965. She
was first elected Judge of County Court of Law No. 5
in 1974, and was among the first women elected to
county-wide public office in Bexar County. She is
serving her 18th year as a trial judge, currently on
the 131st District Court.
RANDYNICHOLS/The Battalion
Sophomore Joel Simmons tries to block a spike
by Eric Montgomery, a freshman mathematics
major. Simmons and Montgomery, friends from
Hart Hall, play several games of volleyball on
Wednesday afternoons. The continuing mild
weather adds to their volleyball fever.
Student Senate
approves agenda
By MEREDITH HARRISON
News Editor for THE BATTALION
The Student Senate ap
proved its 1992-1993 agenda
Wednesday, which included
the goal of bettering student re
lations by increasing student
feedback on campus issues.
Brian Walker, speaker of the
Student Senate, said the top pri
ority of the Senate is to get stu
dent input on the issue of priva
tization of some campus food
services.
Walker said student feed
back would help the Senate de
cide how to represent the stu
dent body on the issue.
"We are planning to get out
on campus and really listen to
the student body on this issue,"
he said. "It's important for us to
know how they feel about cam
pus caterers moving onto the
campus."
The Senate set the goal of
improving relations between
the senators and the student
body and getting more student
input on important issues
around campus.
Promoting better relations
between the colleges and their
representatives will also be
stressed this year. Walker said.
"We are really stressing bet
ter student relations," Walker
said. "We need to get out on
campus and get to know our
constituents in the hopes of im
proving relations and getting
things done for the student
body."
Other issues include adding
an extra day of vacation to the
Thanksgiving holiday, an extra
reading day during final exams
and an on-campus day care sys
tem for children of A&M facul
ty and staff.
Walker said another priority
this year will be obtaining ap
proval for installing electric
door openers for handicapped
students.
Although the Student Senate
just passed this year's agenda,
the group has also been work
ing on other projects it previ
ously approved.
Presently the Senate is work
ing with Parking Transit and
Traffic Services to gain ap
proval to build awnings over all
campus bus stops.
The Senate is also working to
complete repairs on a sidewalk
located near the Kleberg build
ing.
"The Student Senate plans to
take charge of things on cam
pus that need to be handled
and make sure that the students
get the best benefits," Walker
said.
Congress finds tax bill's benefits
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON - Come elec
tions or high deficits, members of
Congress are going to use the tax
law to help a constituent or push a
pet project.
So, the latest tax bill helps shoe
makers in Maine, loggers in Oregon
and the thoroughbred industry in
Kentucky.
Not all the amendments tacked
onto the bill are so narrow. One
would ease the financial burdens of
the dying; one would allow military
officers more tax-free combat pay.
Another would allow students to
avoid tax on the portion of their
scholarships that pays for room,
board and travel.
The amendments are worthless
unless the catchall bill to which they
are attached becomes law.
A committee of senior tax writ
ers will try Thursday to write a
compromise between the $19.6 bil
lion bill passed by the House and
the $36.6 billion Senate version.
A central issue is a section of the
Senate bill that would pay for some
tax reductions and spending pro
grams by making permanent a tem
porary tax increase on the well-to-
do. President Bush has promised a
veto if the increase stays.
That means negotiators will have
to pare some tax breaks or find
some other inoffensive revenue
source if the bill is to become law.
Because tax bills are seldom sub
ject to amendment on the House
floor, most of the provisions were
added in the Senate.
All are subject to being dumped
in the search for a compromise.
Owner rounds up signatures
Privatization petition targets College Station businesses
By MACK HARRISON
Reporter of THE BATTALION
A Northgate restaurant owner is taking a petition
to establishments throughout College Station to
voice against the privatization of Sbisa Underground
at Texas A&M.
Danny Dodd, owner of Spanky's Good Grub &
Pub on Northgate, said he decided to take the peti
tion to establishments outside the Northgate area be
cause privatization would have a detrimental effect
on all businesses in the community.
He said 12 Northgate businesses have signed the
petition.
"We're going to hit all the local restaurants in Col
lege Station that aren't part of a big chain," Dodd
said.
The petition reads:
"We, the undersigned, submit this petition in
protest of the Texas A&M decision to allow private
food vendors on campus. The process of selection
did not include an opportunity for local businesses
to participate in bidding for available locations. The
damage to the closed process used by A&M was un
fair to the local community. We request that A&M
reconsider its decision and meet with local mer
chants to discuss options."
However, not all merchants share these senti
ments. Pierre Dube, manager of Freebird's World
Burrito on University Drive, said he doesn't have
enough information on the privatization to draw a
conclusion just yet.
Dube said he believes the University has the right
to compete with local businesses, as it does now. He
said food sales at Sbisa Underground have always
affected Northgate merchants.
"Is it (privatization) going to affect local business
es?" Dube asked. "They're already selling food
there."
Advance
Democratic
forum aims
at college
campuses
The Aggie Democrats in
vite the public to watch
Gov. Bill Clinton and Sen.
A1 Gore during a nationally
simulcasted young people's
forum on Thursday, C>ct. 1.
from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in
Room 212 of the Memorial
Student Center.
The program is co-hosted
by Rock the Vote, a non
partisan organization regis
tering young voters, and
"Rockline," a nationally-
syndicated FM call-in show
that will broadcast the event
to over 150 stations around
the country.
The forum will be held at
the University of Wisconsin,
Madison, and campuses na
tionwide will be linked live
via video satellite.
Viewers will be able to
call in questions during the
program.
The broadcast is part of
the Clinton-Gore student
campaign's "last chance
weekend," an effort to regis
ter young voters before reg
istration deadlines in many
states next week.