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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 3, 2000)
(•mi *1 • i =(iWii’ AteBm fac owers ed and fie andl ov. Bush’s UI arrest [esurfaces \leaded guilty to large 25 years ago WEST ALLIS, Wis. (AP) — Texas v. George W. Bush said Thursday was arrested and pleaded guilty nearly 25 years ago to driving while .Ider the influence of alcohol. “I’m njji proud of that,” he said. ■ Confirming reports that surfaced in :hi media five days before Election bty, the GOP presidential nominee i|$aiil,in a hurriedly arranged news con- ifplence, “I’ve oftentimes said that larsago, I made some mistakes. I oc- Kionally drank too much, and I did on lit night. I regret that it happened.” I The Sept. 4, 1976, incident was first sorted by Fox News, based on a re lit prepared by a local affiliate in jaine. Bush, who was 30 years old at I I time, said he had chosen to keep the f ident private, but his hand was ced by the news outlets. Suggesting that politics may have liyed a role in the incident surfacing Iw, Bush said, “I think that’s an in to sting question. Why now? — (five) lys before the election.” (“I’ve got my suspicions,” said sh, not sharing them with a crowd of porters surrounding him. ied. in (T tabMFor months, the GOP nominee has is suclu« ltse( ^ t0 answer questions about any > the J°uthful indiscretions,” including lead v P e ther he used illegal drugs in the ' unenw^Os and early 1970s. He continued to ne mu §oid specifics Thursday night, saying ibedic if ,c has “been straightforward with the i accKieople, saying that I used to drink too ical wijrmch in the past. I’m straightforward dies.niMf^hhpeople saying I don’t drink now.” i Chris Lehane, spokesman for the fore campaign, said, “We had ab- |olutely nothing to do with this.” Bush’s campaign staff jumped into iction after the news broke, tracking [own the arresting officer and quickly ranging a rare news conference for the Jexas governor — his first in a month. ) people' 1 ! Aides said Bush was pulled over i werefe ear his family’s Kennebunkport, :d minors name, summer home after visiting a ,Cliaiigst L with friends and a family member aboard"' tiring the Labor Day weekend, irs. Welding power KEVIN BURNS/Thh Battalion Welder Mike Matchett replaces the domestic hot water line to Hart Hall Thursday evening. Palestinian-Israeli conflict continues Car bombing in Jerusalem market kills two, injures 11 Prime Minister’s •* Office Supreme Court 4 Knesset JERUSALEM (AP) — A powerful car bomb went off Thursday near a crowded out door market in the heart of Jerusalem, killing two by standers on the day that Israeli and Palestinian leaders were scheduled to announce a truce. The blast went off around 3 p.m., killing a man and a woman, “apparently Jews,” said Israeli Police Commissioner % Yehuda Wilk. Flames burst from the car, which witnesses said moments earlier had been chased by police. Huge black plumes of smoke rose into the sky as wailing ambulances rushed to a narrow side street nearUhe Mahane Yehuda mar ket, which sells food, vegetables and clothing in Jewish west Jerusalem. Eleven people were injured, paramedics said. Wilk said the assailants parked the car, rigged Campus organizations help students cope with situation Ae *»^Sl Km Mahane Yehuda market Car bomb exploded in Jerusalem market New City Jerusalem Old City H I V Al Aqsa Mosque Mount Zion Hinnon Valley By Courtney Stelzel The Battalion As the death toll continues to rise in the Middle East due to con tinued Palestinian and Israeli fighting, it is easy to look at the situ ation from a political perspective. The issue may not seem to hit close to home, but it does for hundreds of Texas A&M Jewish and Muslim students. Campus organiza tions such as the Hillel Jewish Student Associ ation and the Muslim Student Association (MSA) are supporting their members during this situation. The Jew ish Association and the MSA have placed ad vertisements in The Battalion calling for peace and prayer. “The [Jewish Stu dent Association] is cur rently formulating some groups that will orga nize statements on the association’s behalf,” said Greg Meyer, a fel lowship recipient for the National Hillel Jewish Association assigned to help A&M Jewish stu dents. “We also have student committees at tempting to organize a peace march.” Meyer said that Rab bi Tarlow, adviser for the Jewish Student Associa tion, has been holding everybody together dur ing this emotional time, “Rabbi Tarlow takes care of everybody,” he Wm. J. Gastello, S. Hoffmann/AP with large quantities of explosives, on a side street near the market. He said heavy police pres ence apparently deterred the assailants from try ing to explode the bomb in the crowded market. Police said they were checking whether the as sailants got away. University officials praise U.S. mediation in Mid East See Mid East on Page 8. By Courtney Stelzel The Battalion The mediator role the United States is taking in the Middle East conflict is the appropriate stance, said Dr. Avraham Zilkha, director of the Center for Middle East ern Studies at the Uni versity of Texas-Austin, and Nehemia Geva, a Texas A&M political science professor. The two spoke at a panel discussion hosted by the Current Issues Awareness (CIA) com mittee and the Wiley Lecture Series (WLS) about the Middle East. “The purpose of the program is to inform students about the issues occurring in the Middle East today,” said Rani Hauth, chairwoman for the WLS and a sopho more business major. “We want students to be able to learn about im portant issues outside of the classroom.” The recent violent uprising between Pales tinians and Israelis and their ongoing dispute over control of Israel and the holy sites with in its territory was the topic at hand. The discussion was moderated by Barry Hammond, a WLS and CIA committee mem ber and a sophomore fi nance major. The evening opened with Zilkha and Geva com menting on the history of Israel and Palestine. See Panel on Page 2. hingtot irpoit, lieckout The Battalion rKahouf hend ,or uiuiui.ineDait.coni •• Planet Northgate to showcase culture SEUSO GARCIA/The Battalion By Arati Bhattacharya . The Battalion The road home for Juan Borrego is not down High way 6, Highway 21 or Highway 35. For Borrego to go home, he has to cross national borders. “I definitely miss home,” said Borrego, a native of Mexico and a sophomore electrical engineering major. “The entire culture is different. I have to go back to Mexico to get real Mexican food and cherish the Te- jano music and lifestyle.” His nostalgia will be somewhat satisfied this week end, when a dash of multicultural flavor and festivities will envelop Northgate in Planet Northgate, sponsored by the International Student Association (ISA). “We hope to make Planet Northgate a huge Aggie tra dition, and this is just the start,” said Monica Pena, pres ident of ISA and a senior industrial engineering major. Planet Northgate will have an array of festivities today and Saturday, targeting all age groups. Booths host ed by various international and cultural organizations will line the Northgate Prom enade, selling ethnic food and housing cultural displays and decorative artwork. Borrego said he plans to at tend the event to learn about different cultures, while cher ishing his own. Pena said it is unique to have so many cultures in such a small area. “The purpose of Planet Northgate is to show everyone what’s here and to build awareness,” Pena said. “There’s going to be stuff for everyone to enjoy.” Six bands — Peruvian flute players, a reggae band ! t} | \ * i r-| % | ? x c, I ||j|| rfA-jiite 'f'rrnurnnAc arm >it (he f^erny'ran < truer tfi tiu.{ (//un\ It streets. (\nte pCly-. rs. iv.f.f.fc ihiuA •tf-nAno, d:3c p.m. TlbAM.^t CatarAav, ft n.m. IHiAuhrAt prp <1>tA an rtCtCYfult'ivc 1/ilytA Variety sAet e flu p’-fittrAny If n.m. f p.m. o/ ree aAmissiflu Wn BRANDON HENDERSON/The Battalion from Austin, Arabian gypsy-style music, jazz, Mex ican pop and an alternative band — will entertain crowds this weekend. Tiago Bitdinger, vice president for ISA and a senior See Northgate on Page 2. Third-party candidates continue campaigning Buchanan focuses on Reform Party funding Ralph Nader makes third bidforpresidency By Noel Freeman The Battalion While Reform Party candi date Pat Buchanan has accepted almost certain defeat, he and the Reform Party have their sights set on getting federal funding for the Reform Party for the 2004 presidential race. As the Nov. 7 election draws near, the goal to win at least 5 percent of the popular vote, which will qualify the Reform Party for $ 13 million in federal funding for its presidential candidate in 2004, has been adopted by the Buchanan campaign. Wes Anderson, Buchanan’s deputy press secretary, said the party is moving to build a permanent populous third party. “We want more political choice for the American people,” Anderson said. The. Nov. 7 election is Buchanan’s third try for the presidency after being defeated for the Republican nomination in 1992 and 1996. This is his first bid on the Reform Party ticket, which received $12.5 million in federal funding following Ross Perot’s 9 percent showing in the 1996 election. By Arati Bhattacharya The Battalion While most voters are making their final choices between the Democratic and Republican parties, a few Americans are placing their bids on a newly emerging political party. Fighting to join the political mainstream, Ralph Nader of the Green Party is the most prominent third-party candidate in the 2000 presidential election. The Nader 2000 campaign says it “strive to clean up and clean out the political decay that has turned our government over to a plutocracy and politi cians who take its marching orders.” Holding a different perspective from the two larger parties, Nader and the Green Party take pride in a concentration on environmental is sues and consumer rights. “I want to be president for a very simple reason,” Nader said. “Because this country needs a very strong progressive movement that challenges the accepted concentration of power and wealth in the hands of global corporations who dominate our government, our workplace, our environment and many other ar eas of our political economy.” See Buchanan on Page 8. See Nader on Page 8. Bomb suspects attack, stab guard NEW YORK (AP) — Two U.S. embassy bombing sus pects attacked a guard at a federal lockup, stabbing him in the eye and leaving him in critical condition, authorities said. A federal law enforcement source, speaking on condi tion of anonymity, told the Associated Press that the guard at the Metropolitan Correctional Center was stabbed in the eye Wednesday with some kind of plastic instrument. The thrust was believed to be so severe that the man lost his eye and the instrument penetrated the guard’s brain, the source said. The 43-year-old guard, whose name was not released, was taken to Bellevue Hospital where he underwent surgery for more than 12 hours, said Lorinda Klein, a spokeswoman for the hospital. He remained in critical condition Thursday. “Our thoughts and our prayers are with the family,” said Attorney General Janet Reno, who was asked about the incident at a Thursday news conference in Washing ton, She said she understood he was expected to recov er, but gave no details on his condition. The suspects were identified as Khalfan Khamis Mo- hamed and Mamdouh Mahmud Salim, who have both been indicted in connection with the Aug. 7, 1998, bombings at See Attack on Page 2.