harelb@cabot.dartmouth.edu (Harel Barzilai) (06/16/91)
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C o m m o n C a u s e M a g a z i n e
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Free to members of Common Cause(*)
[Jul/Aug 1990 Common Cause magazine, back-cover ad.:]
"Common Cause Magazine's expose's of government injustice, abuse and
fraud have made it a powerful force for government reform and citizen
advocacy.
Our investigations and ongoing coverage of money in politics and the
Washington political scene helped earn Common Cause Magazine a 1987
National Magazine Award for general excellence. No wonder we like to
say we're well-equipped -- and so are our readers.
Last year we reported on the hottest trend in Washington influence
peddling -- free vacations for members of Congress and their families,
all expenses paid by special interests. That story, "Join Congress,
See the World," won a coverted Investigative Reporters and Editors
(IRE) Award and encouraged a number of members of Congress to curtail
such travel.
Our 1984 cover story, "How Safe Is Your Diet Soft Drink?" remains the
most comprehensive investigation to date of the FDA's controversial
approval of NutraSweet, the widely used low-cal sweetener. It, too,
won an IRE Award. And two consecutive investigations of U.S.
involvement in Central America by magazine contributor Jacqueline
Sharkey won awards, one from the Sidney Hillman Foundation and the
other from the Overseas Press Club. [...]"
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(*) "Common Cause is a nonprofit, nonpartisan citizens' lobby that is
fighting for honest and accountable government [..] join 270,000
other citizens [..] battling to limit special-interest influence
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arms race"
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The issue mentioned included coverage of:
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*** PAC money [Keating Five; George Bush's $900,000 in '88 campaign
contributions from Keating, Tom Spiegel, Kenneth Good (who provided a
$100,000 loan that did not have to be repaid to Neil Bush, defaulted
on $8 million worth of obligations to [Neil Bush's] Silverado S&L in
'86, yet was able to make $100,000 contrib. to Bush's '88 campaign)]
*** The disposal of U.S. Chemical Weapons ("In the 1970's [the U.S.
routinely] dumped old chem. weapons into the bottom of the ocean...")
then and now.
*** "Kids at Work -- The tragic costs of child labor" By Beth Baker."
[see excerpts in "GROUPS-1 RESOURCE" file under Common Cause.]
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*** The Pentagon's Secret Stash (By Timothy McCune) "In 1988 Air Force
officials realized that the B-1 bomber program, plagued by development
errors and schedule delays, couldn't meet even recently lowered
performance requirements without a $1-billion infusion for redesign
work and cost overruns. Unwilling to go back to Congress since they
had previously made assurances they were canceling the controversial
contract, Air Force officials merely dipped into obscure Defense
Department (DOD) accounts that allow it to evade congressional
oversight. [...] These two little-known accounts -- called "M" and
"Merged Surplus funds -- currently add up to $50 billion on paper.
DOD's right to spend the money legally lasts indefinitely, though no
actual money has been set aside. All withdrawals add to the federal
deficit. In May Sen. William Roth (R-Del.) introduced a bill to limit
the size of such accounts [..] and prohibit cases like the
billion-dollar B-1 raid: An agency could no longer unilaterally
increase a contract's cost. [...] The accounts were set up decades ago
to enable agencies to pay claims and make late payments on contracts
[...] Since then, the account have largely been out of public -- and
congressional -- view. Rep. John Dingell (D - Mich.), an 18 term
member, says he knew nothing of the accounts until the Air Force used
them to pay for the B-1 overruns. [...]"
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*** "The EPA, in opposing the Indoor Air Quality Act currently
wending its way through the House and Senate, says it's already
addressing the growing problems of indoor air pollution, including
sick-building syndrome. [...but ] For years, EPA employees have
complained about poor ventilation in their Washington, D.C.,
headquarters. But during renovations in late 1987 and early 1988,
reports of headaches, irritated eyes and fatigue increased
dramatically [...] With urging from Congress, EPA Administrator
William Reilly has vowed to improve conditions that have `contributed
to the erosion of staff productivity and moral, and even threatened
the health and safety of our employees.' The agency is spending over a
million dollars of taxpayer money to clean the privately owned [by
Charles Bresler, former Maryland legislator] building's ventilation
system, [etc]..."
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Common Cause on PeaceNet:
nickjohnson@igc.org
Nicholas Johnson, P.O. Box 1876
Iowa City IA USA 52244
(319)337-5555
(Common Cause)
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