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Show Inside Today: Food Nation Deputies rescue 20 held hostage City attorney says cities will have to fund judicial system changes Page It's a fancy fare Page A4 B1 mi mill nil HI Defense better than fans think at Sundance Central Utah's Newspaper for 116 Years Tuesday, September 25, 1990 Sports C1 Page Page D1 50 Cents Issue No. 56, Provo, Utah IMIH Oemociralts trying to delay auto nnsi!if enonninn Mite WASHINGTON (AP) - Demo- cratic leaders were pressing an effort today to delay $85 billion in imminent spending cuts while the White House said it would rather "negotiate into the night" than accept a delay. White House spokesman Martin Fitzwater said the administration had not budged in its opposition to a stopgap plan to put off the spending cuts until Oct. 20 to give budget negotiators more breathing room. The plan is being pushed by House Speaker Thomas S. Foley, and other Democratic leaders. The White House has threatened a veto if Congress accepts the plan. The House Appropriations Committee planned to vote on the measure today, just six days before the Gramm-Rudma- n deficit-reductio- n law triggers the automatic cuts because of the yearlong budget stalemate between President Bush and Congress. "Our position has not changed with respect to a veto threat," Fitzwater said. He said the administration still hoped an agreement was within reach that could prevent cuts from taking place on Oct. 1, the start of the new fiscal year. called a "sequester" The cuts will take place unless the tarlaw gets of the Gramm-Rudma- n are modified or delayed and will reductions mean across-the-boaof up to 40 percent throughout the rd government. "We want to avoid a sequester. We are willing to negotiate into the night," Fitzwater said. He was asked about reports that one immediate impact of the spending cuts would be the cancellation beginning Monday of all U.S. commercial flights after 6 p.m. The flights would be cancelled because of sharp cutbacks in air traffic controllers and in evening operation of U.S. weather forecasting stations. "We're concerned about it, just like we're concerned about all the cuts," Fitzwater said. "But if you think this seems draconian. you ain't seen nothing yet. You're going dramatic, and to see a lot more difficult things to deal with than night flights." Negotiators from the two sides met in a back room of the Capitol until nearly 12:30 a.m. today, emerging to say they were still searching for a deal. "We're making progress in cut- - ting spending, but we're not qi'ite there," White House chief of staff John Sununu told reporters. The major sticking point to a n r, $500 billion deal has been over whether to slash the tax rate on capital gains, the profits from the sale of investdeficit-reductio- five-yea- ments. Rush says reduction the would boost the economy. Democrats, insisting the break would aid the wealthy, have refused to accept it without a compensating tax increase on upper-incom- e people. rate signals Shevardnadze says gulf on brink of recession likely GNP - The WASHINGTON (AP) economy grew at a barely perceptible 0.4 percent annual rate during the second quarter, an even worse performance than first thought, the government said today. Many analysts believe it is sliding into a recession. The Commerce Department's revised report on the gross national the total output of the product was nation's goods and services the lowest since an 0.3 percent rate was posted in the final quarter of 1989. It was a reminder of how precar- ious the economy was even before Iraq invaded Kuwait on Aug. 2, resulting in a dramatic increase in the price of oil. At the White House, presidential spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said the drop in economic growth "is certainly cause for concern." "It's not good news. The number "Obis very low," Fitzwater-said- . viously we are concerned about the economy and the growth rate." "We don't believe we are in a recession right now," he added. Since oil is used in producing so many consumer goods as well as for heating and transportation, any price increase not only slashes available funds needed to feed economic growth but also fuels inflation. Both of the department's two earlier estimates put economic growth at a lackluster 1.2 percent rate from April through June. The Percent change from previous quarter at annual rate 8 4 " 2 ' ' o -8- 7- -- 1S88- -- 198Q- -'-- Quarterly Source: U. S. Dept. of Commerce final revision AP was due to lower inventories and smaller exports than first thought. The GNP rose at a 1.7 percent annual rate in the first quarter, (See GNP, Page A2) Church leader stable after second surgery - Mor: SALT LAKE CITY (AP) mon Church President Ezra Taft Benson remained in serious but stable condition today following a second round of brain surgery in four days. 1 IDS Hospital spokeswoman Peggy Matlin said doctors upgraded Benson's condition the from critical to serious but stable condition Monday. "He's resting comfortably," church spokesman Don LeFevre said Monday. "He's conscious and showing signs of improvement." Benson was taken to the operating room Sunday after doctors discovered a reaccumulation of blood between his skull and the lining of his brain. Last Wednesday, a neurosurgeon drained two bilateral subdural hematomas from either side of Benson's brain and implanted drains to remove fluid. At that time, doctors said they were concerned additional clots could form. Benson was hospitalized a week ago today after complaining of severe headaches and difficulty swallowing. On Sunday, doctors drained fluid the from the left side of his head same side from which they had to remove a section of his skull last week to remove the larger cf the two clots. LeFevre said he did not know what symptoms led doctors to decide on the additional surgery. Neurosurgeon Dr. Bruce F. BENSON, Page A2) So-(S- By The Associated Press Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze said today that the Persian Gulf could be on the verge of war, and he hinted at the possibility of a U.N. military-operatio- n in the region. As Shevardnadze spoke on the second day of the 45th General Assembly, the U.N. Security Council prepared to vote on extending the naval embargo on Iraq to the air. The financial markets, meanwhile, reflected world pessimism over the possibilty of a settlement in the near future to the Persian Gulf crisis. Gold prices rose to $15 an ounce in Hong Kong, helped the New York Stock Exlow and change hit a had oil prices flirting with $40 a barrel. The General Assembly has become a forum for world leaders to vent their rage at Baghdad. In a speech prepared for delivery today, Shevardnadze referred to Aug. 2, the date of the invasion, as "Black Thursday." "Iraq flagrantly violated the United Nations Charter, the principles of international law, the universally recognized norms of morality and the standards of civilized behavior," the minister said in his prepared text. He hinted at the possibility of a U.N. military operation, noting that "the United Nations has the power to suppress 'acts of aggression.' " Up until the invasion, the Soviet Union was Iraq's strongest ally. But the Soviets have firmly sided effort to isolate with the U.S.-le- d and pressure the Baghdad government. "War may break out on the gulf region any day, any moment," Shevardnadze said. On Monday, French President t 1 VI ) If fj J !I si Sk -- w .w & - Assistant District Attorney Thomas Schiels said the suspect, Yuil Gary Morales, 19. was wearing the bloody clothing and had the suspected murder knife in his pocket when he was seized at his Queens home the day after the killing. Schiels spoke at the state Supreme Court arraignment Monday of Morales and seven others charged in the Sept. 2 robbery and murder of Brian Watkins, 22, of Provo, Utah. He said Morales gave oral, written and videotaped statements in which "he admitted he did the stabbing." Gerald McKelvey, a spokesman for the Manhattan district attorney, said the blood on Morales' clothing has not been tested to see whose it is. Acting Justice Herbert Adlerberg complied with Schiels' request and refused to set bail for the eight who are being held at the Rikers Island jail. He scheduled a status conference for Oct. 3 before Justice Edwin Torres. Watkins was si? in in the IND subway station at Seventh Avenue and 53rd Street after one of the robbers punched and kicked his mother. Mrs. Watkins had inter V i 'V A i 4 AP Laserphotu An ARAMCO security guard holds a machine gun as he keeps watch over oil pipelines at Has Tannura, Saudi Arabia. Security has been increased since an aborted terrorist attack. Francois Mitterrand issued a strong message to Iraq. "There is no compromise as long as Iraq does not comply with resolutions of the Security Council and withdraw from Kuwait. The sovereignty of that country is not negotiable," he told the assembly. But he also held out the possibility of peace. "If Iraq were to withdraw its troops and free the hostages, everything might be possible," Mitterrand said. Iraq is preventing several thousand Westerners from leaving Kuwait and Iraq. Mitterrand was suggesting that after an Iraqi pullout, other areas of discord in the Middle East could be discussed. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has said he will not consider abandoning Kuwait unless Israel leaves the Arab territories it has held since 1967. Although every foreign leader who spoke Monday joined Mitterrand in assailing Iraq, Saddam did not appear to be backing down. The French Foreign Minis- try said today that Iraqi soldiers have taken two new French nationals hostage in Kuwait and transported them to an unknown destination. There was little indication today of a breakthrough in Tehran, where Syrian President Hafez Assad, newly aligned with the West since the crisis broke out, has been tryingto get leaders to (See GULF, Page A2) lorbachev aHacks Solzhenitsyn's proposals - MOSCOW (AP) President Mikhail S. Gorbachev today rejected exiled writer Alexander Solzhenit-syn'- s recent proposals for replacing the Soviet Union with an state as disrespectful to other ethnic groups. In his first public remarks on Solzhenitsyn's suggestions, the Soviet leader said they were unacceptable and sharply conflicted with his own views on how to restructure relations between the 15 Soviet republics. "As a politician, his views on the future of our multinational state ic are unacceptable," Gorbachev told the Supreme Soviet legislature. "They are far from reality. ... These views have a destructive character." Gorbachev's remarks put him into a competition with Solzhenit-syn- , for the a Nobel laureate, hearts and minds of the Russian people and underscored the writer's increasing importance. In his article, which appeared Sept. 18 in the reformist newspaper Komsomolskay3 Pravda, Solzhenit-syn- , 71, called for spirituality over materialism and a unified Slavic nation. He criticized Gorbachev's reforms. Solzhenitsyn suggested forming a "Russian Union," which would include the republics of Russia, Byelorussia and the Ukraine. A large part of Kazakhstan would also be included. The other 12 Soviet republics, including the rest of Kazakhstan, have different cultures and should be allowed to secede, he said. It was the first piece he has written directly for the Russian people since he was exiled and stripped of his citizenship in 1974. Gorbachev said Solzhenitsyn's political views ar e "all in the past, the past Russia, the czarist monarchy." He responded to Solzhenitsyn's article at the request of a legislator from Kazakhstan, who objected to the call for Russians to take control of some of his republic's territory. The lawmaker, Erkegali said in an interview later that what Solzhenitsyn was proposing was a "Hitlerite, fascist approach" to ethnic relations. vened after a robber slashed her husband's pants with a box cutter and took $200 and some credit cards from him. The family, in town to attend the in U.S. Open tennis tournament Queens, had attended the tennis matches in the afternoon and were on their way to Tavern on the Green in Central Park for dinner when the robbery occurred around 10:15 p.m. Schiels said Morales, whose street name is Rocstar, said the group robbed the family to get money to go dancing at a Manhattan disco. The prosecutor said the murder butterfly weapon, a double-blade- d knife, was found a day after the - murder in the pocket, of bloodied clothing Morales allegedly wore during the attack on the Watkins. Schiels also told Adlerberg that Morales organized the robbery and showed others in the group the knife before the alleged mugging. It is important for the prosecutor to show the others knew about the knife if he intends to show they "acted in concert" in Watkins death. Joel Lutwin. Morales' lawyer, said outside the courtroom. "This case is going to try the City of New York. It's going to try the city because we're going to see if we can get a fair and just trial despite the fact that my client has already (See SLAIN. Page A2 Rakh-madie- w?,yj!w,",'t Trrrf """" Suspect in Watkins slaying had blood on clbfhes NEW YORK (AP) Human blood was found on the clothing of a man accused of stabbing a Utah tourist to death during a subway robbery three weeks ago, a prosecutor told a Manhattan judge. s Find it Arts Entertainment Classified Ads Weather B8 D4-D- 8 Comics B7 Crossword Horoscope Iegal Notices Lifestyle D7 C5 D4 C5 Movies B8 National Obituaries A4 B2 Opinion Sports B6 D1-D- 3 State B3 Stocks.. TV Schedule World B8 To enjoy the convenience of Daily Herald home delivery, call A7 A3 375-510- 3 - Variable clouds tonight and through Wednesday, coupled with gusty afternoon winds. Slight chance of showers on Wednesday, and daytime highs will be near 80. See Page A5. Air Quality Today's air quality was good all areas of the Wasatch Front, with a slight increase in pollution levels expected. See Page A2. in - |