• Moderates: Drop The Plank
• Would Ridge Help Dole At Home?
• No Random Testing
• No Nukes
• Helms' Senate Race Tightens

Moderates: Drop The Plank

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, July 25) -- Pro-choice Republicans assembled on the Supreme Court steps, declaring their party's pro-life plank "does not reflect the majority view of Republicans and certainly doesn't represent the views of a majority of Americans." They praised their likely presidential candidate Bob Dole, but said he should lead the charge to tank the plank. On hand were senators Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Jim Jeffords (R-VT). Representatives attending were Reps. Nancy Johnson (R-Conn.), Dick Zimmer (R-NJ), Brian Bilbray (R-Calif.) and Peter Torkildsen (R-Mass.), and Tom Campbell (R-Calif). Greenwood called the plank irrelevant since "a majority of registered Republicans are pro-choice."

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Would Ridge Help Dole At Home?

HARRISBURG (AllPolitics, July 25) -- A new poll of Pennsylvania voters shows that Gov. Tom Ridge might not help Dole win his state's 23 electoral votes. Although 19 percent of respondents were more likely to vote for a ticket with Ridge on board, 19 percent were less likely, and 57 percent said the governor wouldn't affect their decision. The poll also showed President Bill Clinton strengthening his Pennsylvania lead over Dole, 56 to 32 percent. The Keystone statewide poll, conducted last Friday through Monday, surveyed 500 voters.

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No Random Testing

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, July 25) -- Drug testing of two Clinton Administration employees who worked in the Old Executive Office Building (adjacent to the White House) was a violation of those workers' Constitutional rights, ruled U.S. District Judge Charles Richey. He said economists Arthur Stigile and Ellen Balis, named in the case, and other employees have a right against unreasonable searches unless they have access to classified materials or hold safety-sensitive jobs, such as carrying a gun or operating a train. Workers in the Old Executive Office Building are close enough to gain sensitive information about the White House and the president, but so are interns and reporters who are not subject to drug testing, said Richey. The case is unrelated to the flap over 21 administration employees who used cocaine and hallucinogens before being hired, but grew out of a Reagan mandate for agencies to set up anti-drug strategies.

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No Nukes

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, July 25) -- A rare but powerful alliance emerged in Congress, with budget-cutters and environmentalists teaming up to kill an expensive Clinton-backed nuclear energy project. The House will vote today on Rep. David Obey's (D-Wis.) motion to end funding for the advanced light water reactor, a program exploring ways to produce safe nuclear energy. The project, which was set to receive $17 million next year, has already cost $300 million over the past five years. The funding for the reactor is part of the $19.4 billion water and energy projects bill, which President Bill Clinton has threatened to veto because it cuts energy research spending.

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Helms' Senate Race Tightens

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, July 25) -- A new poll of North Carolina voters shows Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.) still in the lead, but Democratic challenger Harvey Gantt is closing the gap. The Mason-Dixon poll shows 48 percent support Helms while 42 percent back Gantt, with 10 percent undecided. Support is up only two points for Helms while Gantt's standing improved four points since a similar poll in May. Last week's poll surveyed 812 voters statewide and has a margin of error +/- 3.5 percentage points.