Between The Lines Archive
For The Week Ending Dec. 29, 2000

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THIS WEEK'S PROGRAM LISTEN to this week's half-hour program of Between The Lines by clicking here or any of the individual interview segments below (All in RealAudio, needs RealPlayer 7 or 8.) This week we present Between The Lines' summary of under-reported news stories and: Prospects Dim for Breakthrough in New Israeli-Palestinian Peace Talks Interview by Scott Harris. After three months of violence and more than 330 Palestinians killed in the latest "Intifada," or uprising, representatives of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak and Yasir Arafat are set to renew peace talks. Expectations for the dialogue are low as the conflict continues and Palestinian officials charge the Israeli military with carrying out at least 10 recent assassinations against leaders of Arafat's Fatah party. The negotiations also take place against a backdrop of political uncertainty as Israel prepares for elections in February, after Barak resigned his post as prime minister. Barak, who is fighting for his political life, will likely face the conservative Likud party's Ariel Sharon after former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu bowed out of the race when he failed to win support for new parliamentary elections. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Phyllis Bennis, author and fellow with the Institute for Policy Studies, who examines the prospects for success in the next round of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations. Contact the Institute for Policy Studies by calling (202) 234-9382 or visit their Web site at www.ips-dc.org Human Rights Attorney Assesses Lasting Impact of 'Stolen Election' With absentee ballots, vote tally shows Al Gore beat George W. Bush by 500,000 votes Interview by Scott Harris. The U.S. Supreme Court's narrow 5 to 4 decision that stopped the counting of votes in Florida also handed the presidency to George W. Bush. With the court divided along much the same ideological lines as the rest of the country, media commentators and many politicians, including Vice President Al Gore, were quick to call for reconciliation and bipartisanship. But the man taking the oath of office in January will only be the fourth president in U.S. history to achieve power by winning the colonial-era Electoral College while losing the national popular vote. With absentee ballots added to the total now nearly tabulated around the country, press reports estimate that Al Gore beat Mr. Bush by more than 500,000 votes. Meanwhile, news organizations are preparing to count the votes in Florida that the U.S. Supreme Court effectively suppressed -- and the nation may soon know which candidate was the actual victor in that critical state. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Michael Ratner, an attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights, who looks at the lasting impact of the five week post-election dispute. Contact the Center for Constitutional Rights.by calling (212) 614-6464 or visit Ratner's Web site at: www.mratner.com Related articles: "Election Anger Fuels Protesters"Washington Post, Dec. 21, 2000, by David Montgomery and Arthur Santana From Vietnam to Florida's Disenfranchisement of Black Voters: Unheroic Moments in Secretary of State Nominee Colin Powell's Career Interview by Scott Harris With fanfare usually reserved for celebrities and rock stars, General Colin Powell burst onto the political stage as the nation's first African American chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a central figure in some of America's most recent military interventions. Just days after the five-week election dispute was settled by a Supreme Court-ordered halt to the vote count, President elect George W. Bush nominated Powell for Secretary of State. In a career stretching back to the Vietnam era, the retired four-star general oversaw U.S. combat missions in both Panama and the Persian Gulf War. During the Reagan administration, where he served as national security advisor, Powell also played a peripheral role in the Iran-Contra scandal when his sworn testimony was challenged for inconsistencies by special prosecutor Lawrence Walsh. In a speech accepting his nomination, Powell promised "re-energized" sanctions against his old nemesis, Iraq and pledged to build an anti-ballistic missile defense system opposed by Russia and many U.S. allies. Between The Lines' Scott Harris spoke with Robert Parry, award-winning investigative journalist, who assesses General Colin Powell's career and forecasts the assistance Bush will need in formulating his administration's foreign policy initiatives. Robert Parry is editor of Consortium News. Contact the online publication by visiting their Web site at www.consortiumnews.com Related articles: Behind Powell's Legend, Part One, by Robert Parry and Norman Solomon, Consortiumnews.com, Dec. 17, 2000 Behind Powell's Legend, Part Two, by Robert Parry and Norman Solomon, Consortiumnews.com, Dec. 19, 2000 Behind Powell's Legend, Part Three, by Robert Parry and Norman Solomon, Consortiumnews.com, Dec. 22, 2000 This week's summary of under-reported news Compiled by Bob Nixon Australia reluctant to give up Timor Gap oil reserve despite United Nation's efforts to grant newly independent East Timor upwards of 90 percent of oil revenue. (Economist, Dec. 2, 2000) Right-wing activists mobilizing to stop international agreements on family planning, women's rights and gay rights. (Mojo Newswire, Nov. 21, 2000) Housing advocates blame Clinton administration for loss of over 1.5 million low-income housing units. (In These Times, Nov. 13, 2000)

... MORE ... Inauguration Week Teach-Ins, Protests Inaugurauction.org National Organization for Women (www.NOW.org) Independent Progressive Politics Network (www.ippn.org) International Action Center (www.iacenter.org) Stop the Death Machine: Free Mumia Abu-Jamal (www.mumia2000.org) Trust The People (www.countercoup.org) www.votermarch.org - Working for Voter Rights Between The Lines/WPKN Election Crisis Archive: "Law Professor Calls Electoral College a Relic of Slave Era" "Racial Discrimination Against Florida Voters Unexamined in Election Controversy" "GOP Injection of Anger, Resentment into Election Politics Dangerous" "Civil Rights Groups Continue to Investigate Racial Voter Intimidation in Florida Election" Resources "Now It's Unofficial: Gore Did Win Florida" Observer of London, Dec. 24, 2000, by Ed Vulliamy "Election Anger Fuels Protesters"Washington Post, Dec. 21, 2000, by David Montgomery and Arthur Santana "A Dark Cloud", by Robert Parry, Consortiumnews.com, Dec. 10, 2000 "Electoral College Unfair from Day One" New York Times, Nov. 9, 2000. NYT online subscribers Click here. "If the Vote Were Flawless..." Miami Herald, Dec. 3, 2000 "Fla. Spoilage Likelier for Blacks," Washington Post, Dec. 3. 2000 "57 Red Flags: Proof Bush Never Won Popular Vote in Florida"(Accessible via Internet Explorer, America Online) "Black Leaders Sue to Overturn Election", by Scott Gold, Los Angeles Times, Dec. 6, 2000."

 

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