University of South Carolina Libraries
i Police investigating White House gunman by Ron Fournier Associated Press WASHINGTON — Police are trying to determine why a former Internal Revenue Service employee with a history of mental illness fired several shots outside the White House in a midday drama that is raising questions about security at the president’s home. The man, identified by law enforcement sources as Robert W. Pickett, 47, of Evansville, Ind., was shot in the leg Wednesday by a member of the Secret Service after waving his gun at police and terrified tourists just outside the wrought-iron fence that borders the scenic South Lawn. He also put the barrel of the weapon in his mouth, US. Park Police spokesman Rob MacLean said. George Washington University Hospital said in a statement Thursday that Pickett’s condition was “good.” His dischaige date “will be determined by the treating physician and his rate of recovery,” the statement said. One police official said Pickett might have been trying to force officers to shoot. “From my experience, this was a suicide-by-cop attempt,” Derrick Johnson, a District of Columbia police negotiator who had tried to calm Pickett, told The Washington Post. Pickett, an accountant, was fired by the IRS in the mid-1980s, and neighbors said he resented the agency. He lived by himself, and acknowledged in court records that he suffered from mental illness and tried to commit suicide after his dismissal. “I think he meant to hurt himself,” Joseph Yocum, the Evansville lawyer who represented Pickett when he lost his IRS job, said Thursday. Yocum, appearing on CBS-TV’s The Early Show, said his former client was “very disturbed. I think that, for want of a better way of putting it, he was up set more than most people would be, although most people would be upset, over losing his job.” Just last week, Pickett sent an angry letter to the IRS commissioner, contending the U.S. government had destroyed his life and suggesting he expected to die soon. “My death is on your hands,” the letter said. “I have been a victim of corrupt government. ” President Bush was listed among those sent copies of the letter, which was also sent to The Cincinnati Enquirer and The Evansville (Ind.) Courier & Press. It wasn’t known whether the president received it. On Jan. 19, a day before Bush’s inauguration, a federal magistrate in College Press Exchange A U.S. Secret Service officer holds his machine gun on the North Lawn of the White House as officers move to secure the grounds. Cincinnati said he would he would consider a motion by the IRS to dismiss Pickett’s one remaining suit against the IRS, The New York Times reported. The magistrate gave Pickett 30 days to respond. Authorities said Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were inside the White House at the time of the shooting, but were never in danger. First lady Laura Bush was in Texas. Bush submits tax-cut plan to Congress ■ Bill would cut $1.6 trillion over 10 years by Scott Lindlaw Associated Press WASHINGTON — President Bush sent his $1.6 trillion, 10-year tax-cutting proposal to Congress on Thursday, insisting it is a necessary tonic for the economy. “A warning light is flashing on the dashboard of our economy, and we just can’t drive on and hope for the best,” he said. ' “'Wfe need tax relief now. In fact, we need tax relief yesterday,” the president said before dispatching Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill to the Capitol to deliver the plan to eager Republican leaders. Before a room full of reporters at the Capitol, O’Neill handed a summary of the plan to GOP leaders, who accepted it with glee. The documents were little more than a press release, and O’Neill said the administration would be releasing details in coming weeics. “We want to assure the American people that tax relief is on the way,” said Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss. Bush spoke from the White House Rose Garden, where Latino business owners he said symbolized the economy’s potential crowded around as he signed a letter formally sending the outlines of his proposal to Congress. “I uige the Congress to pass my tax relief plan with the swiftness these uncertain times demand,” Bush said. Republican leaders have said they hope to have tax cuts signed into law by the July 4 holiday, but a fight over the scope of the package is brewing I on Capitol Hill. White House press secretary Ari Fleischer reiterated Thursday that Bush is “firmly committed” to the plan he put together. “The president believes that whether you’re a Republican or whether you’re a Democrat, the bill shouldn't be loaded up,” Fleischer said. It was the president’s first event in the Rose Garden, and Bush appeared swept up by the moment, struggling for the right words to pay tribute to the small, green patch just outside the Oval Office: “such a beautiful, beautiful part of our national — our national — really our national park system, I guess you would want to call it.” The plan closely mirrors the cuts that Bush made the centerpiece of his presidential campaign, including reducing income-tax rates, easing the marriage penalty, phasing out the estate tax and boosting tax breaks for charitable contributions. Bush has devoted his third week in office to cajoling skeptical Democrats into supporting the tax cuts. They say the measure is . weighted far too heavily toward the rich, who pay most of tlje taxes. But, reflecting the tax cut’s political momentum, Democrats who last year were supporting 10-year tax cuts of roughly $300 billion now say cuts of three times that size are justified. They hope to issue their own alternative soon. To pressure the lawmakers, Bush also has staged a series of events with “regular folks” meant to build public support. The White House argues that the average tax cut for a family of four would be $ 1,600 a year under Bush’s plan. Several Democrats interviewed after the White House session said they were unswayed by Bush’s pitch. ' I News Briefs ■ Sharon rejects demand to resume Mideast peace talks JERUSALEM — Prime Minister elect Ariel Sharon rejects a key , Palestinian demand that peace talks resume at the point they stopped under Israel’s previous government, a senior Sharon adviser said Thursday. Sharon doesn’t feel bound by the concessions that predecessor Ehud Barak made to the Palestinians, said the adviser, Zalman Shoval, a former Israeli ambassador to the United States. “There were offers by the previ ous government. All that was said, ei ther verbally or as ideas, does not com mit Israel or any government,” Shoval said a day after the Palestinian Cabinet affirmed the demand for continuity in the talks. ■ White House to retain offices on AIDS, race WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House offices on AIDS policy and race relations created by President Clinton will continue under President Bush, though with what advocacy groups contend will be less influence and responsibility. The White House backed away Wednesday front a remark by a top White House official taken to mean that Bush was abolishing the Office of National AIDS Policy and the Office of the President’s Initiative for One America. “They’re not being closed,” said Margaret LaMontagne, Bush’s domestic policy chief. As for policies regarding race or AIDS, “They’ll be treated the same as any other policy. . They will have the same access to the president,” she said. Advocacy groups had a different take: dispersing the offices’ duties within the White House actually is tantamount to a closure. • ■ Atlantis lifts off with ‘heart and soul’ of space station CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Space shuttle Atlantis and its cargo, a bilhon-dollar science laboratory, chased after the international spaed station early Thursday following a spectacular sunset launch. “We wish you luck as you deliver the heart and soul of the international space station — and have fun,” launch director Mike Leinbach told Atlantis’ ■ five astronauts. The setting sun and a rising full moon made for a dramatic send-off Wednesday for NASA’s $1.4 billion Destiny laboratory module, the most expensive piece of the space station. Atlantis’ exhaust trail was transformed into a beautiful gold and peach and cast a rainbow-like shadow that seemed to stretch all the way to the moon. you know that little voice inside that says "I can’t"? this summer, [crush Bring your “can-do" attitude to Camp Challenge. Where you'll get paid to learn how to become a leader and acquire skills that'll help you meet the challenges you’ll face in your \ career. Apply today at the Army ROTC department, with no obligation. Before that voice tells you to take a vacation. ARMY ROIC Unlike any other college course you can take. Contact Major Tony Barber, Legare College on the Horseshoe 777-3639 Southeastern Fertility Center has helped many couples achieve pregnancy since 1983. We are in need of Egg Donors to continue to help infertile women. -Young healthy women between 21 - 32 -Requires a month of your time -Compensation is $2000 Join the NATIONAL PARK SERVICE Firefighting Team for CAREER ADVENTURES In the most Beautiful and Unique Places in America Permanent Seasonal Forestry Techs GIS Specialists Firefighters Ecologists (Fire) Engine Crews Wildland Specialists Prevention Education Specialists www.nps.gov/fire/jobs 1-866-NPS-FIRE National Park Service is an Equal Opportunity Employer