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Caspar Weinberger; Cabinet officer for Nixon, Reagan, dead at 88 Elizabeth White THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — Caspar W. Weinberger, who oversaw the Pentagon’s biggest peacetime spending increase as President Reagan’s defense secretary and later was indicted for his role in the Iran-Contra affair, died Tuesday. He was 88. Weinberger had been hospitalized in Bangor, Maine, with a high fever and pneumonia brought on by his age, according to his son, Caspar Weinberger Jr. President Bush called him “an American statesman and a dedicated public servant” who strengthened the military and helped end the Cold War. “This good man made many contributions to our nation,” the president said in a statement. Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld said, “He left the U.S. armed forces stronger, our country safer and the world more free.” Weinberger served as President Nixon’s budget director and was given the nickname “Cap the Knife” for his efforts to slash government spending. Yet Weinberger’s best known role may have been as Reagan’s defense secretary, when the classic cold warrior presided over a cumulative $2 trillion in military spending. Determined to ensure U.S. strategic strength to counter the Soviet Union, Weinberger pushed Congress to fund such programs as the Strategic Defense Initiative, Midgetman and MX missiles, B-1B bombers and stealth aircraft. But it was also during this time that reports surfaced of excesses at the Pentagon, from $600 toilet seats to $400 hammers. Cartoonists had a field day portraying Weinberger with toilet seats around his neck. In a Feb. 10, 1986, interview with The Washington Post, Reagan defended his defense secretary. “That’s the same price that TWA and Delta and United pay. It is a molded cover for the entire toilet system. And, yes, it does cost about that much.” Supporters contended the defense buildup helped cause the collapse of the Soviet Union. “His legacy is a strong and free America, and for this and for a lifetime of selfless service, a grateful nation thanks him,” former first lady Nancy Reagan said Tuesday. A lifelong Republican, Weinberger’s early interest in politics and government — sparked by his father, a lav/yer — led him to the Pentagon and White House. But his work also led to a trouble — federal felony charges stemming from his alleged role in the sale of weapons to Iran to finance secret, illegal aid to the The “arms-for-hostages” affair poisoned the closing years of Reagan’s administration and permanently stained the reputations of the insiders involved. In one of the first President Bush’s final official acts after his 1992 loss to Bill Clinton, he granted Christmas Eve pardons to Weinberger and five others accused in the affair. Bush was Reagan’s vice president. Weinberger, 75 at the time, had been scheduled to stand trial in less than two weeks on charges that he concealed thousands of pages of his handwritten notes from congressional investigators and prosecutors. He’d earlier rejected independent counsel Lawrence Walsh’s plea bargain offer to testify against his longtime friends and colleagues — including Reagan — and plead guilty to a misdemeanor. Weinberger had said he was innocent of all the charges and considered the indictment a political attack. After,, the pardon was announced, Walsh alleged that “the Iran-Contra cover . up, which has continued for more than six years, has now been completed.” Weinberger’s son said Tuesday, “My father was just a world diplomat, a No. 1 great American patriot. He always stayed the course. He always had beliefs, he held to those beliefs.” In 1989, Weinberger, a self-described “frustrated newspaperman” — he was president of the Harvard Crimson — joined Forbes to become the magazine’s fourth publisher. In 1993 he was named chairman of Forbes Inc. Weinberger occasionally spoke out on current affairs in recent years. In 1996, he criticized then-Defense Secretary William J. Perry for refusing to announce publicly that the U.S. would defend Taiwan if China fired missiles at the island. He told a Nebraska group in 1999 that despite victories in the Cold War and Gulf War, the United States still faced threats “Peace alone is not enough. Peace can even mean slavery sometimes. Peace and freedom is what we have to have,” Weinberger said. In 1983, he argued that a force of U.S. Marines stationed at Beirut’s 11 1 dlipUlL Wd5 LUU Mlldil <I11U lightly armed, calling them a “disaster waiting to happen.” On Oct. 22, 1983, 241 Marines and sailors were killed in attacks on the barracks. In an interview with PBS’ “Frontline” in 'late September 2001, Weinberger said, “The fact that I had beeji warning against this very thing didn’t give me any slight satisfaction, I can assure of that. It was terrible to be proven right under such horrible circumstances.” SCHOLARS • COnunUED FROm I USC,” Johnson said. Kent credits his success in the competition to the USC Goldwater committee and his application adviser. “The USC Goldwater committee and my application adviser, Dr. Leslie Jones, have a lot of experience with the process and did an excellent job of helping focus my application on the important points of my qualifications,” Kent said. “The recognition of three USC students by the Goldwater Foundation is a tangible manifestation that the university if providing an excellent education to outstanding students in mathematics, the sciences and engineering,” said Mark Becker, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. Since 1990, 30 USC students have been named Goldwater Scholars. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecockneuis@gwm. sc. edu ...... p UNIVERSITY OF SOUIH(mOUNA. CAMPUS RECREATION Summer 2006 Student Membership Fee Schedule . Strom Thurmond Wellness and Fitness Center Students enrolled in Maymester or Summer I are eligible to use the facility May 8-July 2. Students enrolled in Summer II are eligible to use the facility July 3-August 18. USC-Columbia students who are enrolled in the 2006 Spring semester and pre-enrolled in the 2006 Fall Semester, but are not taking summer classes, may purchase a summer membership per the following fee schedule. Maymester/Summer I Summer II Summer Member May 8-July 2, 2006 $44 July 3-Aug 1 8, 2006 $36 May 8-Aug 1 8, 2006 $80 Membership fees may be paid at the Strom Thurmond Wellness & Fitness Center’s Business Office located on the third floor during regular office hours. Cash and checks made payable to USC are accepted. Please contact 803-576-9375 or visit http://campusrec.sc.edu * should-you have further questions. 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