Common Cause Magazine articles from July 1 1991

Common Cause Magazine archives from July 1 1991

Books for spies. (National Intelligence Book Center, Washington, D.C.)
July 1, 1991... It may sound like a strange place to take the pulse of the U.S. intelligence community -- but then again, this isn't your usual bookstore. Visitors are buzzed into the National Intelligence Book Center, located on K Street in northwest...

Check, please. (income tax $1 campaign checkoff)
July 1, 1991... This year, for the first time, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) is launching an effort to educate taxpayers -- and tax prepayers -- about the $1 checkoff on federal tax forms, which directs money to a presidential election campaign fund....

Cleaning up disinfectants. (dioxin in household cleaning liquids)
July 1, 1991... The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is looking into allegations that the manufacturer of a popular household disinfectant concealed evidence that the solution contained trace amounts of dioxin, an industrial contaminant believed to pose...

The debtor class. (longterm presidential campaign debts)
July 1, 1991... Buried in the files at the Federal Election Commission (FEC) is a quiet warning to firms and individuals who do business with presidential campaigns: Ask for payment in advance. Big debts and angry creditors are the legacy of many a failed...

Busy, busy. (House Committee on the District of Columbia spending)
July 1, 1991... It was quiet year at the House Committee on the District of Columbia. In 1990 the panel reported out five bills and held oversight hearings on four days. To do this it employed a staff of 40 on a payroll of $2.2 million, outspending...

Operation urban storm: a new generation of activists is fighting to bring back the cities.
July 1, 1991... A NEW GENERATION OF ACTIVISTS IS FIGHTING TO BRING BACK THE CITIES. The man makes it sound so simple. "My career goal has always been to manage a city of 100,000.... It was appealing in the sense that it has problems. It needed a...

The fight to know. (requests for Freedom of Information Act documents often delayed)
July 1, 1991... The feds know more than the rest of us. And they like it that way. In 1987 the Reagan administration came to Congress with an urgent problem: Japanese scientists were exploiting the Freedom of Information Act to snare American space...

See no evil: what scandal lurks as Congress looks the other way? (lax oversight committees)
July 1, 1991... What scandal lurks as Congress looks the other way? It looks as if veteran congressional investigator Thomas Trimboli got fired for doing his job a little too well. Trimboli, who played a key role in uncovering the Wedtech...

Why workers can't win: the government is supposed to guarantee workers a fair shake. But it's fallen down on the job.
July 1, 1991... Arvin Industries wasn't a perfect place to work. During the past few years management had been driving workers hard and watching them closely. Bathroom breaks were timed, that sort of thing. And the heat. "The heat in there was...

Gator trade: U.S. agents penetrate the netherworld of illegal animal poaching.
July 1, 1991... Meet Charles Strickland -- alligator poacher, reptile tanner and all-purpose journeyman hoodlum. Also known as Dave Hayes, a small-time New Orleans gangster with an apartment in the French Quarter and an oil-leasing business that launders...

House passes landmark civil rights bill; battle moves to the Senate.
July 1, 1991... On June 5 the U.S. House of Representatives voted 273-158 for passage of a key civil rights bill. The legislation was designed to restore the scope and effectiveness of civil rights protections against employment discrimination undermined by...

After Senate victory campaign finance battle shifts to House of Representatives - and White House. (includes related article on difference in distribution of funds between congressional incumbents and challengers)
July 1, 1991... As you receive this issue, the House of Representatives is expected to act soon on campaign finance reform legislation. Please call or wire your Representative today. Urge him or her to support strong, effective reform to end the campaign...