Miscellanous Facts & History

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Mexican Party Accused of Vote Fraud - July 1986
Voting in the Mexican state of Chihuahua was followed by acrimony as leaders of the nation's principal opposition party charged that the ruling party had stolen the election. The Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) had not lost a national or state election since 1929. However, in state elections held July 6, the PRI was strongly challenged for the governorship of Chihuahua by the National Action Party (PAN). While final results were awaited, PAN supporters demonstrated in the streets and charged that widespread fraud had occurred. Roman Catholic clergy denounced the apparent electoral fraud, as did independent observers. The state election committee announced, July 14, that PRI had won a nearly 2-1 victory in the governorship contest. Critics of the Mexican regime saw the outcome as further evidence of serious corruption in the government of Mexico.

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Ex-CIA Agent Gets Soviet Asylum - August 1986
The Soviet press agency Tass reported, August 7, that a former agent of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency had been granted political asylum in the Soviet Union. The ex-agent, Edward Howard, had been identified as a Soviet agent by Vitaly Yurchenko in 1985. The latter, who had apparently defected to the United States, subsequently returned to the USSR. Howard, who had been trained trained by the CIA for a mission in Moscow, was dismissed from the agency in 1983 after failing a lie-detector test. After getting Yurchenko's information, the Federal Bureau of Investigation put Howard under surveillance, but he then disappeared and his whereabouts were unknown until the Tass announcement.

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Reagan Backs Pentagon Reform - April 1986
President Ronald Reagan embraced the major proposals of his commission on defense management, which on February 28 had recommended changes in the leadership of the defense establishment. Reagan, April 2, asked Congress to approve the commission's call for a stronger role for the chairman of the Joints Chiefs of Staff and for the creation of an undersecretary of defense for acquisition. These and other proposed changes were the outgrowth of the commission's conclusion that "with notable exceptions, weapons system take too long and cost too much to produce. Too often, they do not perform as promised or expected." In his projected new role, the chairman of the joint chiefs would offer his own views to the president, rather than the consensus of the chiefs of the individual services. The chiefs had sometimes been criticized for supporting consensus proposals that assured a balance number of major weapons systems for each service without primary regard to their relative merit. The new undersecretary would oversee all aspects of procurement. The president, April 2, implemented some other commission recommendations by executive order.

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Bears Defeat Patriots in Super Bowl - January 26, 1986
The Chicago Bears won their first Super Bowl championship by defeating the New England Patriots 46-10 at the Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the first NFL championship since they defeated the New York Giants for the 1963 title. The victory was the most decisive in Super Bowl history. The Bears' defensesive lineman Richard Dent was chosen the game's most valuable player.

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Inflation Rate Remains Low - October 1985
The announcement of continuing stability in comsumer prices was the best economic news reported in the second half of October. The Federal Reserve Board reported, October 16, industrial production fell a seasonally adjusted 0.1 percent in September; in the past 12 months it had risen only 1.1 percent. Adjusted for inflation, the nation's gross national product rose at a 3.3 percent annual rate in the third quarter, the Commerce Department announced, October 17. The department said, October 18, that personal income rose 0.3 percent, or $10B, in September. The advance in the consumer price index reamined small; the Labor Department reported, October 23, that it had risen 0.2 percent in September and was advancing at an annual rate of only 3.2 percent through the first 9 months. The 1986 adjustment in social security benefits, based on the consumer price of July through September as compared with a year earlier. would be only 3.1 percent, the lowest increase since annual adjustments were started in 1972. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, picking up steam as the year near its end, hit an all-time high of 1,375.57 on October 30. The U.S. deficit on merchandise trade with other countries set a new monthly record in September of $15.5B, the Commerce Department announced, October 31.

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Chrysler Strike Settled Quickly - October 1985
A strike in October by United Automobile Workers in Canada and the United States against the Chrysler Corporation ended after a few days. Some 70,000 U.S. workers and 10,000 in Canada walked out, October 16th. Negotiations on a new contract had been under way for 2 months. The Canadian strike was settled, October 20, and ratified by the membership, October 21. The new contract restored wage parity with workers at General Motors and Ford; wage concessions had been granted to Chrysler in the late 1970s and early 1980s to help the company avert bankruptcy. Parity was also the principal issue in the United States, where an agreement reached October 23 provided for wage parity. U.S. workers, who ratified the agreement. October 27, received wage increases and a lump-sum bonus in the 2 to 3 percent range through 1987.

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British Royal Couple in U.S. - November 1985
Great Britain's prince and princess of Wales, Charles and Diana, visited Australia and the United States from October 27 to November 13. In Australia, the participated in the 150th anniversary celebration of the state of Victoria. After a stopover in Hawaii on November 8 and 9, the couple flew to Washington, D.C., where the attend a White House dinner in their honor, November 9. On November 10, they saw the National Gallery of Art's exhibition, "Treasure Houses of Britain," and on November 11, they visited a British promotion at the department store in Virginia. Charles played polo during the couple's visit in Palm Springs, November 12. They flew back to England, November 13.

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South Africa Ends State of Emergency - March 1986
The state of emergency that the South African government had imposed on many black areas in July 1985 was lifted in March by the white government of South Africa. Pres. Pieter Botha, speaking in Parliament, March 4, said he would end the emergency because violence in the areas had eased, although it appeared that the daily death toll has risen in recent months. Botha also said, March 4, that South Africa was prepared to implement an U.N. plan for the independence of Namibia, or South-West Africa, a territory controlled by South Africa over U.N. objections. The state of emergency was ended, March 7, and the last of nearly 8,000 persons detained under the decree were freed.

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Paley Back on Top in CBS Shakeup - September 1986
Long-festering tensions at CBS culminated in a major corporate reshuffle. CBS had suffered financial losses in fighting off an unwelcome takeover bid in 1985. Popularity of CBS programs had declined, and the news division had been angered by the decision to cancel the "CBS Morning News" program. CBS had announced, July 2, that it would lay off 700 employees. Thomas Wyman, the chairman and chief executive, resigned, September 10, William S. Paley, the founder of CBS, was named acting chairman and Laurence Tisch, the company's biggest stockholder, was named acting chief executive. Van Gordon Sauter, president of CBS News, resigned, September 11.

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Racketeering's High Cost Assessed - April 1986
The President's Commission on Organized Crime said, April 1, that organized crime took in revenues of $41.6B to $106B annually. The commission, in its third and final report, said that racketeers cost the country about $6.5B a year in lost tax revenues. In "The Impact of Organized Crime Today," the commission drew figures from an analysis prepared by Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates, Inc. Other data showed that organized crime caused a loss of 414,000 jobs and lifted consumer prices by 0.3 percent. The commission noted that at least 4 motorcycles gangs had become organized crime groups, and that at least 5 ethnic secret societies flourishing in prisons had followed the same path. It urged states to emulate the federal government in permitting electronic surveillance, granting immunity for witnesses and requiring the surrender of income from criminal endeavors. Nine of the commission's 18 members criticized the commission's reports (2 had been released in March), asserting that important issues had been left unexamined because of inept management.

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Martin Luther King Holiday Observed - January 1986
On January 20, for the first time, the United states officially observe Martin Luther King Day. Events honoring the memory of the slain civil-rights leader began several days earlier. On January 15, his actual birthday, Pres. Ronald Reagan spoke to children at the Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School in Washington, D.C. On January 16, King's bust was unveiled in the Great Rotunda of the Capitol in Washington; he was the first black to be represented among the many leaders whose statues and busts appeared in the Rotunda. Reagan met with Mrs. Coretta Scott King at the White House, January 17. On January 18, he spoke out against affirmative action quotas in hiring, recalling King's plea that people be judged "not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." On January 20, Mrs. King led a march through Atlanta, her husband's home town. Although most businesses across the nation did not close on the holiday, it was more widely observed by state and local governments and by school districts.

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Bush Visits China - October 1985
Vice Pres. George Bush, October 18, completed a 6-day visit to China, during which he met with the country's top leaders and sought to assure them of continued U.S. support of their economic reforms. He told the Chinese that the United States and other industrial nations would step up their exports of high-technology products to China. Premier Zhao Ziyang told Bush that continued close U.S. ties with Taiwan were "not satisfactory." Zhao also criticized a textile bill before Congress that could adversely affect Chinese exports to the United States.

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Economy Picks Up Steam - October 1986
Economic growth improved in the second quarter, the government reported in October. The nation's unemployment rate edged upward 0.2 percent in September to 6.9 percent, the Labor Department reported, October 3. The department, said, October 10, that the index of prices paid by producers for finished goods rose 0.4 percent in September. The Commerce Department reported, October 15, that retail sales has risen 4.6 percent in September, the sharpest one-month jump in the nearly 20 years that records had been kept. The department said, October 22, that the economy had grown at an annual rate of 2.4 percent during the second quarter, a big improvement from the first quarter. Inflation rose 0.3 percent in September, the department reported, October 23. The cumulative increase in the cost of living in the 12 months ended in September triggered a 1.3 percent increase in Social Security benefits. The Commerce Department reported, October 30, that the nation's trade deficit narrowed for the second straight month in September, to $12.56B. The department said, October 31, that the index of leading economic indicators rose 0.4 percent in September.

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Congress OKs $576B in Spending - October 1986
In a final push to adjourn, the 99th Congress completed action on an umbrella bill that would fund federal programs in 13 departments through the end of 1987 fiscal year on September 30, 1987. The comprehensive bill, which provided for the expenditure of $576B, was approved after Congress was unable to pass individual spending bills for any of the departments. Action, completed, October 17, came none too soon because the government was forced to shut down partially for a day as money ran out. The spending bill provided $290B for the Pentagon, but increase in military spending was the smallest of the Reagan presidency. The bill included $200M in extra economic aid for the Philippines and the controversial $100M in military and economic aid for the Nicaraguan contras.

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Horowitz Plays in Russia After 61 Years - April 1986
The world's most acclaimed pianist, Vladimir Horowitz, returned to his Russian homeland after an absence of 61 years. His 2 recitals were a triumph, and his visit was a sentimental success as well. Horowitz, now 81, who had left the Soviet Union in 1925, had said in 1980, "I lost all my family there. I never want to go back and I never will." But after the superpower leaders had approved a cultural exchange at their summit in 1985, Horowitz said, "Before I die, I want to see the country in which I was born." Arrangements were made, and Horowitz arrived in the USSR, April 14. He gave recitals in the Great Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, April 20, and in Leningrad's Philharmonic Hall, April 27. The Moscow recital was televised live in Western Europe and the United States.

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Space Shuttle Investigation Continues - May 1986
A federal safety investigator said, April 9, that the shuttle's crew cabin had survived the initial explosion largely intact and that it apparently broke up under aerodynamic pressure and the force of its impact with the ocean. NASA said, April 19, that remains of all 7 crew members had been recovered.

Reagan, meanwhile, had nominated James Fletcher to return to his old job as administrator of NASA. Fletcher's appearance before a Senate committee for confirmation hearings coincided with the publication, April 23 and 24, of 2 New York Times articles critical of NASA's past. The paper reported that federal audits had revealed how NASA had wasted perhaps $3.5B because of poor management. The Times found that Fletcher had sold the shuttle program to Congress on the argument that it would eventually pay for itself through commercial business, a goal that remained unrealized. Fletcher told the committee he favored building a new orbiter to replace Challenger.

Testimony before the commission, taken, May 2, and made public, May 10, revealed that 2 Morton Thiokol engineers, Allan McDonald and Roger Boisjoly, had been reassigned to jobs they regarded as less important after testifying earlier in the year that they had opposed the Challenger launch. Deputy Administrator William Graham of NASA told a House subcommittee, May 13, that NASA was trying to determine whether agency officials played any part in the reassignments.

Fletcher approved 89-9 by the Senate, May 6, to be NASA's new administrator, was sworn in, May 12, and told a House subcommittee, May 13, that NASA's command structure would be reviewed thoroughly. Fletcher said, May 27, that 44 potentially serious shuttle safety problems---aside from those related to the booster rockets, which were being redesigned---had been identified.

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$1 Awarded in Football Antitrust Suit - July 1986
The United States Football League (USFL) suffered a major setback when a federal jury in New York City awarded it only $1 in damages in its suit against the National Football League (NFL). The jury, on July 29, found the NFL liable on one of 6 civil charges brought by the USFL. The USFL contended that the NFL had used monopoly power to prevent the younger league from acquiring a lucrative television contract. It had sought $1.69B in damages. The 2 leagues produced witnesses who testified that the NFL had, or had not, pressured the networks not to cover the USFL. The jury's only finding against the NFL was that it had a monopoly power "to control prices or exclude competition" in the "relevant market" of pro football in the United States. The USFL which had lost $150M while playing spring football for 3 years, announced, August 4, that it was cancelling the 1986 season and freeing all players to pursue contracts with the NFL.

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2 New Laws Aid Farmers - December 1985
Congress, December 18, approved 2 bills aimed at providing relief for America's embattled farmers. One bill provided the basis for farm subsidy programs. The cost of the programs, $52B over 3 years, slightly exceeded what Pres. Ronald Reagan had said he would accept. Another bill, approved December 18, would firm up the ailing Farm Credit System, which held about one third of the rising farm debt. The bill created a new unit, the bad loans from the institutions already in the system. Reagan signed both bills, December 23.

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Artificial-Heart Recipient Dies - August 1986
William Schroeder, who in 1984 had become the second person to received an artificial heart that was intended to be permanent, died in Humana Hospital-Audobon in Louisville, Ky., August 6, at the age of 54. Of 5 men who had received artificial hearts, he was the last survivor, and he had lived longer with the device than anyone else: 620 days. Schroeder, a retired federal worker from Jasper, Ind., had a history of serious heart problems when he received the Jarvik-7 heart in an operation performed on November 25, 1984, by Dr. William DeVries. He became the only Jarvik-7 recipient to live for a time outside the hospital, but a series a strokes had left him debilitated. Most medical experts believed that the future role of the artificial heart would be that of a temporary implant until a human heart became available for transplant.

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Ex-Klan Leader Loses Louisiana Runoff - November 1991
Edwin Edwards recaptured his old job, the governorship of Louisiana, defeating David Duke, a former leader of the Ku Klux Klan, in a runoff election. Duke ran as a Republican, but on November 6, Pres. George Bush lashed out at what he called Duke's "long record---an ugly record---of racism and bigotry." The supporters of Edwards, a Democrat, said they were worried that Duke's election would set back tourism and economic development by outside investors. In the voting, November 16, Edwards won by 61 percent of the vote, overall, because he swept almost all of the black vote. Duke won about 55 percent of votes cast by whites.

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Fire in California Kills 24 - October 1991
Fires driven by high winds and benefitting from dry conditions swept through residential areas of Oakland and Berkeley, Calif., on October 20 and 21, causing the death of at least 24 people and injuries to 148. More than 1,800 houses and 900 apartment units were destroyed. Damage was estimated at $5B.

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TWA Files for Bankruptcy - January 1992
Trans World Airlines, Inc., January 31, became the latest major U.S. carrier to file for bankruptcy. TWA had been burdened with large debt since its new owner, Carl Ichan, had made it a private company in 1988. Revenues had fallen during the economic recession. TWA was negotiating a restructuring plan with its major creditors.

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Biggest Quake in 40 Years Jolts California - June 1992
Southern California was rocked by 2 big earthquakes in June. The quakes came 2 months after other shocks in April that had caused about 100 injuries. On June 26, an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale---the highest reading in California in 40 years---shook Southern California. Its epicenter was in Yucca Valley, about 90 miles east of Los Angeles. A second quake, measuring 6.5 followed 3 hours later. Its center was about 20 miles west of the first shock. Seismologists said the 2 were related. One child was killed, some 350 persons were injured, and damage was estimated at $16M.

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U.N. Confronts Iraq on Weapons - February 1992
United Nations representatives sought to carry out a U.N. mandate that all Iraqi ballistic missiles and other weapons of mass destruction be destroyed. The elimination of the weapons had been a condition of the cease-fire that had ended the Persian Gulf war. Iraq, February 26-28, refused to allow the U.N. team to begin dismantling the Scud missile production plants and other facilities. The U.N. Security Council, February 28, issued a statement warning Iraq that it had "no later than the week of 9 March 1992" to respond of face "serious consequences."

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Carson Retires from 'The Tonight Show' - May 1992
Comedian Johnny Carson retired after 29 years as the host of 'The Tonight Show' on NBC. Carson had taken over the late-night program from Jack Paar in 1962. The show then originated from New York, but it was subsequently moved to California. The program known for Carson's droll wit and for the thousands of entertainers and other celebrities who appeared on it. Some 55M people watched Carson's final appearance on the program, May 22nd. Jay Leno succeeded Carson as the host.

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Bush Submits 1993 Federal Budget - January 1992
Pres. George bush, January 29, submitted to Congress a budget for the 1993 fiscal year that contained a projected deficit of $351.9B. The budget estimated that for the current 1992 fiscal year the deficit would be $399.4B, an all-time record. The 1993 budget contained details of proposals Bush had made in his State of the Union message. While proposing to eliminate or cut back hundreds of programs, Bush also called for increased spending on the Head Start pre-school education program, antidrug programs, prisons, highway development, and aid to the newly independent states emerging from the former Soviet Union.

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Czechoslovakia Moves Toward a Split - June 1992
Czechoslovakia moved toward a division into separate Czech and Slovakia states. Vladimir Meciar, the Slovak nationalist leader, had been pressing for a confederation in which Slovakia would control its own economy and foreign policy. The federal premier-designate, Vaclav Klaus, countered, June 18, with a proposal that the country split in two. Mecial welcomed the offer, and on June 20, he and Klaus agreed to prepare for the transition. Pres. Vaclav Havel urged, June 21, that the issue be decided in a national referendum.

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Ex-Leader of Panama Convicted - April 1992
Gen. Manuel Noriega, former military ruler of Panama, was convicted, April 9, in U.S. District Court in Miami of racketeering, drug trafficking, and money laundering. Noriega, the first foreign head of state convicted by a U.S. jury, had been seized by U.S. forces early in 1990 after the American invasion of Panama. At the trial, witnesses, many of them convicted drug traffickers themselves, tied Noriega to the Medellin drug cartel. The government sought to show that Noriega had taken millions of dollars in bribes from the cartel. Testifying for the defense, Adm. Daniel Murphy (ret), chief of staff for Vice Pres. George Bush during the 1980s, said that Noriega had cooperated with U.S. efforts to intercept drug shipments. On July 10, Judge William Hoeveler sentenced Noriega to 40 years in prison.

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Reputed Crime Boss Convicted in New York - April 1992
John Gotti, who had been described by police and prosecutors as leader of the Gambino crime family, was convicted, April 2, in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn of crimes that included murder, extortion, and obstruction of justice. A codefendant, Frank Locascio, was convicted of racketeering and murder. Gotti had been acquitted of other charges in 3 recent trials. In this instance, however, Salvatore Gravano, a former associate of Gotti, testified to Gotti's involvement in 10 murders. Gravano said he and Gotti watched the killing, on a New York City street in 1985, of Paul Castellano, reputed head of the Gambino family at that time. For cooperating, Gravano, who admitted to involvement in 19 murders himself, was assured that he would serve no more than 20 years in prison. As evidence, the government also presented tape recording in which Gotti and others discussed criminal activities. On June 23, Gotti and Locascio were sentenced to life in prison without parole.

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'Cop Killer' Song Dropped From Album - July 1992
Time Warner Inc. became the focus of many complaints because of the lyrics in the song "Cop Killer" in the Body Count album recorded by the rapper Ice-T. Police associations objected to the lyrics and police officers demonstrated against Time Warner and organized boycotts. Public officials also criticized the song. Ice-T asked Time Warner to delete the song from the album, and the company announced, July 28, that it would do so.