Dole Wins In New York

NEW YORK: Bob Dole swept through Thursday's New York primary, all but wrapping up the Republican presidential nomination. "New York spoke to the White House and said the era of Bill Clinton is about to be over," Dole said of his victory. Dole won all 93 delegates at stake Thursday and has amassed 383 delegates overall, - nearly one-third of the way to the GOP nomination. Dole now turns his attention south for next week's Super Tuesday primaries and their 362 delegates. Despite Dole's overwhelming win, Pat Buchanan and Steve Forbes continued their attacks on Dole and vowed to stay in the race until the convention. Dole, trying to unify the Republican party for November's election, called on his rivals to focus on unseating President Clinton. "Pat says he's a Republican," Dole said. "If he is a Republican, he ought to settle down and try to determine a strategy to beat President Clinton."House Approves a New Budget BillWASHINGTON, D.C.: The House approved bills to extend federal borrowing authority and head off a third shutdown of the federal government Thursday. One measure will forestall what would have been a first-ever government default on March 21 and gives legislators a few more weeks of negotiating room to reach a budget agreement. Approved by a razor-thin 209-206 margin, the second bill is yet another try at a federal budget bill that would finance dozens of government departments but is still well short of the spending President Clinton had sought on domestic programs. With a third government shutdown looming when temporary spending authority runs out on March 15, legislators must come up with a new budget package or at least another temporary spending package that the White House will agree to. The Senate, which is will to take up the bill next week, is expected to increase social spending in their version in an effort to reach a compromise with the President.Dudayev ResurgentGROZNY, CHECHNYA: Heavy fighting shook Grozy Thursday as hundreds of fresh Russian troops deployed around the city, trying to supress a furious assault by Chechen rebels. Hundreds of casualties were inflicted on both sides, as practically every Russian position in the city came under heavy fire. The renewed fighting began on Wednesday when Chechen fighters lead by Jokar Dudayev seized a police station and other key buildings. At noon on Wednesday, the rebels even broke into a Russian television broadcast to announce "The city will be taken, there will be no mercy for Chechen traitors." Dudayev's cameo reportedly casued mass defections from the local police force. "This incident provides yet another indicator of serious confusion in the Kremlin on how to handle the Chechen crisis," says TIME's Yuri Zarakhovich. "Chechnya is still the key factor that more than ever threatens to kill Yeltsin's chances for re-election."Okinawa Rape Trial SentencingOKINAWA: Three U.S. servicemen were sentenced to jail terms for the rape last September of an Okinawan schoolgirl. Marcus Gill and Rodrico Harp were given seven years, while Kendrick Ledet was sentenced to a 6 1/2 year term in a Japanese jail. All may appeal the ruling. The rape rocked Japan and provoked some of the harshest anti-American sentiment since World War II. Okinawans protested in droves after the rape, calling for the withdrawal of American troops from the island. The sentences, handed down by a panel of three district judges at the Naha District Court, are considered tough by Japanese standards. But for Okinawans still angered over the attack, the jail terms appeared much too lenient.Congress Passes Helms-Burton