Lansing State Journal from Lansing, Michigan • Page 1

Baseball Whitecaps 4 Lugnuts 3 Lansing loses season Golf Fred Couples is in the lead Today It's a beautiful season for smiles Page ID Sunny High in the mid-50s. Page 8B Friday April 10, 1998 500 opener in 10 innings. Page 1C Page 1C Tournament leader: Fred Couples State tainual MASTERS fee mm wuw WdD1 Tornado's death toll hits 32 in Alabama How to help BTo donate: Send to the American Red Cross, 1800 E. Grand River P.O. Box 30101, Lansing Ml 48909.

BTo volunteer: Call 484-7461 -J li-1 tij n-r 1 1 y0m xr'F- nr "-ntm- W. Clinton goes into tobacco heartland Farmers, workers tell of their fears about legislation State Journal wire reports CARROLLTON, Ky. Resident Clinton traveled to the Tobacco Belt Thursday to make a case for landmark legislation likely to shrink the region's lifeblood industry. He was greeted by an avalanche of anxiety from farmers and tobacco workers. Farm wife Mattie Mack of Brandenburg, pretty much summed up local feelings: Smoking is bad for children, but cracking down could be disastrous for tobacco farmers.

"I own a 100-acre farm and I've been married 40 years, and I have four children that I educated, three at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, on tobacco," Mack told Clinton. "And I've raised 38 foster children on this 100-acre farm in the period of '64 to '92. "None of those children smoked. My four children did not smoke. I don't smoke, my husband don't smoke.

And we are against children smoking, Mr. President, but we shouldn't be penalized on account of children smoking." Her message: "The parents are going to have to teach the children the right way about this tobacco. I look at tobacco as being good to us." Noisy applause followed. Clinton expressed sympathy for the farmers. "Tobacco farmers have not done anything he said.

"You're growing a legal crop, you're not doing the marketing of the tobacco to children." Enacting tobacco legislation is Clinton's top domestic priority this year, and many of his other initiatives depend on the $516 billion that would be raised from the new taxes. A proposal that passed a key Senate committee last week would impose new regulations on the industry, raise cigarette prices by $1.10 over five years, and decrease demand for tobacco. The president's visit came just a day after the nation's major cigarette manufacturers announced that they would fight the Senate legislation. But Clinton stressed that he is determined to push Congress to adopt legislation this year. Clinton said his goal is to.

cut smoking among children without destroying small farms but he conceded that would be difficult. WILLIAM LUTHERAssociated Press Destruction: A tornado demolished Oak Grove High searched Thursday through the rubble of homes for sur-School in west Jefferson County, Ala. Rescue crews vivors after tornadoes tore through the area. By Jay Reeves Associated Press BIRMINGHAM, Ala. Rescue crews went from one wrecked house to another, and a helicopter with a sensor to detect body heat was flown in to help find the dead and alive Thursday after a tomado killed at least 32 people in Alabama.

Encouraged by finding a 9-month-old baby alive, Sheriff Jim Woodward said rescuers would continue looking for victims through the night until they were confident everyone was accounted for. The tornado struck with winds up to 250 mph while many people in this Bible Belt area were at regular Wednesday night church services. Violent weather from the same storm system also killed five people in Georgia and one in Mississippi, for 38 deaths altogether. In Alabama, nearly all of the dead were in small communities west of Birmingham, where some houses looked as if they had exploded. Gov.

Fob James said 150 homes were destroyed and 300 heavily damaged. President Clinton declared parts of Alabama and Georgia disaster areas, clearing the way for federal aid. "It's quite amazing, and I hope you all say a prayer for those folks tonight, and join with them in spirit as they rebuild," the president said during a visit to a high school in Carrollton, Ky. The mid-Michigan chapter of the American Red Cross is sending two area volunteers, Gary Alexander and Mel Swab, to Alabama to help tornado victims. Swab, 63, of Ingham County's Vevay Township, is flying this afternoon to Birmingham, where he will work as a logistical specialist transporting sup- More than three of every four voters polled 76 percent support drug-testing welfare recipients, first proposed by Gov.

John Engler in his State of the State speech in January. Nearly 60 percent favor the fingerprinting plan, developed by Senate Republicans. Seventy percent agree that those who win big at casinos should be forced to repay -L back GOP effort on welfare, poll says plies for the relief effort. "There is a tremendous amount of damage," said the retired Michigan Bell employee. Swab said he'll probably stay about three weeks, unless he's needed longer.

In the town of Rock Creek, a tornado hurled one victim into a tree and flung others across streets and yards. The house where Allison Brown and his wife, Hazel, spent most of their 89 years looked as if it had been blown up. They were found dead, together, two blocks away. "I hope it was quick," said Lynn Pappas, their daughter. "I hope they weren't afraid." There was one joyous discovery Thursday, the sheriff said, when a 9-month-old baby missing throughout the night was' found alive.

Woodward was unsure if the parents had survived. Gary McGowan lost his home but counted himself among the blessed. As word of the approaching tornado spread, he ran from Calvary Baptist Church to his trailer, only to find that his wife and 3-year-old daughter had gone to her parents' home nearby. He ran mside, and they all sought shelter in a central hall. "I laid over my wife and baby, and God laid over me," he said.

Staff writer Mark Mayes contributed to this report. the state for benefits with up to half of their winnings. While past welfare reforms, including work requirements, received bipartisan support, the fingerprint and drug-test proposals didn't get any Democratic votes in passing the Senate last month. "Republicans have found a Please see WELFARE, 4A i. In exchange, the animals receive annual physicals and blood work and plenty of TLC.

Their owners get a $20 credit toward future vet services. Tim Fishell of Lansing has taken his two greyhounds Please see DONORS, 4A Critics say the proposals demean the poor while aiming to solve problems fraud and drug abuse that don't apply to most welfare recipients. According to the poll by Lansing-based EPICMRA, most voters don't agree. The poll, conducted April 1 to April 6, has a margin of error of 4 percentage points. The results: Detroit OKs Archer's At this pet dorm, blood pays the room and board Associated Press DETROIT The City Council approved a $1.8 billion plan Thursday to make Detroit the largest U.S.

city with casino gambling, despite complaints that blacks were shut out and concerns about the location. The plan to build three casinos in a warehouse district east of downtown on the Detroit River now goes to the Michigan Gaming Control Board. "We're obviously very happy and very pleased," said Herb Strather, chairman of Atwater group, a partnership that in Voters By Greg J. Borowski Lansing State Journal A new poll shows that state voters strongly support Republican-led efforts to take a hard line with welfare recipients. The poll, completed this week, shows wide support for drug testing and fingerprinting of welfare recipients, as well as requiring their gambling win cludes Las Vegas-based Circus Circus, which won one of the three casino franchises.

The other two went to MGM Grand and Greektown Chippewa Indians. The council approved the GreektownChippewa Indians and Circus Circus proposals by 6-3 votes. The MGM Grand proposal passed 5-4, after Councilman Kenneth Cockrel switched his vote. Mayor Dennis Archer pushed the project as a way to revitalize the city's slumping economy, but was criticized after none of the three franchises sive on overseas shelves and, by hurting export sales, can slow the U.S. economy.

The reaction to Japan's move was immediate and sharp. The dollar's value plunged from 133.6 yen to 129.5 yen before recover-lngto 131 yen by late afternoon. The move was designed to bolster a Japanese government announcement on Thursday of a $30 billion tax cut proposal intended to stimulate the country's stagnant economy. U.S. and Asian leaders insisted that Japan move boldly so its consumers can buy more and help itself and its Asian neigh by common sense," he said Thursday.

"And common sense is when hard-working taxpayers have their resources used to help others in Inside Survey results blame Engler for roads. Page 3B need. We must eliminate fraud and abuse from the system." Inside Former POW: Emil Natalie of Iowa cries during the dedication for a POW museum. Story, Page 3A Local Sports Gassified 6C Today Ann Landers 2D BusinessStocks 5B CrosswordComics 4D Deaths 2B Lottery 2B Copyright 1998 Lansing Stale Journal. Lansing.

Michigan. A Gannett Newspaper "40901 "051 32 Michigan Press Association Newspaper of the Year 1997 fMvr nings to be used to repay the state for past benefits. The results could boost passage of the controversial measures, but they face opposition from key House Democrats. "I think absolutely this indicates we're on the right track," said Sen. Michael Bouchard, R-Birmingham, a leading Senate supporter of the package.

"These proposals are driven casino plan were awarded to blacks in a city that is 80 percent black. Archer countered by saying blacks had stakes in each casino group and would benefit from 11,000 permanent full-time jobs. Casinos will "bring jobs, business opportunities, a new stream of tax revenue and a first-class tourist attraction to the city of Detroit," Archer said Thursday at a news conference. Don Barden, a black businessman whose casino proposal was rejected, emphasized the state still must approve the plan. "This is not over yet." bors out of their worst financial crisis in decades.

While speaking earlier this week in Lansing, Commerce Secretary William Daley said the Clinton Administration was pressuring Japan not to export its way out of financial trouble because of the weak yen. The weaker yen causes Japanese goods, especially autos, to be sold cheaper in the United States. In response, Big Three automakers use incentives to lower prices to compete Any further weakening of the yen might cut U.S. vehicle production or cause layoffs. Japan bolsters yen with U.S.

backing By Todd SchuLz Lansing State Journal EAST LANSING Daisy and Chubs live the good life. They eat from a bottomless food bowl, take three walks a day and often roll together in the sunshine for hours. They earn their keep at Michigan State University's veterinary teaching hospital by giving blood once a month. Daisy, a brown shepherd mix, and Chubs, a black lab mix, are two of seven live-in doggy donors MSU uses to treat the canine community. MSU also cares for three cats to boost its supply of feline blood.

The on-hand blood supply is crucial to helping other animals during surgeries and emergencies. "It's vitally important to the cases we treat here," said Dr. Cheri Johnson, chief of staff for the MSU Small Animal Clinic, which cares for patients from all over the United States and Canada. "When vets refer patients to us who might need blood products, we have to be able to provide that. The buck stops here." MSU formed its in-house donor team roughly 15 years ago.

Most of the animals come from KATHY KIEUSZEWSKILansing State Journal Doggie donors: Kim VanWulfen Ernst, a senior veterinarian student at Michigan State University, plays with Chubs (left) and Daisy on Thursday at MSU's Small Animal Clinic. Chubs and Daisy are blood donors. Staff and wire reports Japan's central bank intervened in U.S. foreign exchange markets on Thursday to prop up the sagging value of the yen. The dollar dropped in response but the intervention was endorsed by Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin.

That marks an abrupt shift in U.S. policy of maintaining the dollar's strength. A strong dollar helps to restrain inflation in the United States by keeping a lid on import prices. However, it also makes U.S. goods more expen local animal shelters or breeders.

But the live-in crew can't meet the clinic's constant blood needs. That prompted MSU to form a network of on-call donors in the Lansing area. About 30 dogs and 10 cats from the community donate blood once a month..