News stories from Saturday April 11, 1981

Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:

The President is out of the hospital. He was released from George Washington University Medical Center when his wounded lung appeared to have healed sufficiently. Hundreds of aides and their families greeted him with applause and cheers when he arrived at the White House, accompanied by his wife, Nancy, and one of his daughters, Patti Davis. [New York Times] The idea of assuming the presidency was not something that Vice President Bush dwelt on after Ronald Reagan was shot. Mr. Bush said that it fleetingly crossed his mind that he might have to take over the top job, but that he quickly quelled the thought. The Vice President said he has tried to project the continuity of the administration without appearing to be a surrogate President. "I didn't have any major, solitary decisions to make," the Vice President said. [New York Times] Columbia's computer flaw was fixed and another attempt was to be made Sunday to launch the space shuttle into initial orbital flight from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. A failure in a timing device in the shuttle's computers, which are essential to its flight, postponed its takeoff on Friday morning. The countdown was resumed and aimed at a liftoff at 7 A.M. [New York Times] More evidence has been discovered linking Joseph Franklin, an avowed racist, to the sniper shooting of Vernon Jordan last May 29 in Fort Wayne, Ind. Federal investigators say that Mr. Franklin, who was convicted recently of killing two black men in Salt Lake City, is the only suspect in the Jordan case. [New York Times] Toxic chemicals in paints pose a hazard to painters as serious or even exceeding the better-known threats to asbestos workers and coal miners, according to the head of the principal painters' union. Many industry, government and union officials agree with him. Concern over toxicity followed complaints of strange and debilitating illnesses from a large number of union members. [New York Times] Solidarity and the Polish government will begin talks toward a mutual understanding Thursday and they will be nationally televised, leaders of the independent union said. Issues will include the union's access to mass media, release of political prisoners, an independent union for private farmers, police violence in Bydgoszcz and strike pay. A Solidarity official said approval of the televised negotiations has been confirmed by Mieczyslaw Rakowski, Deputy Prime Minister and chief government negotiator with the union. [New York Times] The Soviet threat to Poland appears to have eased, Secretary of State Alexander Haig said at a news conference in Bonn at the end of his nine-day trip in the Middle East and Western Europe. He said the mililtary situation appeared "somewhat improved," despite the readiness of Warsaw Pact troops on Poland's borders. His optimism was based largely on a recent statement by Leonid Brezhnev, the Soviet leader, that "reflected greater moderation." [New York Times]