News stories from Saturday September 2, 1972

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

Bobby Fischer celebrated his winning the world championship chess match on Friday in Reykjavik, Iceland, by playing skittles, a very fast informal version of chess, with Lubomir Kavalek, an American grandmaster. Fischer was calm, relaxed, and anything but euphoric, and when he was asked how it felt to be the world's chess champion he replied, "I've always felt I was the champion." Nevertheless, he was said to have been stunned when his opponent Boris Spassky resigned the final game of the match. [New York Times] Many Democratic social welfare programs started un the 1960's would be cut back or eliminated if Congress enacts the ceiling on federal spending requested by President Nixon, according to Charls E. Walker, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury. He made the disclosure at a private meeting of the executive committee of the American Bankers Association. Mr. Walker told the bankers that the spending ceiling would amount to a "retroactive item veto" for the President. He said that some administration officials objected to his use of that term but that he believed it was accurate. [New York Times] Senator George McGovern will formally begin his presidential campaign tomorrow on, almost literally, a wing and a prayer. The Democratic nominee is starting out way behind President Nixon in the opinion polls. He is 34 points behind Mr. Nixon in the latest Gallup poll. He is counting on two things to help him catch up -- a chartered jet that will take him to two or three major media areas each day, and the hope of major political blunder by his opponent. Mr. McGovern expects to spend up to $24 million on his campaign, about half the amount he estimates the President will spend. [New York Times] In a new move to tighten security at United States airports, the Federal Aviation Administration will notify this week 54 scheduled foreign airlines operating in this country that they have to meet the same anti-hijacking precautions as United States airlines. Currently, some foreign airlines apply airport passenger screening procedures that are as stringent, and in some cases more so, than the agency will require. But many do not screen passengers as carefully as they should, according to the FAA. [New York Times] The Army, completing its administrative measures in connection with the My Lai killings four years ago, formally reprimanded a colonel and a captain and ordered a sergeant ousted from the service. The latest punitive steps announced by Secretary of the Army Froehlke in effect closed the Army's books in My Lai, pending the continuing review of the murder conviction of First Lieut. William L. Calley, Jr., the only participant in the My Lai incident, in which up to 400 South Vietnamese civilians were reported slain, who was convicted of criminal charges. [New York Times] The Montreal police held four men for questioning in connection with the fire that swept through a crowded night club in Montreal Friday night, leaving at least 36 persons dead and 70 injured. Police authorities said that the fire might have been set by three men who had been refused admission. The police stressed they knew of no possible political motivation for the fire. [New York Times] Premier Pham Van Dong of North Vietnam made a major speech in Hanoi that American analysts described as "uncompromising" in its insistence on continuing the fight for a settlement of the war on the Communists' terms. The speech was given at a celebration marking North Vietnam's National Day and was accompanied by a message from Mao Tse-tung, the chairman of the Chinese Communist party, pledging "all-out support and assistance" to the North Vietnamese war effort. [New York Times] David Dellinger and Cora Weiss, co-chairmen of the Committee of Liaison with the Families of Servicemen Detained in North Vietnam, an American peace group, announced today in Paris that they would fly to Hanoi soon to accept the release of three American prisoners of war and escort them home. They said that they had conferred with the North Vietnamese peace delegation in Paris on Friday and were told then of the decision to free the three prisoners. They said they would return to New York to complete arrangements for the trip. [New York Times]