News stories from Thursday May 1, 1980
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- The unsuccessful rescue mission in Iran generated conflicting accounts. Col. Charlie Beckwith, Army commander of the ground force, asserted he had advised his superiors that the operation should be canceled after three of eight helicopters had failed. Administration officials had quoted senior military officials as having said he had urged proceeding with the mission in a reduced form with five helicopters.
Peaceful means of freeing the hostages in the American Embassy in Iran were urged by Prime Minister Masayoshi Ohira of Japan at a White House meeting, but President Carter gave no commitment that force would not be used again.
[New York Times] - Iran defied threats of the captors of its embassy in London. President Abolhassan Bani-Sadr said that he was ready to see the Iranian hostages in the embassy die rather than agree to the captors' demands, which include the freeing of 91 prisoners. [New York Times]
- A bid to increase military spending lost as a coalition of Democratic and Republican moderates in the House decisively rebuffed a conservative effort to raise the defense budget by $5 billion in the next fiscal year. On Wednesday, the coalition defeated liberal efforts to increase spending for social programs. The chairman of the Budget Committee, who had formed the coalition, expressed satisfaction. [New York Times]
- A detailed intelligence charter has been abandoned by its advocates in the Senate. According to Senator Walter Huddleston, author of the proposed code that would govern intelligence operations, the complex bill stood little chance of passage. He said he would support an abbreviated measure, which might make it easier for the Central Intelligence Agency to undertake covert operations. [New York Times]
- Marvin Mandel's jail term was cut from four years to three years. The sentences imposed on the co-defendants of the former Maryland Governor in a major corruption scandal were also reduced by a judge who said he had reconsidered his original sentences because of the defendants' "personal devastation" in the six-year case. Mr. Mandel is expected to be paroled after serving one year. [New York Times]
- Nearly 1,000 Cuban refugees arrived in Key West as two large United States Navy vessels and a contingent of 200 Marines prepared to join the Coast Guard in safeguarding the exodus across the Florida Straits. [New York Times]
- John Lindsay declared his candidacy for the Democratic nomination for United States Senator from New York, terming himself an "underdog" and saying that, as mayor, he had left New York City in better shape than it is now. The Republican-turned-Democrat said he had "great reservations" about President Carter, but would support the Democratic Party's nominee for President. [New York Times]
- Efforts to breed two giant pandas at Washington's National Zoo have failed for three years because, officials say, the male has not been able to achieve "an effective posture." If an attempt fails again this spring, the female will be artificially inseminated, which resulted in the birth of a panda cub at the Peking Zoo in 1978. [New York Times]
- The Pope begins a 10-day visit to Africa tomorrow in an effort to encourage Catholics on a continent where there are about 50 million Catholics. He will give about 70 speeches and sermons in Zaire, Congo, Kenya, Ghana, Upper Volta and the Ivory Coast. [New York Times]
- A five-year American-Japanese pact for direct collaboration in a broad array of scientific research was signed. The accord is something of a landmark in the technological relationship between the two nations, long noted for their bitter competition. [New York Times]
- Strikes and lockouts swept Sweden, affecting every area of national life and effectively ending the country's reputation as a rare zone of labor peace. A major factor is a gradual loss of Sweden's industrial competitiveness in world trade, resulting mainly from high production costs caused by its extensive social welfare system. [New York Times]
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Stock Market Report
Dow Jones Industrial Average: 808.79 (-8.27, -1.01%)
Arms Index is the ratio of volume per declining issue to volume per advancing issue; a figure below 1.0 is bullish. | |||||||||||||||
| Market Index Trends | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | DJIA | S&P | Volume* |
| April 30, 1980 | 817.06 | 106.29 | 30.85 |
| April 29, 1980 | 811.09 | 105.86 | 27.93 |
| April 28, 1980 | 805.46 | 105.64 | 30.61 |
| April 25, 1980 | 803.58 | 105.16 | 28.59 |
| April 24, 1980 | 797.10 | 104.40 | 35.79 |
| April 23, 1980 | 789.25 | 103.73 | 42.62 |
| April 22, 1980 | 789.85 | 103.43 | 47.92 |
| April 21, 1980 | 759.13 | 99.80 | 27.55 |
| April 18, 1980 | 763.40 | 100.55 | 26.88 |
| April 17, 1980 | 768.86 | 101.05 | 32.77 |