Preview -- World News Tonight 07/16/01
July 16, 2001 -- Good afternoon.
We begin tonight with the energy crisis that may have been, that doesn't seem to be here now … but that the White House says may be here in the future.
The Bush administration is taking its case to the public this week. It says that the country needs a new national energy strategy, with an emphasis on supply. The strategy involves finding new sources of natural gas and oil and building new power plants. The vice president is in Pennsylvania today to give a speech and to kick off a town meeting on energy. One big hitch: Dick Cheney has lost his voice. His wife, Lynne Cheney, will be his surrogate speaker and she'll have a tough sell. Gas prices have been going down at the pump and the situation in California has appeared to stabilize. Michele Norris has the story.
Our Pierre Thomas remains tethered to the search for the missing intern. Today Washington police were fanned out in one of the District's parks, literally beating the bushes looking for clues. Police tell us that Chandra Levy visited an Internet map site on May 1, the last day anybody has heard from her. Among other places, she got directions to Rock Creek Park, just a couple of miles from her home. Today at the park, police didn't find much in the way of evidence or clues; mostly some small bones, probably the remains of small animals. Also today, police went back to Levy's apartment building and interviewed some of her neighbors, some of them for the third time. They're also looking for evidence on the streets, wondering whether Levy's disappearance might be linked to a random crime. The mystery continues.
In California today, Robert Downey Jr. was in court again. And again today the actor was facing jail time for using illegal drugs. Only this time the outcome was different for him, as for many others across the state, because of a new law that went into effect on July 1. "Prop. 36," as it's called, provides for treatment and rehabilitation for many multiple offenders. Many voters in California believe jail is a waste of time and money for many drug offenders — so, why not give treatment a chance? As the judge warned Downey, the rehab program will be very tough going. One slip-up and it's straight to prison. Neal Karlinsky reports.
In Moscow today, the presidents of Russia and China have signed their nations' first friendship agreement in more than 50 years. They talk about the need for "a new world order." That language, and the two countries' opposition to President Bush's missile-defense plan, suggests that relations with America may be at issue. John McWethy reports from the State Department.
From Chicago, Dean Reynolds brings us the personal stories of some of the workers who could be affected by a Bush administration plan for illegal immigrants from Mexico. On the heels of a new report about Mexican immigration and the national work force, the administration is talking about granting temporary work permits to undocumented Mexican citizens who work in the United States. As many as 3 million workers could be eligible.
And in the Czech Republic, an odd and intriguing claim from Philip Morris, the American tobacco giant. Czech officials have been worrying about the health-care costs that cigarette smoking causes to the public. But Philip Morris says, look on the bright side … you might be spending much more, if it weren't for smoking-related illness. Dan Harris has the strange story.
Finally, on ocean fronts around the country, a battle for the beaches. John Martin takes us on location, where wildlife officials, other human beachgoers, and the sand-piping plover all scramble for the same place in the sun.
We hope you'll join us.
Peter Jennings