To the Point

Senate Hears Arguments for Striking Iraq

In his effort to topple Saddam Hussein, President Bush says he-s ready to use -all the tools at our disposal-economic, diplomatic, financial and military.- But with the White House silent on details, even Republicans are calling for open discussion of the logic and logistics of a strike on Iraq. Rival factions within the administration have been anonymously leaking different scenarios to the press, and tomorrow, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee will hear testimony about three military approaches. We preview and review a variety of options with journalists from Jane-s Defense Weekly, London-s Independent, the Jordan Times, and Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Charles Krauthammer. Newsmaker: What Happened at Pennsylvania-s Quecreek Mine? In the aftermath of the near-disaster at Pennsylvania-s Quecreek Mine, investigators are looking at a honeycomb of underground tunnels, many of which are adjacent to flooded, abandoned mines like the one breached by the nine men who almost lost their lives. Raja Ramani, professor emeritus of geo-environmental engineering at Penn State, says that the inquiry help prevent future tragedies. Reporter's Notebook: Central America Gets a Saint Mexico-s Catholic Church is losing ground to protestant Christians, especially among its Native Americans. It-s hoped that Pope John Paul-s canonization of an Aztec who had a vision of the Virgin Mary in 1531, will help stem the exodus. But the Los Angeles Times- Richard Boudreax says the intended ethnic message has been compromised by official church portraits of Juan Diego as a man who looks to many like a Spanish conquistador.