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THE CLINTON PRESIDENTIAL PARDONS

A House committee investigation into the last-minute pardons issued last year by the Clinton administration claims that political appointees circumvented normal pardon procedures and that relatives of the first family engaged in influence peddling.

The report by the House Government Reform Committee -- led by avowed Clinton-critic Chairman Dan Burton, R-Ind. -- implies that President Clinton ignored legal procedures and facts in granting a pardon to fugitive financier Marc Rich, while accepting huge political and personal contributions from Rich's supporters and family.

The report also accuses President Clinton of encouraging Roger Clinton, his half-brother, to pursue financial gain as a result of their relationship. Roger Clinton lobbied for pardons from his brother's administration and is accused of taking money to lobby for various groups, although the committee report did not indicate any illegal activity in this lobbying effort.

In a statement Wednesday, Bill Clinton denied ever telling his brother to do so.

Democrats on the panel immediately blasted the report as partisan. Ranking Democrat Henry Waxman, D-Calif. -- who said he'd also been critical of the Rich pardon because it stemmed from the influence of the wealthy -- said the report "relies on innuendo and makes unsubstantiated allegations of wrongdoing" and that the evidence "shows nothing more than bad judgment."

An ongoing investigation by federal prosecutors in New York has not led to any charges so far.

-- Was there something fishy about President Clinton's last-minute pardons? Might there have been something illegal? Why or why not?

(Thanks to UPI's P. Mitchell Prothero in Washington)

GAYS IN THE MILITARY

The U.S. armed forces expelled 1,250 service members for being homosexual last year -- the highest annual number of "gay discharges" since 1987, Servicemembers Legal Defense Network said.

The gays rights advocacy group reported Thursday that there were 1,075 incidents of anti-gay harassment last year, up from 871 in 2000, according to its own surveys.

"Many agonize for a long time before they make statements about their sexual orientation," said Steve Ralls, SLDN's director of communications. "They leave because their commands are unwilling to keep harassment in check -- their commands are not holding accountable those who are harassing and intimidating their fellow service members."

The military does not allow homosexuals to serve but has a policy of "don't ask, don't tell, don't harass" -- whereby a gay service member may remain in the armed forces if they keep their sexual orientation secret.

Service members who are discharged for homosexuality receive either honorable or general discharges, depending on their commander, according to the Pentagon. Although the discharges are not dishonorable, a box is checked on their papers attributing the discharge to homosexual orientation. That information is then available to future employers.

"It means the end of their (military) careers," said Ralls. "And they really are being identified for reasons of their discharge long after they leave military service."

The policy of "Don't ask, don't tell" was put in place by President Clinton in 1993 after a controversial and aborted attempt to remove the prohibition on gays in the military.

-- Is the "don't ask, don't tell, don't harass" policy working? Should the prohibition against gays in the military be lifted altogether? Why or why not?

(Thanks to UPI Pentagon Correspondent Pamela Hess)

THE OLYMPIC SKATING SCANDAL

The International Skating Union says it'll hold a hearing April 29-30 in Lausanne, Switzerland, to discuss the figure skating scandal that has become synonymous with the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.

The investigation stems from French judge Marie Reine Le Gougne's vote for the Russian team in the pairs event. Le Gougne said she was pressured into the decision by the French skating federation, although she has since changed her story.

The ISU suspended Le Gougne during the Games and then awarded duplicate gold medals to Canadians Jamie Sale and David Pelletier. Russians Elena Berezhnaya and Anton Sikharulidze won the original competition.

Since the Olympics, Le Gougne has claimed she was trapped by international officials and the media into false charges of pressure.

In its statement, the ISU said Le Gougne "has given many press conferences and interviews also delivering unilateral opinion and allegations."

"The ISU has given and will still give all those concerned every opportunity for defense," the statement continued. "However, the ISU has deliberately not taken any position on certain statements and accusations since it considers that this would not be proper while the case is pending."

The ISU said it had not been able to schedule the hearing earlier because of a "busy competition calendar of major ISU events." The World Championships are next week in Nagano, Japan.

-- What do you think? Is figure skating really a sport? Should it continue to be part of the Olympics? Why or why not?