
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, May 17, 1990                   TAG: 9005170619
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A/6   EDITION: EVENING 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

U.S. READIES PLAN TO FEED 14,000 CONTRAS

The Bush administration, worried that 14,000 Nicaraguan Contras may run out of food, has come up with a contingency plan to feed the rebels for a month, U.S. officials say.

The administration had hoped that Congress would have approved by now a $300 million Nicaragua aid proposal that includes food supplies for the Contras, and President Bush complained on Wednesday about "procedural gridlock" on Capitol Hill.

As a stopgap measure, the administration is expected to take between $1 million and $1.5 million from aid programs to other countries in order to help feed the Contras, said the U.S. officials, who asked not to be identified.

Democrats indicated Wednesday that it was unlikely the aid requested by the administration would be passed before the end of next week when Congress is scheduled to begin its Memorial Day recess. But at a news conference, Bush urged lawmakers to stay through the holiday weekend to complete the bill.

The package also includes $420 million for Panama's 5-month-old government. Bush blasted Congress for piling on scores of domestic spending proposals "that have nothing to do with Panama and Nicaragua."

One of the most controversial amendments would approve use of local tax dollars for abortions in the District of Columbia. The president said he would veto any bill including such a provision.

House and Senate negotiators are trying to resolve differing versions of the bill passed by their chambers.

Democrats said Bush was using the aid package as a foil to divert attention from problems facing his administration, such as looming budget deficits.

"He should be concerned with his deficits" as he is with aid for Central America, said Rep. David Bonior, D-Mich. Health care, education, taxes and budget were the pressing issues in his district - not foreign aid, Bonior said.

As part of an elaborate peace plan, the Contras have assembled in five security zones that are off-limits to soldiers of the Sandinista army of Nicaragua. About $30 million of the $300 million would be used for humanitarian aid for the Contras and resettling them back to their home towns.

But officials of the Organization of American States who are assisting in the resettlement process report that only a few days' supply of food remain.

The officials declined to say which countries would be affected by the proposed transfer, known as "reprogramming" in diplomatic jargon.

by CNB