The Week November 13-19

NATION

The G.O.P. Transition

Speaker-to-be Newt Gingrich began laying plans for the Republican takeover of the House. Gingrich said at least three committees would be abolished, others reconfigured and staff reduced all around. The new leader -- who some political analysts believe could become a dominating Speaker of a sort not seen since the turn of the century -- ignored seniority, grudges and ideology in recommending choices to head key committees. Among them: Louisiana's Bob Livingston for Appropriations, New York's Gerald Solomon for Rules, Illinois's Henry Hyde for Judiciary and New York's Benjamin Gilman for Foreign Affairs. Gingrich also said a balanced-budget constitutional amendment would be the first order of business come January.

Clinton: Feeling His Way

Though halfway around the globe at an Asian economic summit in Indonesia, President Clinton wasn't neglecting domestic politics. In the wake of sweeping Republican victories in this month's elections, the President again let it be known that he hoped to cooperate with the G.O.P. bipartisan measures like welfare reform, the line-item veto and tax and spending cuts. Amid signs of Republican chafing in the Senate, he once more called on Hill leaders to approve the gatt treaty at the post-Thanksgiving lame-duck session of Congress.

A School-Prayer Surprise

The President dropped a bombshell on his left-flank supporters by announcing that he would be willing to consider a Republican-sponsored constitutional amendment allowing prayers in public schools -- depending on the "details." While civil-liberties groups characterized the President's statement as a "cave-in," White House aides scrambled to clarify Clinton's position, explaining that he only meant to express an interest in neutral legislation for a "moment of silence." Democratic allies in Congress were left grumbling about what they saw as yet another presidential waffle.

Military Readiness at Issue

The fight over the Pentagon's fiscal 1996 budget began early, when Defense Secretary William Perry acknowledged that three of the Army's 12 divisions were below peak readiness levels, principally due to the cost of missions to Haiti, Rwanda and elsewhere. Republicans claimed the revelation proved the wisdom of their campaign pledge to pump more money into the military.

A San Francisco Shootout

A lone gunman armed to the teeth with a small arsenal of weapons went on a terrifying 25-min. semiautomatic shooting spree on a San Francisco street before being shot to death by police. One police officer was killed and three people were wounded by the gunman.

Desegregation Settlement

Ending a 20-year battle over desegregating Louisiana's higher education system, a federal judge approved a $117 million plan to beef up college facilities and programs aimed at encouraging more whites to enroll at the state's historically black universities and more blacks to enroll at the state's historically white universities. The Louisiana chapter of the N.A.A.C.P. criticized the plan, saying it merely preserved the status quo.

On Tap: Safer Skies