THE WEEK: APRIL 16-22

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NATION

Death in Oklahoma City

It was the most deadly terrorist bombing in American history. A massive truck bomb went off in front of a nine-story federal office building in Oklahoma City and left at least 78 people dead-13 of them children in a day-care center-and an additional 400 injured. By week's end, some 100 were still missing. The force of the explosion was so great that the building's fa?ade was blown off, raining debris on workers and causing such extensive structural damage that rescue efforts were severely hampered.

The Suspects

Although some initial reports suggested that the bombing might have been the work of Middle Eastern terrorists, the hunt for the killers quickly focused on two white Americans accused of having rented the truck used to hold the explosives. On Friday one suspect was taken into federal custody: Timothy McVeigh, who had been picked up by a highway patrolman two days earlier on a traffic violation north of Oklahoma City. Two associates of McVeigh's were also taken into custody as potential witnesses. A possible motive: McVeigh was said to be obsessed with the Federal Government's 1993 assault on Branch Davidians near Waco, Texas. At week's end, as the fbi detained another suspect in San Bernardino, California, officials continued their investigation. Attorney General Janet Reno announced authorities would seek the death penalty for whoever is charged with the bombing.

Free Anonymous Speech

By a 7-to-2 vote, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states may not prohibit the dissemination of anonymous campaign literature. Citing free-speech guarantees, the Justices invalidated an Ohio election law-one akin to those found in many states-that required campaign pamphleteers to print their names and addresses on their materials. "Anonymity is a shield from the tyranny of the majority," said Justice John Paul Stevens.

Don't You Forget About Me

Declaring somewhat plaintively that "the Constitution gives me relevance" and "the power of our ideas gives me relevance," President Clinton took advantage of the congressional recess to try to reclaim a place in the political sun. The President used a news conference to underline once again his opposition to the House-passed welfare bill ("too weak on work and too tough on children") and to vow to fight for the confirmation of Dr. Henry Foster as Surgeon General. Over the weekend the President had a reminder of some older problems: he and Mrs. Clinton were interviewed under oath by Whitewater special prosecutor Kenneth Starr.

Not So Top Secret

After two years of internal government debate, President Clinton issued a long-promised Executive Order liberalizing the nation's secrecy rules. Subject to certain exceptions, the presidential order calls for the automatic and regular declassification of records after they have been kept under wraps for 25 years and also provides that newly classified information be kept secret not more than 10 years.

Campaign '96

Indiana Senator Richard Lugar, a foreign affairs expert and an advocate of replacing the federal income tax with a national sales tax, became the eighth Republican contender to formally enter the 1996 presidential race.

The Simpson Trial