January 22, 1976

Pres Ford's fiscal '77 budget message proposes consolidation into 'block grants' to states of some 60 present Fed programs in areas of health, educ, child nutrition and soc services (L)

Comment on pol scene in Yugoslavia notes that Western publications circulate in country, but issues containing articles or material Yugoslavs regard as objectionable are barred; only legal Yugoslav publication that has been permitted certain degree of pol criticism, Praxis magazine, was forced to close; some issues of Catholic magazine Glas Koncila were confiscated (S)

Sen E S Muskie delivers Dem rebuttal to Pres Ford's State of Union Message (M)

Analysis claims Ford's budget is built around big election yr gamble, trying to pre-empt what he considers current pol center, positioning himself to left of Ronald Reagan, but to right of all Dem aspirants; claims initiatives in his budget outline and State of Union Message are focused on electoral audience ex-Pres Nixon called 'silent majority' (M)

Snow fell on the metropolitan area yesterday, causing icy roads and tying up traffic. Page 29.

Sam A Joffe, former TV correspondent for CBS and ABC, confirms in phone int on Jan 21 that he told Sen intelligence com that, while covering UN in late '50s and early '60s, he also reptd regularly to FBI on activities of Soviet delegation to UN; substance and accuracy of testimony is confirmed by authoritative sources, 1 of whom indicates that intelligence panel had obtained names of number of Amer newsmen who had entered into similar relationship with FBI and CIA in past; FBI dir Clarence M Kelley tells reporters that although FBI, to his knowledge, now has no informants posing as reprs of news gathering orgns, 'We've had friendly newspaper people who might, on occasion, help us'; Jaffe says he cannot place precisely date on which he was 1st approached by 2 FBI agents about reptg on Soviet diplomats stationed there, but that he believed it occured sometime during his tenure as correspondent for Life (pub) between '52 and '55; says he was not paid by FBI; Sig Mickelson, who headed CBS News Div during part of Jaffe's employment there, says he had no knowledge of Jaffe's relationship with FBI; Jaffe por (M)

12 of top 50 US bank holding cos were placed on confidential 'problem' list by Fed Reserve staff a yr ago, and Marine Midland Banks, First Penna Corp, Union Bancorp, First Wisconsin Corp and NCNB Corp were listed with 6 smaller banks as having 'more serious problems'; list is different from similar list prepared by Currency Comptroller; includes Chase Manhattan but not First Natl; Fed Reserve official Brenton C Leavitt says that list has changed in last yr that many problems have been corrected and that publication of yr-old material would damage all banks on list; Arthur B Ziegler and Edward W Duffy (Marine Midland), Richard S Thornton (First Penna), Thomas I Storrs (NCNB) and other bank execs comment; holding cos and banks listed (L)

Palestinian guerrillas and their Moslem allies press offensive in several parts of country as high-level Syrian mediation mission arrives in Beirut; Govt's authority continues to weaken as both Christians and opponents seize police stations around country; Lebanese mil spokesman says 3,000 to 4,000 'Syrian and Palestinian troops' crossed border from Syria; Chamoun charges that Syrian Army is fighting in Zahle and Chtaura areas; Wafa holds Palestine Liberation Army units have been in Lebanon for yrs; Franjieh meets with Syrian team headed by Khaddam, Shihabi and Jamil; Syrians later meet with Moslem leaders, including Karami; Khaddam says he carried message from Assad; Govt rejects Riad's call for Arab conf on crisis; illus; map (M)

Mayor Beame announces NYC plans, press conf; illus (S)

illus being greeted by Brezhnev in Moscow

US BLS repts that food prices rose 1% in Dec '75 (S)

Southern Angola, which forms bulk of area under control of factions supported by West, is country in distress, under uncertain authority, in econ paralysis and girding for onslaught from USSR-backed Popular Movement for Liberation of Angola; Natl Union for Liberation of Angola leader Jonas M Savimbi and chief of staff Nzau Puna comment on problems faced by faction and hopes for future (L)