July 11, 1992

Gov. Bill Clinton of Arkansas said today that his newly named running mate, Senator Al Gore of Tennessee, would play a "strong role" as Vice President and would take the lead in winning Congressional approval for domestic policy proposals he plans to present in the first 100 days of a Clinton Presidency. "I don't want Al Gore to be the kind of Vice President that sits in the United States Senate waiting to vote to break a tie," Mr. Clinton said at a news conference at a hotel here. "I want him to break the logjam in Washington, to give us a government that works for all the people again, and I believe he can."

Inquiry on Los Angeles Police Willie L. Williams, the new Los Angeles Police Chief, sealed the offices of a police intelligence unit and opened an inquiry into accusations that it had spied for years on local politicians and celebrities. Page 5. Hazelwood Wins on Appeal An Alaskan appeals court threw out the conviction of the Exxon Valdez's skipper, saying a Federal statute protected him from prosecution for the nation's worst oil spill. Page 5. New Limits on Car Renters Budget Rent a Car, in an attempt to avoid liability suits, will start screening some renters by quizzing them about their driving records, and then turning some people away. Page 33. Louvre Painting Damaged A huge artwork by the Italian Renaissance master Veronese was ripped in five places while undergoing restoration at the Louvre in Paris. Page 11. Doubts Plague N.A.A.C.P. After a bitter internal battle last winter, the N.A.A.C.P. begins its annual convention tomorrow nagged by uncertainty about its leadership and questions about its relevance. Page 8.

A year after Connecticut's first income tax was adopted against a backdrop of bitter public opposition and huge budget deficits, Gov. Lowell P. Weicker Jr. said today that the state's finances have made a dramatic turnaround, with this year's budget showing a modest surplus of $30 million. "The income tax has done exactly what was predicted for it," Mr. Weicker said, addressing about 50 state senators and representatives who supported his budget at a breakfast in the Capitol's ornate Old Judiciary Room.

Restaurant fever struck New York with a vengeance this week, leaving maitres d'hotel, owners and chefs breathless in a deluge of requests for reservations. "It is bordering on hysteria," Barry Wine, owner of the four-star Quilted Giraffe, said yesterday as he contemplated the sudden demand that resulted from announcements that his restaurant, along with some 100 others in New York City, would offer lunch for $19.92 next week during the Democratic National Convention. The restaurant normally charges $45.

A jury decided yesterday that Pan American World Airways was liable for damages because its security procedures failed to protect passengers in the 1988 explosion of Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, a bombing that took 270 lives. The verdict, in a civil case in Federal District Court in Brooklyn, opened the way for trials on individual claims for damages that legal experts estimated could total about $300 million. Pan Am is bankrupt, but its insurance companies are responsible for paying damages to the families of victims.