September 18, 1993

Clinton Firm on Somalia President Clinton said he would rather increase United States involvement in Somalia than withdraw before the famine-ravaged country has a stable political base. Page 5. 2 Officers Shot in Brooklyn Two plainclothes officers were seriously wounded in a gunfight with suspected drug dealers in the East New York section. Six supects were being questioned. Page 23. Holtzman Faults City Report Elizabeth Holtzman faulted a city investigative report that criticized a campaign loan she obtained from a bond underwriter. Page 21. Robbery on Metro-North Five masked men held up a Metro-North commuter train Thursday night while the train was making a stop in Yonkers. Page 21. Billiards Master Is Dead Willie Mosconi, one of the greatest pocket billiards players and a 13-time world champion, died of a heart attack. He was 80. Page 9.

Concerned about North Korea's recent tests of a new generation of missiles, Japan and the United States have begun discussions about developing and deploying a new antimissile system on Japanese soil to deter short-range attacks. Preliminary talks about combining technological talents to build the system, which would be a major expansion of the postwar military relationship between the two countries, were held this week in Honolulu. But Japanese officials say they expect to receive a fuller American proposal next week, during a visit to Tokyo by John M. Deutch, the Pentagon's Under Secretary for Acquisition and Technology. Existing Missile System Aging American and Japanese officials say the new system may include major improvements on an existing antimissile system, like the Patriot, combined with some kind of satellite detection system that would warn of an attack.

Six months after the Federal Communications Commission promised cable television customers $1 billion in annual rate rollbacks, the agency conceded today that cable rates seem to be rising, as many consumers have argued. "It's obvious there's a problem, but we'll have to find out the extent of it," said James H. Quello, the acting chairman of the commission. Amid a torrent of complaints from angry consumers and members of Congress, the F.C.C. announced that it would start a detailed survey of the prices charged by the 25 biggest cable companies.

The Congressional Budget Office warned today that one of the most important elements of President Clinton's health plan, Federal limits on private health insurance premiums, could harm consumers by forcing a reduction in valuable medical care and restricting access to new medical technology. More than any other factor, it is the soaring cost that has ignited public interest in efforts to overhaul the nation's medical system. Mr. Clinton asserts that his proposal would control costs primarily by encouraging competition in the health care market.

Christine Todd Whitman has surfaced. After a long and leisurely summer, the Republican gubernatorial candidate has hit the road in her campaign to unseat Jim Florio, trailing a big-name Republican consultant, a staff of exuberant young aides and two unwelcome guests. "It's just dumb, it's silly," Mrs. Whitman said during a drive to a Mercer County campaign stop this week, talking about the two fresh-faced workers from the Governor's campaign who shadow her across the state, waiting for slips of the tongue. She neglected to mention that Republican workers sometimes shadow Mr. Florio for the same reason.