August 25, 2004

Minutes of June meetings of Air Transportation Stabilization Board show panel's members felt United Airlines' bid for $1.6 billion in assistance was based on aulty business plan and they believed that helping airline could hurt rest of industry; board said company could find financing elsewhere and that it had not proved that loan was needed to maintain viable air transportation system; photo (M)

Demonstrations across Germany over last four Mondays protesting Chancellor Gerhard Schroder government's plan to cut back generous unemployment benefits have injected volatile new element into German politics; mounting public anger underscores perils of attacking Germany's once-sacrosanct welfare state; government has held line against demands that it dilute or delay measures; but political analysts predict that this will end Schroder's reform drive, at least for now; protests could dull whatever conservative opposition has to press for more radical changes and cuts in social benefits; measures, scheduled to take effect in January 2005, would affect Germans out of work for more than 12 months; rather than drawing long-term unemployment compensation, which can be up to 60 percent of recipient's original salary, they would receive only basic welfare, amounting to 345 euros ($417) each month, plus extra money to help for rent and utilities; photo (M)

Federal state and local officials say police and vast armada of land, air and maritime forces are being deployed in New York City for Republican National Convention in intentionally huge response to intelligence that Al Qaeda hopes to carry out attack to disrupt presidential vote; intelligence officials say nation will remain on high terror alert throughout convention and probably well beyond; say they are increasingly concerned about attack, even though there are no specific indications of strike during convention; thousands of delegates arriving in city are likely to face new round of potentially confusing public warnings alongside soothing official exhortations to enjoy party, which will take place inside security envelope surrounding Madison Square Garden; NYC police will flood streets with up to 10,000 officers and employ high and low technology; Comr Raymond W Kelly comments; Secret Service coordinates security; over two dozen federal, state and local agencies will contribute personnel and equipment (M)

Twentieth Century Fox's home-entertainment unit, which passed on chance to release Mel Gibson's controversial movie The Passion of the Christ in theaters, is wooing pastors at 260,000 churches to buy DVD and video versions in bulk and emphasizing sales in South and Midwest, where movie was most popular; executives say orders for DVD's and videos are 20 percent ahead of projections; chart (M)

Benjamin L Ginsberg, Bush re-election campaign's top outside lawyer, says he gave legal advice to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, group attacking Democratic presidential nominee Sen John Kerry's Vietnam War record and antiwar activism, interview; says he helps group comply with campaign finance rules; says work is entirely separate from his work for Pres Bush; likens his role to that of Robert Bauer, lawyer for both Kerry campaign and liberal group organizing huge get-out-the-vote drive; Bush campaign aides have repeatedly denied link to Swift Boat group, almost all of whose challenges to Kerry and his war record have been contradicted by official records and even some of its members' own past statements; diagram of group's links to Republicans (M)