European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - February 8, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 2 the stars and stripes monday february a 1966 Bill would hike gis pay to offset Low Dollar by Chuck Vinch Washington Bureau Washington spurred by a steady Stream of letters from service Mcm bars a senior congressman has introduced a Bill that would boost the amount of Money Given to military personnel overseas in compensation for the falling Dollar. Rep. Charles Bennett. D-fla., a Mem Ber of the House armed services com Milicic. Introduced the Bill Jan. 25. The first Day of the new session of Congress. The Bill Calls for quarterly adjustments in the Rale of Basic pay and quarters an subsistence allowances Bawd on the level of he Dollar on Jan. I i9h7. For service Mcm tvs on accompanied Tours Over seas. Hut Pentagon officials As Well As mail ers on the to Louse armed services com Mittee questioned the need for inc Bill in View of he fact that inc military Al ready has an established program to compensate for foreign currency fluctuations the Cost of living allowance or cola. Bennett in a Telephone interview said he continues to get tetters from service members overseas who Are caught in Money crunch because of the linking Dollar. These letters would seem to indicate that we have a problem out in arc he said. I m just looking for ways to help out our  col. Thomas Waugh chief of inc de sense department s pay and compensation office Tsiu the cola system is de signed to do tie same thing As Dunne i s Bill. We have a mechanism to adjust the cola based on factors derived fro regular surveys Given to Scrico Momb cars Waugh said. And the cola sys tem has even been improved in the Las few months to make in More responsive to currency fluctuations. The system is pretty effective Asil  overseas service members have not Given the defense department an Indica Tion there is a serious problem Waugh added. House armed services committee staffers to whom inc Bill has been referred expressed much the same View. The current cola is updated every two weeks said one staffer. "1 Don t Linow How you can get More responsive than  the staffer said inc Market Basket Survey of . Goods prices that is a major Factor in determining cola Levels do a Gephar ref called front runners by poll in finale of Iowa Campaign res Moines. Lowi a a new poll gives sen. Robert Dole a Douthe Ili Gilead in the Republican presidential race in Iowa and rep. Richard Gephardt ii smaller Edge among the democrats. The new report came As the pack of . Presidential contenders to Rcd through this Rural.  mate on a final weekend of campaigning for Iowa s precinct caucuses on monday. The Survey prepared for publication in sunday s edition of the pcs Monics Register pave Dole a 37 percent to 23 percent Edge Over vice president George Bush Wilh the rest of the Republican rivals further afield Gephardt Drew the support of 25 per cent of Likely democratic caucus goers compared with 19 percent far sen Paul Simon of Illinois and is percent for Massachusetts gov. Michael Dukakis. The rest of the Field trailed in the poll which suggested thai the late trend was in Gephardt s favor. America s iwo major political parties republicans and democrats each a Cuccu a nominee for president at a convention this summer before inc novem Ber general elections. Prior to inc conventions each state Branch of the National Nany selects Dele Gates to the party gatherings either through primary nominating elections or caucuses. To the winners of the Iowa caucus the first lest of the 1988 presidential race go the spoils of momentum for new Hamp Shire s primary feb. 16 and the later races. The pcs Monics newspaper disclosed the results of its poll As candidates trav eled the state in a race so crowded that they kept bumping into each other in airports and hotel lobbies. We ought to Fly around to Geiker and save Money Gephardt quipped sat urday As he and Dukakis crossed paths Al the pcs Monics Airport. Duilio began his weekend campaigning in South Dakota bumping into Duka Kis in a hotel lobby before Hying Lon Earby Towa for a final Blitz aboard air Force two. We re fighting from be  he said and the polls agreed. The Register Survey wus a Case in tit ret. Jes Jaclson and Illinois sen. Paul Simon clasp bunds Afler being endorsed by he Slop the Armi Tjce political action co Mitler in Deimo inn. Point. Behind Dole and Bush in said Pat Robertson hid 13 percent support rep. Jack Kemp had 11 percent former Dela Ware gov. Pete Dupont. 7 percent and former Secretary of state Alexander Haig. I Peront. The Survey of 660 Likely caucus goers had a margin of error of 4 percentage Points. On the democratic Side the Survey said Gephardt Simon and Dukakis were trailed by former Arizona gov. Bruce Babbitt and Jesse Jackson both with 9 percent former Colorado sen. Gay Hart with 7 percent and sen. Albert Gore or. Of Tennessee wilh1 percent. Undecided voices totalled i5 per cent of inc 612 Likely caucus goers. The Survey had a margin of error of percent. Elsewhere Dole and Bush each gained saturday in the Survey that counts sup port from delegates to the Republican National convention. Dole won control of the Kansas re publican caucuses on saturday meaning he will win Alt 34 of his Home Stales National convention delegates. In Penn Sylvania the Republican state commit tee picked is delegates and i oof them arc Active in the Bush Campaign there. With saturday s results. Bush had 47 delegates. Dole had 34, Kemp had 32and Kobe non had s. In All. 2,277 delegates arc slated to attend the National convention in new Orleans in Aurum. 1,500 join Athens anti-. Protest May need 1o be changed. Put As far As lying the allowance to currency fluctuations As this Bill would do that s a duplication of what s already  the staffer said. Jay Mooney a Bennett aide mid the congressman understands that cola ii designed to keep the purchasing Power of overseas military personnel steady. But our feeling is that things Aren t quite a study As they should be he Taid. Bennett acknowledged thai because or inc current budget climate the Bill prob ably will face stiff opposition before the committee. I Don t know what the chances Are for in to go anywhere he said. But at thievery lean maybe we can eel some hear Ings going to study the Issue a Little More closely to ice what s really going on Over news updates . Appeal Bangkok Thailand a a United nations Agency on Sun Day appealed to Thailand to re store its  humanitarian policy in dealing with an influx of vietnamese boat people refugee. Authorities have recently begun to Tow Back to sea the boats of Viet namese attempting to land in thai land after fleeing Tram their Home land via Cambodia. In addition local newspapers reported that seven vietnamese were killed when a thai fishing trawler rammed a refugee Vess Llast month. O Rourke funeral los Angeles a roller is Star Cal her o Rourke who cd of n sudden illness last week was remembered at a celebrity studded funeral As an inspiring sincere Youn girl full of dreams. To All who knew her she was genuine. In a world of plastics shews real the Rev. Dennis Estill Lold 120 mourners attending Lite simple 10-Mimhe funeral at West Wood memorial Park Cluel. Cal her Vicil last monday of an infection caused by a congenital intestinal defect. She was 12. Ruling upheld Washington