THE WEEK

By KATHLEEN ADAMS, MELISSA AUGUST, NICK CATOGGIO, LINA LOFARO, MICHAEL QUINN, JEFFERY RUBIN, ALAIN SANDERS, ANASTASIA TOUFEXIS AND SIDNEY URQUHART

NATION

NOT PAGING DR. FOSTER

Succumbing to a lethal combination of abortion politics and presidential aspirations, the nomination of Dr. Henry Foster for Surgeon General died on the Senate floor. Democrats were unable to muster the 60 votes required to force a vote on the nomination, which backers said Foster would have won. Presidential aspirants Bob Dole and Phil Gramm vied to take credit for scuttling the nomination, which became particularly controversial after Foster offered differing accounts of how many abortions he had performed. President Clinton said the vote sent the "chilling message" that the G.O.P. had aligned itself with antiabortion "extremists." As for Foster, he said he was still eager for government service; Clinton may appoint him to a post that doesn't require confirmation.

BUDGETEERS BALANCE THEIR ACT

House and Senate conferees split the differences separating the two chambers and announced they had reached a compromise for a seven-year balanced-budget plan. They agreed to recommend that both Houses adopt nearly $1 trillion in spending cuts, approve $245 billion worth of tax reductions and abolish the Commerce Department.

ZIGZAGGING ON HIGHWAYS

Tacking on a series of provisions to a $13 billion highway-construction bill, the Senate voted to scrap the national 55-m.p.h. and 65-m.p.h. speed limits for passenger cars but decided to retain the limits for heavy trucks and buses. Senators agreed to leave motorcycle-helmet rules up to the states but insisted that "zero-tolerance" alcohol policies be adopted by all states for drivers under 21 and that federal seat-belt rules be retained. The bill now goes to the House.

WHO CAN MARCH, WHO CAN'T

In a decision involving the Boston St. Patrick's Day Parade, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that organizers of privately sponsored parades have a First Amendment right to keep out marchers they do not want to include--in this case a group of gay activists. "One important manifestation of the principle of free speech," wrote Justice David Souter, "is that one who chooses to speak may also decide what not to say." The court also upheld a Florida rule that bars lawyers from soliciting accident victims through the mails for 30 days after a tragedy.

"FRIENDLY FIRE" ACQUITTAL

The only court-martial to follow from the 1994 "friendly fire" downing of two U.S. helicopters patrolling the "no fly" zone over northern Iraq ended in the acquittal of the sole person charged: Air Force Captain Jim Wang, the senior director aboard the awacs plane monitoring the region. Wang claimed that his radarscope did not identify the choppers as friendly and that he was being pursued as a scapegoat; his acquittal means that no one involved in the attack--including the two F-15 pilots who fired on the helicopters--will be held criminally accountable for the snafu's 26 deaths.

OUCH! MORE BASE CLOSINGS

The special panel charged with recommending to the President and Congress which military bases should be closed announced its final painful round of cuts. Hardest hit state: California, which stands to lose McClellan Air Force Base and the Long Beach Naval Shipyard, among other facilities.

SOUTHERN BAPTISTS REPENT

Members of the Southern Baptist Convention--which supported slavery in the 19th century, splitting with Baptists in the North over the issue--voted overwhelmingly to "apologize" to all African Americans and ask for their "forgiveness."

THE GLOVED ONE, PART II

O.J. Simpson tried on another pair of gloves at his murder trial, and this time they fit. Continuing an aggressive damage-control effort, prosecutors requested that Simpson try on a new, pristine pair of gloves--a pair that prosecutors claim matches the original size, make and style of the case's famous "bloody gloves." A week before, Simpson had struggled mightily when asked to put on the actual bloody gloves in front of the jury; prosecutors allege they had shrunk owing to exposure to moisture.

WORLD

CHECHENS FREE HOSTAGES

Having won most of their demands, rebels from Chechnya who held more than 1,000 hostages in the Russian town of Budyonnovsk returned by bus to their homeland, releasing their last 123 hostages and escaping into the Caucasus Mountains. During negotiations, Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin agreed to a cease-fire in the Russian government's six-month attempt to crush the Chechen rebellion. Negotiators later signed an agreement that would disarm the Chechen rebels in exchange for a gradual withdrawal of most Russian troops, provided both sides can agree on Chechnya's political status. The Chechens also bowed to a Russian ultimatum, promising to help arrest Shamil Basayev, the rebel who led the attack and who is considered a national hero by many Chechens.

SHOWDOWN IN MOSCOW

In a snub to President Boris Yeltsin, the Russian parliament passed a motion of no-confidence in the government of Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin, whose negotiations with the Chechen terrorists had taken place while Yeltsin summited in Halifax, Nova Scotia, with the G-7 leaders. Though the vote won't lead to the dissolution of the government, it could lead to the dissolution of parliament.

"TIME TO PUT UP OR SHUT UP"

John Major, the least popular Prime Minister in modern British history, resigned as Conservative leader and called a leadership election on July 4 in a bid to silence ever louder opponents within his party. Said Major, who trails Labour's Tony Blair by 39 points in national polls: "It is time to put up or shut up." In a move he insisted was unrelated, Major's Foreign Secretary, Douglas Hurd, under fire from those same opponents, resigned.

WALESA'S BELATED SEMI-REBUKE

Polish President Lech Walesa condemned anti-Semitism but refused to criticize a Roman Catholic priest who delivered a sermon saying Jews possessed a "satanic greed that is responsible for Communism and World War II." Walesa had attended the sermon, given by his longtime friend the Rev. Henryk Jankowski, in Gdansk earlier this month but claimed he couldn't hear what Jankowski said because the church's "acoustics were bad." President Clinton, who has been planning to meet Walesa in San Francisco this week for ceremonies marking the U.N.'s 50th anniversary, said the meeting would be conditional on a discussion of Polish anti-Semitism.

BUSINESS

DEMOLITION DERBY

There was no breakthrough in talks in Geneva between the U.S. and Japan about the nations' automotive trade dispute. While Japan is reportedly willing to purchase more American parts for Japanese auto plants located in the U.S., the Clinton Administration has refused to consider any partial deals, and continues to demand that Japan open its domestic auto market. U.S. sanctions against Japanese luxury cars are scheduled to take effect this Wednesday.

SCIENCE

CATCHING UP WITH CANCER

Researchers have isolated a gene that, in a defective form, has been linked to a variety of cancers, including those of the breast, lung, stomach, skin and pancreas. People with the defective A.T.M. gene--an estimated 2 million Americans carry it--have up to an eightfold higher risk of developing the diseases. The discovery could lead to a screening test and new treatments.

ARTS AND MEDIA

AWAY WITH WORDS

Michael Jackson bowed to complaints of anti-Semitism and announced he will record new lyrics to the song They Don't Care About Us, which is featured on his latest album. Jackson told Variety he will replace the controversial lines "Jew me" and "Kike me" with "do me" and "strike me."

SPORTS

A WIN FOR JERSEY

Skating to victory before a delirious home crowd, the New Jersey Devils completed a stunning four-game sweep against the favored Detroit Red Wings to win the National Hockey League championship and claim its first Stanley Cup. There was, however, a bittersweet note: team owner John McMullen, unhappy with his fan base and arena lease, is considering moving the franchise to Nashville, Tennessee.

--By Kathleen Adams, Melissa August, Nick Catoggio, Lina Lofaro, Michael Quinn, Jeffery Rubin, Alain Sanders, Anastasia Toufexis and Sidney Urquhart