THE WEEK THAT WAS

by MONITOR
BARACK Obama publicly admitted that he had “screwed up” by nominating Tom Daschle as Health Secretary; Mr Daschle had failed to keep his tax in proper order. This was the fourth of Mr Obama's nominations to be withdrawn for one reason or another. The President chided Congress for the slow progress it was making with his proposals to recharge the American economy while unemployment was rocketing. n President Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka claimed that the final defeat of the rebel Tamil Tigers was imminent after years of bitter conflict. Some 250'000 civilians were trapped in the area where the Tigers were holding out. n Following an intervention by the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, the Pope ordered a conservative bishop, Richard Williamson,to recant on his denials of the Holocaust. n Iran put a satellite into orbit to mark the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution which followed the expulsion of the Shah and the end of US influence in Iran after many years. Washington said it viewed the launch with “great concern”.