000522.txt Mark Green's web site lists unclaimed IRS dollars By Melanie Fonder For The News-Chronicle WASHINGTON - U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett was among those who argued Thursday that the School of the Americas should be closed. Barrett, D-Milwaukee, favored an amendment to close the school known by opponents as one that trains international terrorists. "Mr.Chairman, to put it quite bluntly, the school has lost its credibility with the American people," he said from the House floor. "We cannot ignore the history of this school and its track record of graduates involved in violence." The amendment to shut down the school was offered for the Defense Appropriations bill by Rep. Joe Moakley, D-Mass., but failed passage on a 204-214 vote. U.S. Rep. Mark Green, R-Green Bay, was the only member of the Wisconsin delegation who voted with the majority that killed the amendment. CHINA TRADE ROUND-UP With support for permanent normal trade relations slightly tipping in favor of passage, the majority of Wisconsin representatives plan to vote against the trade deal later this week. So far, Reps. James Sensenbrenner, R-Menomonee Falls, Tammy Baldwin, D-Madison, Dave Obey, D-Wausau, Gerald Kleczka, D-Milwaukee and Barrett have said they plan to vote against the measure. Rep. Ron Kind, D-La Crosse, will break rank with his state party colleagues and vote to support trade with China. Reps. Paul Ryan, R-Janesville, and Tom Petri, R-Fond du Lac, are "leaning yes." Only Green has yet to indicate which way he will vote. The vote, which pundits say will be the most significant one of the session, is still too close to call and has created unusual alliances between free trade supporters like President Clinton and the House Republican leadership. Vice President Al Gore also supports the measure, which has pitted him against his House Democrat counterparts, including Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., and Minority Whip David Bonior, D-Mich. "I think ultimately we're going to have the votes because this is a very, very important decision not only for own economic well-being but in regards to our relationship with China in the 21st century," Kind said. "I would hope that in the final analysis we'll have enough people supporting this because I just think the status quo is indefensible - China has access to our markets and we don't have access to theirs. It's been a one-way street." BUSH-PATAKI AND GORE-FEINSTEIN? Wisconsin's two pols who frequently make the "short" lists of potential vice presidential candidates, Republican Gov. Tommy Thompson and Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., are numerically in another galaxy. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reported Saturday about a study by two political scientists who measured the statistical probability various vice presidential hopefuls might be selected by comparing who actually has been selected for the No. 2 slot since 1940. On the GOP side, Thompson came in fifth with a 2.7 percent chance, behind New York Gov. George Pataki, California Rep. Christopher Cox, Michigan Gov. John Engler and New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman. On the Democratic side, Feingold finished 12h with a miniscule .07 percent chance, behind - among others - Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Calif., Gephardt, Sen. Bob Graham, Fla., former Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and Housing Secretary Andrew Cuomo. The study shows that Pataki (64.3 percent) and Feinstein (60.4 percent) are the odds-on favorites for the job. CLAIMYOURCASH.COM Green unveiled his updated World Wide Web site on Thursday and is urging Northeast Wisconsin residents to check it out for money that may be theirs. The site, located at www.house.gov/markgreen, contains a list of names and unclaimed Internal Revenue Service dollars and information on how to claim the funds. Also new on the site is an "eKids Zone" which includes educational and historical links. This column by Fonder, a staff writer for The Hill, a Washington-based weekly newspaper that covers Congress, appears every Monday in The Green Bay News-Chronicle. You can email her with comments at melfonder@yahoo.com.