WASHINGTON INSIGHT

OFFICIALLY OVER: Twenty-three years after U.S. troops pulled out of Vietnam--and a year after normalizing relations with Hanoi--the U.S. government is declaring that that country is no longer a combat zone. Under an executive order signed by President Clinton, the designation will end next month, eliminating combat pay and special tax benefits for U.S. military personnel sent to Vietnam or nearby waters. The Pentagon kept the combat status to protect MIAs and their dependents until it was clear those listed as missing were no longer alive, and to provide the benefits to military investigators sent to recover remains of servicemen. The last of the MIAs thought to be alive was formally declared dead in September 1994. From now on, U.S. service personnel dispatched to Vietnam to help identify remains will be awarded “imminent danger pay”--with no special tax benefits.

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PARADE O’HAIR: Those who doubt the value of the Internet obviously haven’t punched up Hillary’s Hair Site--the first Web site devoted to a first lady’s coiffure. Creators Mike Miller and James Schneider describe themselves as “more or less Democrats” and insist that they mean no disrespect. Their purpose, they say, is to salute a first lady who “seems to change hairstyles like most people change underwear.” They offer a 45-second rock video of the “Parade o’Hair,” a screen-saver of hairstyles, a trivia contest and the “Mighty Morphin’ Hlllary” movie of perpetually blending hairstyles. The first lady also appears bald--some might say Conehead-like--for those with the urge to draw their own Hillary do. In an interview also available at https://www.hillaryshair.com, the first lady says she is flattered. “The idea that I now have a Web site about my hair is something I could not dream.”

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BUYING SILENCE: The U.S. Agency for International Development has paid $133,500 to an employee who has promised to stop being critical of the agency. Paul Neifert, who is leaving AID, has acknowledged receiving the money, along with more than five months’ paid leave. He has agreed never again to discuss problems within the agency publicly. Neifert was the most outspoken of several AID employees who complained about contracting abuses by AID officials in Pretoria, South Africa, including a widely criticized decision to grant $300,000 to Soft Sheen, a Chicago manufacturer of hair care products. Rep. Benjamin A. Gilman (R-N.Y.), chairman of the House International Relations Committee and a critic of the grant, noted that the payment to Neifert coincides with 200 layoffs at AID. “It would appear that several of those employees are losing their jobs so that AID could make this secret payoff to Mr. Neifert,” he said.

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DID I MENTION BOLD? The vaunted Republican organizational skills that helped propel the party into the White House in five of the last seven presidential elections were on bold display last week--maybe too much so. After Bob Dole’s announcement that he would leave the Senate to campaign full out, Republicans churned out statements on behalf of at least 25 GOP governors, virtually all repeating the spin-cycle phrases suggested by party central. Minnesota Gov. Arne Carlson, for instance, commended Dole for his “boldness and courage.” To Louisiana Gov. Mike Foster, the move was “bold and courageous.” Michigan Gov. John Engler saw the decision as “a bold strike and an act of courage.” The other favorite was “commitment to the campaign.” But one governor broke ranks. William Janklow of South Dakota only alluded to the buzz-lines: “Bob Dole has done the classiest thing I’ve ever seen. He either goes to the White House or back to Kansas. He’s not just going to hang out at the fort.”