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Anthrax at White House Mail Site
WASHINGTON, Oct 23 (News Agencies) - U.S. authorities closed the site that handles all White House mail - but is miles (kilometers) from the presidential mansion - after a letter-opening machine there tested positive for anthrax Tuesday.
"It was found on what is called a 'slitter', which is a mechanical device that opens the mail. It was not found on any mail itself," White House spokesman Ari Fleischer told reporters at a specially arranged briefing.
Asked whether staff in the White House itself may have been contaminated, he replied: "as a result of many security precautions that have been put in place since September 11th, we have high confidence that that is not the case."
The test that unearthed "a small concentration of anthrax" was part of enhanced security procedures implemented after the September 11th terror strikes on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, said Fleischer.
Employees at the site, on "a military facility miles away from the White House itself," were being tested for the disease and provided with antibiotics. Mailroom employees at the White House itself were also being tested, he said.
"The off-site facility is at a military facility, located miles away from the White House itself," said Fleischer, who told reporters that the West Wing - site of U.S. President George W. Bush's office - was not tested for anthrax Tuesday.
An investigation was underway to determine the source of the contamination, which was discovered in late morning, after which the U.S. Secret Service charged with Bush's security was advised, the spokesman said.
Other senior White House staff were informed around 12:30 pm (1230 GMT), and Fleischer was told around 2 pm (1800 GMT).
Meanwhile, members of the US Congress returned to work Tuesday to focus on the threat of bio-terrorism, with both the Senate and the House struggling to cope with additional anthrax deaths in the United States.
The Senate trooped back into the domed Capitol building Tuesday morning, and the House was expected to follow suit later in the afternoon.
"The Capitol is safe," declared House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt on ABC television.
Both chambers had closed down their office buildings last week after an anthrax-bearing letter addressed to Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle was opened October 15th, spreading the deadly spores around the immediate area.
Federal agents since have swept all Senate and House office buildings to ensure that the bacterium has not spread.
Traces of anthrax spores were found in four different locations on Capitol Hill. Officials said 28 people tested positive for anthrax exposure, but none had developed the disease.
"We think the House office buildings will be habitable probably later today or tomorrow," Gephardt said.
Until then, lawmakers and their staffs will have to squeeze into the limited space offered by the Capitol building itself, with some spilling over into various federal offices in the city.
A raft of legislation, including a number of bills considered urgent by the Bush administration, an economic stimulus package and the nation's 2002 budget, have been in limbo since the outbreak.
But for lawmakers, faced with confirmation Tuesday that three people have now died of anthrax, the fight against bio-terrorism and the country's seeming lack of preparedness has taken precedence.
"We seem medically unprepared to deter or defend against attacking agents [like] anthrax and smallpox, long considered likely terrorist or biological warfare weapons," said worried Republican Representative Christopher Shays.
"Today, as the threat of anthrax infection has become a grim reality, we remain without adequate supplies of either the old or new anthrax vaccine," he warned at a specially convened House committee hearing.
House International Relations ranking member Tom Lantos also criticized the government's "gradual approach" to the crisis.
But Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson defended the administration's record.
"The president and the entire administration are committed to preventing bio-terrorism," he told the hearing. "Our rapid and effective reports and efforts on September 11th and the days immediately following have certainly demonstrated that commitment."
But he acknowledged the United States would have to move to get ahead of the threat posed by the potentially deadly bacteria.
"We have good science, but it is also, ladies and gentlemen, an evolving science. Remember we have never had cases of anthrax attacks in this manner before.
"It is a new challenge that we are all facing as a country. We also need to get ahead of the science," he said.
Bush's administration has requested some two billion dollars to finance the fight against bio-terrorism.
Washington authorities confirmed Tuesday that two postal workers died from anthrax, and two others are infected with inhalation anthrax and remain in critical condition in local hospitals.
The first victim of the deadly bacteria was Robert Stevens, a photo editor for the
Sun tabloid in Boca Raton, Florida. At least 10 others have developed the disease and around 30 have been exposed to the bacteria.
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