1.   Although the Croatian courts based their refusal to hand Walaschek over on legal grounds, U.S. and Croatian officials familiar with the case say the decision had political overtones.

2.   The comment came after the dollar surged almost one pfennig against the mark following news service reports citing German officials familiar with Finance Ministry thinking.

3.   President Clinton will push again this year for a tax credit designed to make college education more affordable, officials familiar with his proposal say.

4.   The appeal was expected to be lodged later today, said two Republican officials familiar with the internal deliberations.