Wednesday, December 28, 2011
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Romney looks past Iowa to Obama
Saying President Obama is risking "the soul of America," Mitt Romney kicked off his stretch run to Tuesday's Iowa caucuses with his eyes squarely on the general election, even as the rest of the Republican presidential field took aim at one another.
House balance may hinge on court rulings
The 2012 congressional elections are more than 10 months away, but some key votes already have been cast — and not by the electorate.
Tax bill set for increasingly rare conference committee
Last week's tax fight in Congress was about many things — Social Security taxes, unemployment benefits and an oil pipeline — but House Republicans tried to make it into an even bigger fight over the institutional relevance of the House of Representatives itself.
MF Global chief missing $1.2B is financial adviser to EPA
Even as he finds himself the public face of investment firm MF Global's bankruptcy and admitted to lawmakers that he had no idea how client funds disappeared, Congress and the administration have voiced no public concern about Bradley Abelow's role advising the $8.6 billion government agency on its finances.
North Koreans salute, cry for late leader Kim Jong-il
Tens of thousands of North Koreans lined the snowy streets of Pyongyang on Wednesday, wailing and clutching their chests as a black hearse carried late leader Kim Jong-il's body through the capital for a final farewell.
Effort to recall D.C. Mayor Gray set to begin
Ward 6 resident Frederick Butler says he is ready to hit the pavement once D.C. voters get the green light next week to start the recall process against Mayor Vincent C. Gray and other city politicians finishing a tumultuous year.
China spared penalty over value of currency
The Obama administration said Tuesday that China is making headway on its currency-valuation policies and should not be deemed a currency manipulator — fighting back against top Senate Democrats who had demanded President Obama sanction the U.S.'s top economic competitor.
U.S. police fatalities up 13 percent in 2011 to 173
Across the nation, 173 officers have died in the line of duty this year, up 13 percent from 2010, according to numbers as of Wednesday compiled by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.
Mubarak back in Egyptian court as trial resumes
The trial of ousted President Hosni Mubarak resumed Wednesday after a three-month break, with the former Egyptian leader returning to the metal defendants' cage in a Cairo courtroom for the latest proceedings.
Iran warns of closing strategic Strait of Hormuz
Iran's navy chief warned Wednesday that his country easily can close the strategic Strait of Hormuz at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, the passageway through which a sixth of the world's oil flows.
Congressman: Iraq releases 3 security contractors
Three security contractors, including two Americans, were released by Iraqi army forces Tuesday after they were held for more than two weeks, the chairman of the House Committee on Homeland Security announced as he demanded a full report on the episode.
Syria frees 755 prisoners detained in crackdown
The Syrian government on Wednesday released 755 prisoners detained over the past nine months in the regime's crackdown on dissent as observers toured a flashpoint city to see whether authorities were complying with an Arab plan to stop the bloodshed that has killed thousands.
Gingrich backers return fire at Romney
A super-PAC supporting Republican presidential hopeful Newt Gingrich spent $40,000 attacking rival Mitt Romney by sending mailers about the former Massachusetts governor to Iowa voters the week before the state's first-in-the-nation caucuses, according to filings Tuesday.
HURT: Congress — the Christmas relative from hell
Last week's dramatic, down-to-the wire legislative hokum to "rescue" millions of Americans from a $1,000 tax increase on the stroke of the New Year reminds us once again how Congress really is that whining, self-absorbed nightmare of a relative that every family must endure.
Sen. Ben Nelson won't run for re-election
Nebraska Sen. Ben Nelson, one of the Senate's most moderate — and politically vulnerable — Democrats, announced Tuesday he won't seek a third term in office next year, saying it was "time to move on."
Rapid change of Arab Spring slows in winter
The Arab Spring set in with the hope that a huge democratic change finally was within reach for the region. Now, 12 months later, that initial euphoria largely has subsided.
Commentary |
MILLER: Politics 2011: Cain to WeinerEach year, Google releases its Zeitgeist list of searched terms that rose quickly to popularity. The measurement isn't for most searched, which inevitably leads to weather and movies, but for terms that accelerated fastest from obscurity to being household words. The results range from serious crises to people who enjoyed 15 minutes of fame. EDITORIAL: The Pez-dispenser presidencyIt was just over three years ago that Barack Obama echoed the words of great men in his much-ballyhooed speech on race: "We the people, in order to form a more perfect Union ... ." That occasion was guaranteed to chart a new course for the country, all to no avail. Despite being promoted as a "landmark" occasion, not even the most ardent liberal can recite a poignant line or concrete result from the event. That's because Mr. Obama dispenses supposedly momentous addresses like a Pez dispenser. FITSCHEN: Gingrich is rightIf you're a political junkie, you've got to love a presidential candidate who lights the fire Newt Gingrich has lit. Or at least you have to love the fire. Impeach judges? Subpoena them? Arrest them? LAMBRO: Nation's first contest is a three-way raceIowa voters are having a hard time making up their minds, though it appears they've boiled down their top choices to three candidates. Not only do Iowa's polls show those three well ahead of the other contenders, but any one of them has a clear shot at winning the state's caucuses on Jan. 3. SWINDLE: Technological innovation is its own antitrust policyThe pace of innovation in the information-technology sector of our economy is so fast that defining the various markets and competitors at any given point in time is quite challenging. The Internet is allowing new innovations and emerging companies to thrive like never before, and in the blink of an eye, we could see the next game changer become a household name. Nowhere is this more prevalent than in the consumer-technology space. |
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