NOTE: some news sites require free registration in order to read their stories. Follow these and other news stories at http://www.progressnowaction.org.

Today’s digest archive: http://media.progressnowaction.org/digest/031307.htm

TOP STORIES

Top

National

Cheney: Antiwar Lawmakers Hurt Troops
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201284.html
Antiwar lawmakers in Congress are undermining U.S. troops in Iraq by trying to limit President Bush's spending requests for military operations, Vice President Cheney said yesterday. "When members speak not of victory but of time limits, deadlines and other arbitrary measures, they are telling the enemy simply to watch the clock and wait us out," Cheney said in a speech to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. "When members of Congress pursue an antiwar strategy that's been called 'slow bleed,' they are not supporting the troops, they are undermining them." He said the House's nonbinding vote against troop increases in Iraq last month was an example of "twisted logic" and "not a proud episode in the history of the United States Congress."
RELATED: Opposition Undercuts Troops, Cheney Says of Spending Bill
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/washington/13cheney.html?ref=washington

More Iraq war news in NATIONAL/ELECTION, NATIONAL/GOVERNMENT, NATIONAL/CIVIL LIBERTIES, NATIONAL/FOREIGN POLICY, NATIONAL/MILITARY, COLORADO/TOP STORIES, COLORADO/GOVERNMENT, COLORADO/MILITARY

Firings Had Genesis in White House
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201818.html
The White House suggested two years ago that the Justice Department fire all 93 U.S. attorneys, a proposal that eventually resulted in the dismissals of eight prosecutors last year, according to e-mails and internal documents that the administration will provide to Congress today. The dismissals took place after President Bush told Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales in October that he had received complaints that some prosecutors had not energetically pursued voter-fraud investigations, according to a White House spokeswoman. Gonzales approved the idea of firing a smaller group of U.S. attorneys shortly after taking office in February 2005. The aide in charge of the dismissals -- his chief of staff, D. Kyle Sampson -- resigned yesterday, officials said, after acknowledging that he did not tell key Justice officials about the extent of his communications with the White House, leading them to provide incomplete information to Congress.
RELATED: Congress Demands Rove Testimony on Attorney Firings
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201148.html
RELATED: Key figure in Justice Dept. to step down
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-usattys13mar13,0,38283.story?coll=la-home-headlines
RELATED: Fast-Riser’s High Hopes and Sudden Fall
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/washington/13sampson.html

In Guatemala, Bush Vows to Push Immigration Changes
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200079.html
President Bush defended a recent surge of deportations that have inflamed passions here in Latin America, but vowed Monday to redouble efforts to overhaul immigration laws and called on the Senate to pass comprehensive legislation by summer. "The system needs to be fixed," he said during his first visit to this impoverished nation, which many have fled seeking opportunities in the United States, legally and illegally. "It seems like to me, we've got to get this done by August." Although he called that a goal rather than a deadline, it was the first time Bush has prodded lawmakers with a time frame since Democrats took over Congress. It also was a tacit acknowledgment that the next few months represent his last chance to push through the most significant domestic initiative remaining in his presidency. After that, aides contend, the approach of the 2008 presidential primaries would make consensus implausible.
RELATED: In Guatemala, immigration tops Bush agenda
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-bush13mar13,1,3717472.story?coll=la-headlines-world

More immigration policy news in NATIONAL/IMMIGRATION, COLORADO/IMMIGRATION

Top

Colorado

Senators hold field hearing on new federal farm bill
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413019,00.html
Renewable energy will be a big part of the new federal farm bill and Colorado agriculture will likely have a big role in producing that alternative energy, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said Monday. Harkin, the Senate Agriculture Committee chairman, said he would also look at creating a permanent disaster relief fund in the farm bill for the kind of storms that pounded southeast Colorado in December. An estimated 10,000 cattle died in the blizzards. Farmers and ranchers from across the state turned out for the hearing, the first on the new farm bill to be held outside of Washington. ''I believe Colorado is going to play a very important role in the production of energy from biomass,'' Harkin said in a news conference before the hearing at the Adams County Fairgrounds 20 miles north of Denver.
RELATED: Coloradans detail farm-bill needs
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421797
RELATED: Farmers ask for better disaster programs
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130113
RELATED: Farmers give insight on their role in energy boom
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130116

More energy policy news in NATIONAL/ENERGY, NATIONAL/ENVIRONMENT, COLORADO/GOVERNMENT, COLORADO/ENERGY, COLORADO/ENVIRONMENT

4 counties on election watch list
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5414130,00.html
Secretary of State Mike Coffman on Monday put four Colorado counties with problem- plagued elections on a "watch list" and ordered three of them to use paper ballot backups to their computerized voting machines next time. Under the order, Denver, Douglas and Montrose counties must offer two voting systems because of problems they had that prevented citizens from casting ballots. Pueblo, which failed to verify signatures on absentee ballots, was ordered to find a new way of storing signatures electronically. Coffman said he came close to exercising his authority under state law to seek a court order to simply take over the administration of elections in Montrose and Pueblo counties, where officials actually violated state law. But he chose to order extra supervision instead, noting he did not find any evidence of fraud.
RELATED: 4 county elections watched
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421569
RELATED: Coffman wants eye on Pueblo
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/2

Tiff on war resolution
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5414149,00.html
A war of words over a proposed war resolution intensified Monday, as Democrats and Republicans prepare to do battle Wednesday when the measure is heard. Democratic lawmakers say it's appropriate for the legislature to debate the resolution because the cost of the conflict is resulting in fewer federal dollars to Colorado. The resolution states it is not in the national interest of the United States to deepen its military involvement in Iraq. Republicans fear that the resolution will undermine the troops. But Sen. Ron Tupa, D-Boulder, who introduced the war resolution, said the arguments Republicans are making don't support the troops, but rather support "the president's failed Iraq war policy." "You don't support the troops by sending them inadequately trained and equipped on their second or third deployment into the middle of an Iraqi civil war," Tupa said. Said Sen. Mike Kopp, R-Littleton: "Democrats want to make the resolution about the Bush administration. I think the issue is rightness of the cause." Kopp is sponsoring a support-the-troops rally before the hearing. Among those who plan to attend is Mary Smith, new chairwoman of the Denver Republican Party.
RELATED: War protesters, military families may testify at Iraq hearing
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=15139

COLORADO NEWS

Top

Election

EXTRA!, March 13
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5414116,00.html
Danny Lopez is first to admit that he's got a "snowball's chance in hell" of beating Mayor John Hickenlooper in the election in May. But at least he got top line on the ballot Monday when the Denver Election Commission held a drawing to determine the order of candidates' names.

Jones running for mayor
http://craigdailypress.com/section/localnews/story/25709
Mayor Don Jones is running unopposed in the April 3 elections, and that's all right with him, he said, because there still is a lot to be accomplished by the mayor and the Craig City Council.

Growth dominates candidate debate
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070313_1.htm
If the eight people who are running for City Council agree on one thing, it's that the biggest challenge facing Durango is growth and all of its attendant problems.
RELATED: Candidates' Forum: Peter Tregillus
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=opin&article_path=/opinion/opin070313_2.htm
RELATED: Candidates' Forum: Sidny Zink
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=opin&article_path=/opinion/opin070313_3.htm

Top

Effective and Ethical Government

Fox News, California craziness and changing cocaine laws
http://blogs.denverpost.com/washington/2007/03/12/fox-news-california-craziness-and-changing-cocaine-laws/
Momentum is building in Congress to ease crack cocaine laws, which critics say penalize African-Americans. One of the leaders on the issue is Sen. Ken Salazar, who supports a bill to increase punishments for powder cocaine and decrease them for crack. Controversy continues to swirl over why the Nevada Democratic Party canceled a 2008 primary debate sponsored by Fox News. Fox claimed it was a victim of a fight between liberal and moderate Democrats, while the Nevada Democratic Party argued the network is biased against its candidates. Rep. Mark Udall is pushing for NASA to get more federal money, partially so the agency can fund more earth science projects studying extreme weather, rising oceans and climate change, the Post’s Anne C. Mulkern reported.

Legislature reaches midpoint
http://www.cortezjournal.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070313_8.htm
“It’s an odd session. It’s quiet,” said House Minority Leader Mike May, R-Parker. The first half was slow while Gov. Bill Ritter put his cabinet in place. “Everybody’s learning. We’ve got a lot of new people,” said Sen. Jim Isgar, D-Hesperus. In addition to a new governor, 29 of the 100 legislators are freshmen. Renewable energy advocates have been the big winners so far. Ritter has thrown his support behind bills to require more renewable electricity, to help homeowners install solar panels, and to build more transmission lines from wind farms. “I think this is the year that a lot of us have been waiting for,” said Will Coyne of Environment Colorado. Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald, D-Coal Creek Canyon, agreed.

Court motion seeks to stop enforcement of Amend. 41
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5413678,00.html
A group of Coloradans challenging a new ethics measure asked a court Monday to halt its enforcement until their lawsuit is heard. The motion for a preliminary injunction against Amendment 41 was no surprise. The question is whether the court will act on it before the legislature votes on two bills related to the measure or adjourns May 9. The voter-approved amendment in part bans gifts worth $50 or more to government employees and their families. Although the measure was aimed at reining in gifts to elected officials from lobbyists, it has raised a variety of questions, including whether children of government workers can accept some types of scholarships. Attorney Mike Feeley, who was hired by Amendment 41 supporters to help draft implementing legislation known as House Bill 1304, said even if the injunction is granted, it would not impact that bill or a related one.

Castle Rock considers ethics rules
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421667
Castle Rock, like towns across Colorado, is assessing the difference between an act of kindness and an offer to buy influence, questions raised by voters' passage of Amendment 41 last fall. The Town Council will consider new "rules of conduct" even more strict than the constitutional amendment demands. While Amendment 41 allows up to $50 a year in gifts from a donor, Castle Rock will allow nothing that might come with strings attached. "It means you and I can still have coffee to discuss town business, but I buy my own coffee," said David Minke, Castle Rock's assistant town manager. Municipal and county leaders across Colorado question where the line falls for elected leaders and public employees, such as whether a free lunch from the chamber of commerce is still allowed, or whether a sick or injured firefighter can still accept public donations. A mistake could land them in front of a state ethics panel.

Friends 'round the podium pick 'Rocky Mountain High'
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5414146,00.html
Talk about Rocky Mountain High-jinx. The legislature on Monday officially declared the John Denver tune Colorado's second state song, following a debate that sounded like a Seinfeld skit at times. Sen. Bob Hagedorn, D-Aurora, who came up with the idea of adding the song, assured lawmakers that the tune had nothing to do with drugs. Some Republicans raised concerns that the song could be a Siren's call to getting stoned, because of the line, "Friends around the campfire and everybody's high." In the House, Rep. Debbie Stafford, R-Aurora, unsuccessfully tried to amend the resolution to clarify that Rocky Mountain High "reflects Colorado's high elevation and in no way reflects or encourages any drug abuse." This caused Rep. Andy Kerr, D-Lakewood, to joke, "But it's a 'joint' resolution."
RELATED: Roll Call, March 13
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5413680,00.html
RELATED: "Rocky Mountain High" now 2nd state song
http://www.denverpost.com/ci_5421650
RELATED: Colorado has a 2nd anthem to call its own
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20107&template=article.html
RELATED: 'Rocky Mountain High' point
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130046

House Speaker to accompany Riesberg at Saturday forum
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130105
Colorado House Speaker Andrew Romanoff will accompany state Rep. Jim Riesberg of Greeley at a community forum this weekend. Riesberg and Romanoff, both Democrats, will share their views on the 66th Colorado General Assembly, which is already half over.

Citizen legislator: Ron Tupa
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5413681,00.html
Sen. Ron Tupa arrived at the legislature in 1994 as a bachelor. The Democrat from Boulder, who started out in the House, met Republican Kara Miller, who was a Capitol staffer. They've been married for five years. (By the way, she's still a Republican.)

Superior approves land purchase
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/13/superior-approves-land-purchase/
Town trustees on Monday approved a $1.45 million open-space purchase and settled sticky negotiations with Louisville over shared library services, giving new Town Manager Scott Randall plenty to do on his first day at work. Trustees picked Randall, the former manager of Auburn Hills, Mich., from a national search that drew more than 70 applicants. After a welcome from Mayor Andrew Muckle, the board formally approved an employment contract for the new manager.

Resident sues Silverton over finances
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/13/3_13_3a_Silverton_lawsuit.html
Bill and Laura Alsup are mad at the town of Silverton for two reasons: They want the town to clean up its finances and they want the money back they staked for a public ski lift. The Alsups are suing the town, but not for money. They’ve filed a writ of mandamus, Laura Alsup said, to force the town to get its finances in order. “It’s not a very usual procedure, but it’s the only one we had left,” Alsup said. “Essentially, it’s a court order that compels public officials to do their job.”

Top

Civil Liberties and Equality

Hate crimes tarnish Boulder's reputation
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5414114,00.html
Booze and biases are being blamed for an outbreak of violence bruising this town's tolerant image. "These shameful acts do not represent the values of our city," said Mayor Mark Ruzzin and City Manager Frank Bruno in a joint statement Monday. "We believe that diversity enhances our community and is to be embraced and celebrated. These acts will not be tolerated," they said. According to eyewitness statements, Justin Dwayne King, 23, of Boulder, was walking arm in arm near the Pearl Street Mall with his 18-year-old friend, Anthony Loose, when two reportedly drunk attackers used a derogatory word for gays and shoved King. Eric Schorling, a 21-year-old University of Colorado student, swung at King, who dodged and punched Schorling in the face, witnesses said. Adam Perez, 21, got King in a headlock while Schorling kicked at King's face three times, breaking his glasses, according to witnesses.
RELATED: Boulder officials wrestling with violence
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421802
RELATED: Stop the hate
http://coloradodaily.com/articles/2007/03/12/news/c_u_and_boulder/news1.txt
RELATED: Suspects sought in assault
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/13/suspects-sought-in-assault/

Mesa County Public Library meetings questioned
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/13/3_13_1b_Library_meets.html
Hugenberg said his suspicions of the Feb. 6 meeting arose out of personal concerns he had regarding some recent displays in the main library, 530 Grand Ave. He filed three open records requests and came across a Jan. 25 reference to, and the minutes of, the Feb. 6 meeting. The reference to the Feb. 6 meeting was in the board’s Jan. 25 meeting minutes. In those the upcoming meeting was referred to as a “special board meeting,” not as an executive session or closed meeting. Those minutes can be retrieved online. “What they may have meant was an executive session,” Hugenberg said. “It was called a special meeting and it should have been open.”

Top

Immigration

Tancredo: don't blame government for post-immigration raid problems
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CO_TANCREDO_IMMIGRATION_RAID_COOL-?SITE=COMON&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT
Possible presidential hopeful Tom Tancredo said Monday the government should not be blamed for separating parents from their children after an immigration raid at a Massachusetts factory. More than 300 alleged illegal immigrants were rounded up a week ago at a New Bedford company that makes equipment and apparel for the U.S. military. About 60 were freed within hours because they were determined to be sole caregivers to their children, but members of the Massachusetts congressional delegation and other state officials have raised concerns that not all the children of those detained had been identified or assured proper care. Tancredo, who opposes legal status for illegal immigration and favors a sharp reduction in legal immigration, told college students that the government did the right thing. "As if it were our fault that they came here illegally," he said at Thomas More College. "We are so into blaming America for everything." "If it's a law, it's a law," Tancredo said. "There are consequences."

Top

Marriage and Family Issues

Denver chosen as foster-care reform model
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421668
Denver today is to be named one of three cities nationally where child welfare agencies can come to learn how to implement a novel approach to keeping troubled and at-risk kids with their families and out of the foster-care system. The program, known as Family to Family, was pioneered by the Baltimore-based Annie E. Casey Foundation in 1992 as a way to reform foster care, where judges and social workers typically control a child's fate. It's been growing in popularity nationally because it uses a community network - relatives, neighbors, social workers, teachers, foster families - to serve the child.

Top

Health Care and Public Safety

Salazar's Social Security bill would block private accounts
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/3
Two years ago, President Bush stumped across the country urging the public to consider privatizing Social Security as a way to give retirees more return on their contributions and to avoid future shortfalls in the federal benefit system. At the time, U.S. Rep. John Salazar, D-Colo., sponsored legislation to prevent that, speaking for many Democrats in saying private accounts would divert needed money away from the Social Security trust funds and force a cut in benefits to current retirees. With the Republicans in control of Congress, Salazar's legislation was more a statement of philosophy than anything else. Salazar is back this year, joining with Rep. Dennis Moore, D-Kan., in sponsoring legislation that would block any Social Security contributions from being used to create private accounts. With Democrats in the majority, the legislation stands a much greater chance of being passed by the House and Senate.

Legislative panel takes on Medicaid change
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421798
The state legislature's Joint Budget Committee plans to inform federal officials that a plan to change Medicaid rules - at a cost to Colorado hospitals of $128 million - is a terrible idea. The committee voted unanimously Monday to endorse a resolution opposing the rule change and to send a letter to the head of the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services voicing opposition. The only disagreement among committee members was over whether the letter as drafted was harsh enough. The resolution next goes to the full Senate.
RELATED: Local hospitals see few impacts from new rules for Medicaid
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/6

Casino smoking ban passes Senate panel
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5413679,00.html
Colorado's casinos would be required to go smoke-free under a bill passed Monday by a Senate committee. But casino owners and Republican lawmakers blasted the measure, saying it infringes on gamblers' personal freedoms to light up and that it would cost the state tens of millions of dollars of gaming tax revenue. "What they want is the freedom to get cancer and the freedom to cause others to get cancer," said the bill's sponsor, Sen. Ken Gordon, D-Denver.
RELATED: Smoke-free casinos bill passes committee hurdle in Senate 3-2 (Under the dome, 3/13)
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421799

Pitco to the rescue - at what cost?
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130050
Whether you head into the backcountry from a ski area or get caught in an avalanche 10 miles from a rural road, the Pitkin County Sheriff's Office won't charge a cent to find you. "We rescue the smart, we rescue the stupid, we rescue the rich, we rescue the poor," said Sheriff Bob Braudis, whose office is responsible for backcountry searches. "This is a tax-funded search-and-rescue operation. If you pay taxes in any form ... [rescue] is a tax- supported activity that you have basically prepaid for." On Saturday, four skiers - including celebrities Rob Morrow, Chad Lowe and Fisher Stevens - went out of bounds on Aspen Mountain and needed rescue. Aspen ski patrol also was involved; Aspen Skiing Co. spokesman Jeff Hanle said the Skico has yet to determine whether to charge them for the incident.

PVH named in top 100 list
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130106
An independent company tracking hospital performance named Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins among the 100 Top Hospitals in the nation for the fourth year in a row.

Groups find strength in numbers
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/13/groups-find-strength-in-numbers/
It's an idea that's been kicking around for nearly two decades but only now is getting the kind of traction that can turn a pie-in-the-sky notion into firm public policy. Starting Wednesday, human services organizations and city and county leaders will meet with the public to discuss the creation of a strategic plan designed to help the thousands of people in Boulder County who need medical, psychological or vocational assistance.

Top

Crime and Penal Reform

Lawmakers reintroduce sex offender e-mail registration bill
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5412852,00.html
Lawmakers reintroduced a bill that would require sex offenders to register their online identities Monday, removing a requirement to identify company e-mails that doomed a prior measure. Lawmakers also agreed to limit the new bill to sex offenses involving minors. ''Technology is being developed at an incredible rate and we have to keep up if we want to protect our children,'' said Rep. Spencer Swalm, R-Centennial. The measure (House Bill 1326) would require sex offenders convicted of an offense against a minor to provide all e-mail addresses and instant-messaging and chat-room identities to local law enforcement.

DA won't seek death penalty in cop's killing
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5414115,00.html
The Adams County district attorney decided Monday not to seek the death penalty against Brian Washington in the shooting death of Aurora police Detective Michael D. Thomas. District Attorney Don Quick said Monday he consulted Aurora police and the Thomas family before making the decision. "At the end of the day, it is my obligation to make the decision based on the evidence, the law and what course is the best choice to ensure that Mr. Washington is held accountable for the murder of Detective Thomas," Quick said in a statement.
RELATED: Suspect in cop killing won't face death
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421554

Murder suspect's lawyer points to prison officials
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413739,00.html
An attorney for the man charged with a gruesome 1999 murder at the federal prison in Florence lashed out at the Bureau of Prisons on Monday, saying its "dereliction of duty" - from allowing inmates to drink alcohol to ignoring a duress alarm - led to the death of inmate Joey Estrella. "Make no mistake," attorney Nathan Chambers said during closing arguments in the trial of William Sablan. "What happened on Oct. 10, 1999, was allowed to happen."
RELATED: Prosecutors ask jury to reject inmate's mental-illness defense
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20070312/NEWS/103120055

Top

Economy

Can we quote you on that? (on the side, 3/12)
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421800
"I think this is the equivalent of Wal-Mart welfare." - Sen. John Morse, D-Colorado Springs, discussing his opposition to a bill that would allow grocery stores to sell gasoline below cost
RELATED: Senator leading fight against gas-discount bill
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20094&template=article.html

In VF case, town is granted more time
http://telluridegateway.com/articles/2007/03/13/news/news01.txt
Twice now, Telluride has asked for extensions in filing legal papers in the Valley Floor post-trial melee, and twice now, those requests have been granted. Most recently, Telluride asked for more time to reply to the Valley Floor landowners’ motion for $3.5 million in legal fees and other costs. On Friday, District Court Judge Charles Greenacre said the town could have until April 20 to reply to the landowners’ thick bill of costs. Earlier, Greenacre extended the deadline for filing post-trial motions from March 7 to March 22 at Telluride’s request. Greenacre has yet to set any drop-dead date declaring when Telluride must pay the San Miguel Valley Corporation $50 million to buy the Valley Floor. The town has asked for at least 90 days to gather the funds while the landowners want the money by the first week of April, or sooner.
RELATED: TC to hone in on VF acquisition
http://telluridegateway.com/articles/2007/03/13/news/news02.txt

Woman, 61, accused of cheating state
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413597,00.html
A 61-year-old woman has been indicted on 51 felony counts of allegedly scamming Colorado out of more than $400,000 of employment benefits for the past 12 years, the Denver district attorney said Monday. Adell Rastutis remained in the Denver County Jail on Monday on $100,000 bail. Rastutis faces 20 counts of forgery, 16 counts of committing a computer crime, eight counts of theft and seven counts of criminal impersonation. The Denver grand jury handed down its indictment against Rastutis on Wednesday. The indictment was unsealed Friday, the district attorney's office said.
RELATED: 51 charges in probe of benefits
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421566

Shortage of evidence blocks prosecution
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413335,00.html
A former employee of Affiliated Computer Services Inc. was investigated in connection with the theft of a computer containing sensitive information about thousands of Coloradans last year. The suspect, a 33-year-old Denver man, was never charged in the case, even though he has a history of arrests for identity theft-related crimes. "The investigation included information about a suspect but we declined to file criminal charges in the case," said Lynn Kimbrough, spokeswoman for the Denver District Attorney's office.

Holland & Hart lawyer quits (Business briefs, 3/13)
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5421272
A Holland & Hart lawyer resigned last week after admitting that he overbilled clients while working at another firm. Frank Sledge tendered his resignation Wednesday, Holland & Hart chairman Paul Phillips said Monday. The firm had hired Sledge from Denver-based White & Steele in September. "Mr. Sledge's resignation specifically related to events at White & Steele," Phillips said. Sledge's attorney, Larry Pozner, said his client has cooperated with White & Steele's investigation. "Frank takes sole and complete responsibility for this situation. No other parties are involved," Pozner said. "He is attempting to repay any money falsely received."

Top

Housing and Homelessness

Subprime lending under microscope
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/real_estate/article/0,1299,DRMN_414_5413260,00.html
Subprime lenders are in the cross hairs of lawmakers, consumer groups, regulators and Wall Street. Every day it seems a new subprime lender closes its doors, lays off employees or tightens its loan qualification process. And it appears the flash in the pan for this niche is nearly over. No fewer than three dozen mortgage lenders "have croaked" in the past several months, according to the Mortgage Lender Implode-O-Meter (ml-implode.com). New Century Financial Corp., the nation's second-biggest subprime mortgage lender, on Monday said it doesn't have the cash to pay creditors, increasing speculation the company will go bankrupt. These lenders see Denver as a fertile ground for offering risky loans. The proof is in the area's record-setting foreclosure rate and numerous bills in the legislature to license mortgage brokers.
RELATED: Mortgagors see disorder in the house
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5421329

Housing slow down delays road widening project
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130099
Greeley officials have delayed completing a road-improvement project because construction of new buildings, and the revenue it generates for the city, is down.

Workers wait for more housing in Vail
http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20070312/NEWS/70312020
Rodrigo Cortina, whose family wants to redevelop the Lionshead Inn, still has a lot of questions about Vail’s employee housing proposals. Employee housing is necessary to provide enough workers for businesses, but the rules also have to be fair for developers, he said.

Senior defiant as eviction deadline looms
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130049
A Carbondale woman facing eviction from her low-income apartment said Monday that she probably will move voluntarily but still fight to change management practices there. Lea Cano was supposed to notify the Carbondale Housing Authority board of directors Monday whether she intended to move or challenge its decision not to renew her lease at the Crystal Meadows Apartments. Cano did neither, waiting instead to see how rapidly shifting political and legal developments pan out.

Top

Media

Qwest may see future in TV
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5421330
Qwest may be looking at delivering TV service in an on-demand fashion, as an alternative to securing state or local TV franchise deals. The Denver-based telecommunications company wants to better compete against cable companies, such as Comcast, and may take an unorthodox approach - offering television programs on-demand over its high-speed Internet connection. Qwest, which is upgrading its high-speed Internet network to handle video, has expressed frustration with the cumbersome pace of crafting local franchise agreements to offer video.

Lukewarm approval for TV tower
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413832,00.html
Jefferson County commissioners on Monday reluctantly approved the rezoning for a digital-television tower to serve the Denver metropolitan area. Before the unanimous vote, the commissioners said their authority was snatched away by a 2006 law sponsored by Sens. Wayne Allard, R-Loveland, and Ken Salazar, D-Denver. "The battle, at this point, is at the federal level," said Commissioner Kathy Hartman, referring to a court challenge to the law that was filed by tower opponents.
RELATED: Rezoning OK'd for Lookout TV tower
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421552

Top

Education

Ritter ready to reveal education fund plan
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5413682,00.html
Gov. Bill Ritter is expected to announce today a plan that would stave off bankruptcy for the state's education fund and provide more preschool and full-day kindergarten slots. Ritter no longer is looking at tapping money from federal mineral-lease royalties for education - an idea that outraged the Western Slope. The legislature, however, could still introduce a bill eyeing that pot of money. Instead, Ritter's administration is looking at stabilizing the local share of K-12 education finances by halting the drop of mill-levy rates.

PSD could gain charter school authority
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070313/NEWS01/703130323/1002/NEWS01
A bill that will make it easier for Poudre School District to gain authority over charter schools wanting to open in Fort Collins passed the House on second reading Monday. Senate Bill 061, which already passed the Senate, is awaiting third reading and final adoption by the House before heading to Gov. Bill Ritter to be signed into law.

Lesson plan for next ed chief
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421796
Colorado's next education commissioner should have strong ties to the state, or at least be familiar with its unique public schools system. He or she should be able to communicate well with higher education officials, and make sure that kids who leave high school are ready for college. These were among the recommendations heard Monday by the National Association of State Boards of Education, the Virginia- based organization heading the search for a new commissioner of education. It is not enough for a student to simply graduate from high school, if they need remediation in college, said Scott Mendelsberg, executive director of the college preparation organization Colorado Gear Up. "It's not about graduating kids from high school," he said. "Prepare them for the next level."

Agency: School mistreated disabled kids
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20100&template=article.html
Special-needs students at Will Rogers Elementary in Colorado Springs were improperly restrained and forced into “timeout” seclusion, according to a nonprofit advocacy group for the disabled. The group has submitted a 21-page report to the state Department of Education and Colorado Springs School District 11 demanding the allegations be addressed. The report by the Legal Center for People with Disabilities and Older People says the techniques were used on 45 occasions and involved five students. District 11 on Monday issued a statement saying it “strongly disagrees” with the report. Though parents and an attor- ney for the legal center admit the students involved exhibited extremely challenging behavior, they say the school was ill-equipped to deal with it and that the remedial action it chose violated numerous state education regulations. In one instance, an 11-yearold girl was denied a trip to the restroom and had to sit in her urine, according to the report. An 11-year-old boy reportedly was bloody from hitting himself and banging his head while in seclusion.
RELATED: District response to restraint allegations
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20101&template=article.html

Faculty ready to retire
http://coloradodaily.com/articles/2007/03/12/news/c_u_and_boulder/news3.txt
Colleges and universities nationwide are creating incentives to lure tenured, retirement-age professors out of the ranks, according to a report that will be released today. The survey by the American Association of University Professors is basically good news for all, showing senior faculty receiving attractive retirement packages and junior faculty increasingly sought after. “I think the most interesting find is none of [the universities] said they're worried about retirement,” said Ronald Ehrenberg, a professor at Cornell University's Higher Education Research Institute. “That's because there are so many people approaching retirement age that it wouldn't be a big deal if a few of them decided to postpone their retirement.”

Foreign students opt for CSU-Pueblo
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/10
The international student enrollment at Colorado State University-Pueblo is at its highest level since the terrorist attacks of 9/11. According to the school's 2006 fall semester enrollment figures, 172 international students, representing 22 countries, are attending CSU-Pueblo this school year.

Crafting the rebirth of Manual
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/education/article/0,1299,DRMN_957_5413573,00.html
The halls are empty and, just outside the high school's row of front doors, a green dumpster teems with broken chairs, torn anatomy charts and battered file cabinets. Inside, rows of blue lockers gleam under bright lights and the squeak of sneakers can be heard on a shiny basketball court. Some new equipment is expected to be installed in classrooms for students scheduled to arrive Aug. 20 for the first day of school. The physical cleanup and face-lift of Manual High School began months ago. But it wasn't until last week that the school arguably put its most vital piece into place - a new principal. Now the clock is ticking to hire teachers, approve a curriculum and attract students to a school that, for years, was synonymous with failure. Robert Stein is ready.

New start at Cole ends this spring
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421568
Three years ago, a respected charter school company secured a state contract to take over Denver's Cole Middle School, which had been closed by state officials for abysmal academic performance. The charter company, KIPP, or Knowledge Is Power Program, had a reputation for building high-performing schools in poor neighborhoods, including in Denver, where KIPP's first middle school was thriving off of Federal Boulevard. But today, three principals and several teachers later, plans to develop a KIPP school starting with fifth-graders this fall have been pulled off the table. The school will close at the end of the spring.

Montbello Charter asks DPS to delay opening
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5422554
A new charter school that wants to delay its opening for a year pleaded its case before the Denver School Board on Monday night. But after a nearly hour-long discussion with the Denver Collegiate Academy board president, most board members walked away with concerns.

Charter school gifts policy to be reviewed
http://www2.steamboatpilot.com/news/2007/mar/13/charter_school_gifts_policy_be_reviewed/?local_news
The Education Fund Board is reviewing its policy for giving money to charter schools, a move that has caught the attention of North Routt Community Charter School head of school Colleen Poole. Since arriving at the charter school in 2004, Poole has gone before the Fund Board for three separate requests for a total of $47,000 — not a substantial amount of money considering the Fund Board annually spends more than $2 million in half-cent sales tax dollars. But the Fund Board wants a policy in place to dictate how a charter school request should be handled.

School board weighs future of Mary Barter
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070313_2.htm
Principals and senior district staff members went behind closed doors with the Durango school board Monday to discuss Superintendent Mary Barter's future. The school board made no decision about Barter in the highly anticipated meeting. It will likely hold another executive session tonight, but board Vice President Floyd Patterson said he did not expect a decision to immediately emerge. The board's move to speak with numerous employees of Durango School District 9-R before deciding on Barter's contract leaves a vital question unanswered: Will she stay or will she go?

District 6 budget picture 'tight' for 2007-08
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130111
While there are "alarming" pieces to the Greeley-Evans School District 6 budget picture for 2007-08 -- namely an expected drop of 76 students -- the district doesn't foresee job cuts or building closures.

City schools board to examine 2007-08 budget, proposed cuts
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/13
Pueblo City Schools’ board of education will get its first look at next school year’s budget and proposed cuts aimed at bringing it into balance.

BVSD bond projects moving forward
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/13/bvsd-bond-projects-moving-forward/
Architects are lined up for Boulder Valley's first round of school construction projects, moving 13 schools with major renovations into the design and planning phase. Money for the projects comes from a $296.8 million property-tax increase approved in November, with the district recently selling $120 million in bonds for the first round. On the list are elementary schools that need more space, middle and high schools with large projects and athletic improvements.

Federal panel to tour Henderson mine
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413598,00.html
Members of a federally appointed review panel will descend to the bottom of Henderson Mine today to get a first- hand look at one of the four sites being considered for a $300 million underground science lab. Twelve members of the expert panel and four National Science Foundation officials are expected to tour the molybdenum mine near Empire, said Colorado School of Mines engineer Mark Kuchta. Henderson is one of four sites trying to land the federal Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory, known as DUSEL. The other three finalist sites are in South Dakota, Minnesota and Washington state.

Former UNC punter pleads not guilty to stabbing teammate
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413737,00.html
A former University of Northern Colorado football player accused of stabbing his rival in his punting leg pleaded not guilty in Weld County District Court on Monday. Mitch Cozad is accused of attempted first-degree murder in an attack on Rafael Mendoza, who told police that Cozad twice tried to stab him in the chest while stabbing him in the leg, according to testimony from Evans police investigator George Roosevelt. Mendoza was the team's first-string punter, and Cozad was a backup.
RELATED: Cozad pleads not guilty; trial set for July
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130103

'Today Show' to feature Colorado teen in sex scandal
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5413740,00.html
The student at the center of the Brighton Charter High School teacher sex scandal is scheduled to share his story on national television this morning, to the chagrin of the school district's superintendent. Matt Lauer plans to interview the 18-year-old on The Today Show, during the 7 a.m. hour. "It's a no-holds-barred interview," NBC spokeswoman Lauren Kapp said. "They'll basically discuss everything that's been in the news and surrounding the case."

Top

Military

Delta Marine injured in Iraq makes progress
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/13/3_13_1b_Iraq_injury.html
Marine Lance Cpl. Bryan Chambers is making steady progress after being seriously injured by a roadside bomb in Iraq, said his father, Craig Chambers, who is with his son at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. Chambers said his son, who is 20, is a member of the 2nd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, Alpha Company, 2nd Marine Division. Bryan Chambers was injured by a roadside bomb on Feb. 28 in west Al Anbar Province, his father said. One Marine was killed in the attack, but Bryan’s three buddies who were in the same vehicle are already back on the front lines, he said.

Top

Religion

Marianists join diocese in sex abuse claims suit
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/12
The Marianists Catholic order has joined the Pueblo Catholic Diocese in fighting an insurance company that contends it has no obligation to cover lawsuits by men who allege they were sexually molested in the 1970s at the former Roncalli High School. The Marianists and the diocese are defendants in more than 20 lawsuits filed in Pueblo District Court by the former Roncalli students. The men claim they were molested by Brother William Mueller, a teacher during that time at the school, because the order and the diocese were negligent. The diocese owned the school and the Marianists staffed it.

Plan for snow from sewage struck down
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421567
An Arizona ski area's plan to use recycled wastewater to make snow on peaks held sacred by Southwestern Indian tribes violates the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled Monday in San Francisco. The court also said the Forest Service, which approved the plan for the Snowbowl ski area, did not fully comply with the National Environmental Policy Act because it did not reasonably discuss risks posed by possible ingestion of man-made snow. "This is a national wake-up call for those who will try to desecrate sacred mountains like the San Francisco Peaks," said Robert Tohe, an organizer with the Sierra Club in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Vandals strike church again
http://postindependent.com/article/20070313/VALLEYNEWS/103130038
Vandals sprayed "God is Dead" and a pentagram in red paint at a church in Glenwood Springs Friday night, when several cars also were broken into in the same neighborhood. Police chief Terry Wilson said it is a "distinct possibility" the same people may be responsible for both the spray painting and break-ins. The vandalism is the latest of more than a half-dozen incidents that reportedly have occurred at the new church building since St. Stephen's moved there from downtown about three and a half years ago. Last May, a fountain at the church was knocked over and broken, causing several thousand dollars in damage.

Top

Energy Policy

Oil, gas industry seeking order in flood of bills
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/energy/article/0,2777,DRMN_23914_5413558,00.html
Oil and gas lobbyists have approached Gov. Bill Ritter for help, fearing the rush of reform bills in the legislature could slow Colorado's multibillion-dollar energy industry. Ted Brown, president of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association, wrote a letter to Ritter complaining about the "patchwork of competing policies" in the legislature with conflicting and overlapping concepts. "There seems to be a new bill every other week to reform the oil and gas industry," said COGA's Greg Schnacke. "We hope the Ritter administration recognizes it's a big industry and that it is important for Colorado's economic health. We should have a comprehensive approach and not a piecemeal approach when it comes to regulating the industry."

Public comment sought by BLM
http://craigdailypress.com/section/localnews/story/25710
Following years of discussions and hours of meetings covering the use of federal land managed by the Bureau of Land Management's Little Snake Field Office, the public has an opportunity to comment on the draft of the Resource Management Plan. The 90-day comment period, which began in February, includes three chances to meet locally with BLM officials to discuss the alternatives or to make comments on the proposed draft of the RMP.

Gas prices burning up
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5421328
The specter of $3 gasoline is looming again as Colorado gas prices reached a five-month high Monday. California already has blown past the $3 benchmark with prices averaging $3.09 on Monday. While analysts aren't yet predicting $3-a-gallon pump prices in Colorado, they note that high demand for fuel and low supplies point to rising prices in coming months. Two of the most powerful market influences - hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico and conflict in the Mideast - are unpredictable but can push fuel prices far higher, said AAA Colorado analyst Eric Escudero. "Whether that would make prices hit $3 a gallon or not, it's too early to tell," he said. Colorado's average price for self-service regular hit a record high of $3.08 in August.

Windmill project plans to light up Vail golf course
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/13/3_13_8b_Windmills.html
Motorists on Interstate 70 in Vail may be able to “see” the wind blow if they look toward the golf course next week, especially at night. Volunteers and family members on Monday helped Denver artist Patrick Marold drill holes into a frozen hillside to hold approximately 2,700 custom-made 10-foot-tall windmills east of the golf course clubhouse, near the 16th green.

Top

Transportation and Infrastructure

CDOT pay system blasted
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5413736,00.html
The Colorado Department of Transportation ignored years of warnings about a new computer system that has stiffed highway workers on overtime pay, a veteran technology specialist said Monday. Problems with CDOT's $30 million financial management system, plus glitches in other computer conversions and rollouts, have prompted Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver, to call for a crackdown on computer projects that have plagued the state. Nearly 200 CDOT workers stormed the Capitol on Friday, complaining that they've been shorted overtime pay earned digging the state out of this winter's blizzards.

Fines higher in re-written chain law
http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20070312/NEWS/103120062
State Rep. Dan Gibbs intends to reintroduce his controversial chain law bill to his colleagues this week. The Eagle County representative said he hopes the legislation will get an extra boost in light of state financial contributions that now stand to climb as high as $2.5 million. Another significant problem truckers had with Gibbs' first version of his bill is that it proposed to add four points to the commercial driver's license of a driver who causes a blocked lane of traffic as a result of failing to chain up. The Colorado Mountain Carriers Association felt that would put drivers' careers unfairly at risk, and would discriminate against local drivers because out-of-state drivers likely wouldn't be subject to the penalty.

Debate over taxi rules
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5413555,00.html
Supporters of a push to relax taxi regulations in Colorado say the move could lower prices, bolster service and benefit cab drivers by opening up a market largely closed to new competitors. Opponents argue the opposite will occur: A flood of new cabs will lead to price gouging at peak times and an overall erosion of service as drivers focus on higher-paying trips at the expense of shorter, less-profitable ones. So which side is right? Neither . . . and both, say consultants, economists and transportation experts who have studied taxicab regulation.

Aspen airport gearing up for closure
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130045
Construction equipment will roll onto the Aspen/Pitkin County Airport grounds in less than a week in preparation for the airport's two-month closure to all air traffic. The airport will be closed from April 9 through June 7 for resurfacing of the runways and the addition of paved runway shoulder areas, replacement of a culvert that carries Owl Creek underneath the runway, resealing of aircraft parking areas for both private and commercial planes, refurbishment work inside the terminal, and restriping and resealing of the public parking lot.

Top

Environment and Conservation

Ritter signs measure to protect water quality
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5418672
Gov. Bill Ritter signed a bill Monday that for the first time will allow water court judges to consider environmental impacts and water quality along with quantity when considering large, permanent transfers. The measure (House Bill 1132) allows water judges to reject applications to remove 1,000 acre-feet or more from a river if the removal would be environmentally harmful to the river. "The Lower Arkansas Valley is an example of our need to pay attention to water quality whenever we talk about water transfers," Ritter said. "This will make a difference statewide. We as a state need to do all we can to protect this precious resource. Water quality and quantity should be viewed together."
RELATED: Gov. Ritter signs water-quality bill
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070313_6.htm
RELATED: Ritter signs water quality bill in Pueblo
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/1

Counties soon may have ability to enforce water pollution rules
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070313/NEWS01/703130322/1002/NEWS01
A bill allowing Colorado counties, including Larimer, to enforce water pollution regulations passed the Senate unanimously Monday on third reading. House Bill 1197 will allow some Colorado counties, including Larimer, to enforce federal stormwater regulations that currently fall under the state's authority. The bill is awaiting House approval of Senate amendments before heading to Gov. Bill Ritter's desk for his signature. The bill's House sponsor, Fort Collins Democrat Randy Fischer, said he doesn't see the Senate amendments threatening the bill's viability and looks forward to it becoming law.

Wildlife panel chief (Briefing, March 13)
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5414110,00.html
Grand Junction construction company president Tom Burke has been selected to head the Colorado Wildlife Commission, a panel that sets regulations for hunting, fishing and endangered species for the state Division of Wildlife. Commissioners also oversee Wildlife land purchases.

Green futures
http://coloradodaily.com/articles/2007/03/12/news/c_u_and_boulder/news4.txt
Caring for the environment is important - and it's become the new growth industry as well. Since student interest in environmental and humanitarian careers have increased, the Career Services Office is hosting a Global Impact Expo today at CU in the UMC.

Downstream states to fund cloud seeding
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1173794377/9
Downstream states will provide most of the funding to continue a cloud-seeding program under an agreement approved Monday by the Colorado Water Conservation Board. The program will have benefits for Colorado as well, and particularly for the Arkansas Valley, which receives transmountain water from the Roaring Fork and Fryingpan basins, two of four areas in the cloud-seeding program. “The lower basin states won’t be able to make a claim that it’s their water,” CWCB Executive Director Rod Kuharich assured the board. Under the program, water agencies in Arizona, California and Nevada will pay Colorado $110,000 to extend cloud-seeding operations in the Roaring Fork and Fryingpan basins; the western San Juan Mountains, which feed rivers in the southwestern corner of the state; and Grand Mesa, on the mainstem of the Colorado River.

Some parts of Colorado see snowpack boost; South Platte slightly above average
http://www.greeleytrib.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130098
It's getting better, but water officials are hoping March lives up to its reputation. Colorado saw a return to more "normal" weather patterns during February, which boosted the state's latest snowpack statistics computed by United States Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service. Improvements to that snowpack were measured across the northwestern part of the state, but the snowpack east of the Continental Divide has moderated, according to Allen Green, state conservationist.

Animas forest faces thinning
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070313_4.htm
Fire fuels reduction can be an unattractive business of Hydro-Axes and wood chips, so the Columbine Ranger District is going out of its way to let Animas City Mountain users know what's coming.

Leadville still cleaning up
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421648
After nearly 25 years of environmental-cleanup efforts, political caterwauling and bureaucratic entanglements, the prevailing sentiment on whether the city will ever get off the national Superfund list - reserved for the most polluted sites in the country - remains dubious. "Literally we measure things here in decades," said a frustrated Ken Olsen, chairman of the Lake County commission. "Many people, I think, have simply given up hope that it will ever be done." Locals lament that the cleanup has been largely unnecessary and ineffective, and that the Superfund stigma has undermined real-estate values and crippled the area economy at a time when the only thing left from mining is the toxic legacy.
RELATED: Concern for kids elevated level of testing
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421930

Architect property preserved
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5414152,00.html
Denver City Council on Monday night approved designating as a historic district a small south Denver property pioneered by Denver landscape architect S.R. DeBoer. It took wailing and gnashing of teeth and a four-hour hearing in which 39 citizens signed up to speak, but the council agreed on a compromise that had been worked out before the meeting even began. In the end, an 8-to-2 vote approved the inevitable designation, which made the property owners - heirs to the DeBoer estate - accept a deal they felt they could not refuse.

Skico says: S'not worth changing
http://aspentimes.com/article/20070313/NEWS/103130048
The name Kleenex Corner won't be discarded like a used tissue after all. The Aspen Skiing Co. decided Monday to reverse an earlier decision to drop the name of the historic spot on Aspen Mountain as part of an environmental initiative, said Auden Schendler, the Skico's executive director of community and environmental responsibility.

Elk moving onto Rocky Mountain roads
http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20070312/NEWS/70312007
Elk are not yet in full spring migration, but the animals are moving and that can cause problems, say Colorado Division of Wildlife officials.

$500,000 too much? Prairie dogs and associated costs run up tab with city
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/13/500000-too-much/
Boulder spent more than a half-million dollars last year keeping prairie dogs from burrowing where they're not wanted, officials said. Of the $528,844 the city spent, personnel costs took up half — $250,136 — and the rest, $278,708, went to construction costs, contractors and wildlife consultants. Boulder's leaders started keeping track of the costs last year after critics said some departments were spending too much time and money trying to keep the burrowing critters out of parks, to the detriment of the parks themselves.

Top

Opinion

Open records upgrade
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/editorials/article/0,2777,DRMN_23964_5413192,00.html
We welcome bipartisan efforts in Congress to beef up the Freedom of Information Act - the four-decade-old law that affords citizens access to the inner workings of the executive branch. FOIA could certainly stand a little love, as open government has been attacked many times since Lyndon Johnson signed the act into law July 4, 1966. The revisions to FOIA in H.R. 1309, which could come before the full House as early as today, would both shine more light on the nooks and crannies of federal bureaucracies and force agencies to better respect the spirit of the law.
RELATED: Support legislation that shines light on official acts
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=opin&article_path=/opinion/opin070313.htm

FBI needs to reel in Patriot Act powers
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5419748
When you boil down the Bush administration's attitude toward individual liberty concerns since Sept. 11, 2001, the essence is pretty straightforward: These compromises are crucial to the war on terror. Trust us. A Justice Department report issued last week shows why Americans would be foolish to accept such assurances.

Littwin: Tancredo's ready to take his long shot
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_5414299,00.html
It's approximately 10 months before anyone votes, and already it's gotten this strange. And we haven't even mentioned Tom Tancredo yet.

Right move on accrual policy
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5419747
We were glad to see Gov. Bill Ritter acted quickly and appropriately to take the air out of the golden parachutes created by the Owens administration. Ritter rolled back a far-too-generous vacation and sick-leave accrual policy created by Gov. Bill Owens' chief of staff, allowing some of Owens' top appointees to collect more than $331,000 of unused time when they left office. Capping the amount of time that can accrue will prevent future abuses of the system. But we still think it's necessary to determine whether rules were followed in making the recent payouts.

Hail, Seizure! Government laughing all the way to the bank
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20074&template=article.html
In recent weeks, we’ve taken on the drug war for its failure to stop the flow of drugs into this country or keep Americans from using them. Readers have responded with comments ranging from complete agreement to some telling us that drug prohibition is the law and we should just “get over it.” Such a range of comments and opinions is great; Open, free-wheeling debate is what brings new ideas into the public forum. One result of the drug war we haven’t touched on lately is its corrosive effect on the security of private property guaranteed under the Fifth Amendment. The amendment reads, in part: “No person shall . . . be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law.” That seems pretty simple. In the United States, we don’t execute accused murderers unless they’ve been duly convicted (and rarely without years of appeals), nor do we simply charge someone for robbing a bank and send them to the penitentiary. The accused get their day in court. Sadly, for the third portion of the constitutional guarantee — that folks won’t be deprived of property without due process — the burden is often much easier for the government to meet.

Lewis: Risky practices backfire on lender
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5421332
The wreckage belongs to institutional investors holding defaulted subprime debt, anyone holding New Century's imploded stock and homeowners losing property values to a rash of foreclosures - particularly in Colorado.

Carman: Money not Telluride's only answer
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5421570
Attorney Leslie Fields declined to comment Monday, but anybody who followed the trial last month could see myriad opportunities for legal challenges - if the town's in a fighting mood. The $50 million endorsed by the jury - nearly twice the amount town appraisers set for the land - was based on assumptions that are best described as fanciful.

Campos: Irrational about risk
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/opinion_columnists/article/0,2777,DRMN_23972_5413185,00.html
In short, buying a Volvo - that cliched symbol of liberal privilege in general and the automotive tastes of academics in particular - is for some people what supporting the Iraq war is for others. In each instance, one is buying the illusion of protection from largely imaginary risks, while at the same time engaging in behavior that increases the real risks Americans run in a significant way.

Quillen: Another resolution to ignore
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5419752
It's tempting to say, as some Republicans do, that the Iraq war is no proper concern of state government. Or as Rep. Mike May, a Parker Republican, put it, "The Democrats are introducing an Iraq resolution, as if we were the Boulder City Council and had a foreign policy." But if this is not a fit topic for our legislature, consider Colorado Senate Joint Resolution 03-016, passed in 2003 with heavy Republican support: "The General Assembly expresses its support of President George W. Bush and his cabinet ... for their unwavering determination to either disarm Saddam Hussein and remove him from power ... ." If it was appropriate for the Colorado General Assembly to take a position on foreign policy then, why is it inappropriate now? If Rep. May holds honest convictions about the proper role of the legislature, then he should introduce a measure to cancel the 2003 resolution. He could point out that such resolutions, no matter which way they go, are divisive and could discourage some tourism, and he's for a strong Colorado economy and all that. But the Republicans are right that this is by and large a waste of time, even if they didn't see it that way four years ago. A legislative resolution will not restore the Colorado National Guard to its pre-war capacities, nor can it bring back lost lives and limbs. It won't even send a useful message to the White House. President George W. Bush has ignored Congress, the Constitution, the Iraq Study Group and the Boulder City Council, and so he will certainly ignore the Colorado General Assembly.

NATIONAL NEWS

Top

Election

G.O.P. Voters Voice Anxieties on Party’s Fate
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/us/politics/13poll.html
After years of political dominance, Republican voters now view their party as divided and say they are not satisfied with the choice of candidates seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2008, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

Hagel Postpones Decision on 2008 Bid
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200549.html
Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) postponed a final decision on a presidential bid today and again declined to rule out the possibility that he would run as an independent. "In making this announcement, I believe there will still be political options open to me at a later date," Hagel said at a news conference this morning in Omaha. "I cannot control that, and I do not worry about it." The announcement, which was billed by Hagel and his staff as a definitive answer to questions about his political future, left far more questions than answers. Hagel offered no insight into whether a presidential candidacy would preclude a run for a third Senate term, saying only that he would continue to raise money for both his Senate campaign committee and his political action committee.
RELATED: Senator From Nebraska Says No to Presidential Bid, for Now
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/us/politics/13hagel.html?ref=washington

2008 hopeful Giuliani pops up at Harry Caray's
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703130165mar13,1,4149408.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
Rudolph Giuliani dropped into Chicago on Monday for a drive-by visit with local TV reporters before heading off to a private fundraiser to help bankroll his all-but-announced presidential campaign. With recent polls showing the former New York mayor opening up a double-digit lead over his nearest Republican opponent, Giuliani led a flotilla of camera crews and reporters into Harry Caray's Restaurant downtown and paused for a toothy smile with the bronze bust of the late Baseball Hall of Fame broadcaster.

Texas congressman Paul formally announces presidential candidacy
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-12-paul-2008_N.htm
Ron Paul, a nine-term Texas congressman who describes himself as a lifelong libertarian, formally announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination Monday. Appearing on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, Paul said he was at first reluctant to run, but that "a lot of people want to hear my message and I'm willing to deliver it." Paul, who formed an exploratory committee in January, said he had raised more than $500,000 in the past month "with very little effort." "So far, the amount of money raised isn't competitive with those establishment candidates who will raise $100 million, but with the Internet and the amount of money and enthusiasm, I think we can become very competitive," he said.

Top

Effective and Ethical Government

Dems back off requiring Bush to gain congressional approval for move against Iran
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-13-dems-bush-iran_N.htm
Democratic leaders are stripping from a military spending bill for the war in Iraq a requirement that President Bush gain approval from Congress before moving against Iran. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and other leaders agreed to remove the requirement concerning Iran after conservative Democrats as well as other lawmakers worried about its possible impact on Israel, officials said Monday. The overall bill — which requires that the withdrawal of U.S. combat troops from Iraq by Sept. 1, 2008, if not earlier — remained on schedule for an initial test vote Thursday in the House Appropriations Committee.

New Math on Hill, Scramble on K Street
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201579.html
Lobbyists are scrambling all over Capitol Hill to prevent any of their clients from becoming a "pay-for." The Democrats' new pay-as-you-go budget regimen means that lawmakers who want to spend more on one program have to either cut another or raise taxes to pay for it. Similarly, if they want to cut taxes, they must fund the cut by trimming programs or raising other taxes to make up the difference. Those budgetary offsets are called pay-fors -- a new Washington buzzword striking fear in the hearts of special interests.

Congressman says he doesn't believe in God
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-atheist13mar13,1,5214451.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Cue the jokes about godless politicians and Bay Area liberals. Secular groups Monday applauded a public acknowledgment by Rep. Pete Stark that he does not believe in a supreme being, making the Fremont Democrat the first member of Congress — and the highest-ranking elected official in the U.S. — to publicly acknowledge not believing in God. The American Humanist Assn. plans to take out an ad in the Washington Post today congratulating the congressman for his public stance and highlighting the contributions of other prominent secular humanists, such as writers Barbara Ehrenreich and Kurt Vonnegut and actress Julia Sweeney. Fred Edwords, a spokesman for the group, said non-theistic Americans often faced discrimination for their views.

Top

Civil Liberties and Equality

Secret hearings for top 9/11 suspects
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-gitmo13mar13,1,3643847.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
U.S. military officials held secret administrative hearings at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for at least three terrorism suspects, including two alleged planners of the Sept. 11 attacks, a first step in determining whether they should be tried before a military commission. Pentagon spokesmen announced that a combatant status review tribunal hearing for Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, perhaps the most well-known Al Qaeda suspect in U.S. custody, was held Saturday. On Friday, the military held hearings for Abu Faraj Libbi and Ramzi Binalshibh. A fourth hearing for an unspecified suspect was to have been held Monday. A combatant status review tribunal determines whether a detainee is an "enemy combatant." Once foreign detainees are so classified, they may be charged and tried before a military commission.
RELATED: Gitmo tribunal hears first CIA detainee cases
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703130164mar13,1,3756191.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed

Home in San Francisco, Pelosi Gets the Crawford Treatment
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/washington/13pelosi.html
Using a tactic usually trained on the home turf of President Bush, a group of protesters from Code Pink, a women’s antiwar group, have camped in front of the home of Speaker Nancy Pelosi here, bringing their message — and mattresses — to the doorstep of the nation’s highest-ranking Democrat. The protest, which began Sunday afternoon with dozens of demonstrators, is just Code Pink’s latest effort to engage Ms. Pelosi, who the group feels has not gone far enough or fast enough to get the troops home from Iraq. “The point is to keep showing our dissatisfaction,” said Toby Blome, 51, a protest organizer who sported a frilly pink apron and pink skirt. “It’s hard to do on our own, but I know I speak for millions of people.”

Justices to Hear Landmark Free-Speech Case
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201699.html
The most important student free-speech conflict to reach the Supreme Court since the height of the Vietnam War hinges on a somewhat absurd, vaguely offensive, mostly nonsensical message of protest. Bong Hits 4 Jesus. That is the slogan that a defiant high school student named Joseph Frederick fashioned with a 14-foot piece of paper and a $3 roll of duct tape. His goal was partly to get on TV as the Olympic torch passed through his town of Juneau, Alaska, and mostly to get under the skin of his disciplinarian principal, Deborah Morse, with whom he had a running feud. It worked, at least the irritating-the-principal part.

Top

Foreign Policy

Sights low for Bush's Mexico trip
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-merida13mar13,1,5090223.story?coll=la-headlines-world
As President Bush and Mexican President Felipe Calderon spend today getting to know each other, they'll find much in common. Both are free-market conservatives who believe jobs drive progress. Both were thrust by circumstance into the role of law-and-order president: Bush by the U.S.-led war on terrorism; Calderon, the war on drugs. And both men want new laws giving millions of Mexicans in the United States a shot at legal status. But this first date, which includes a tour of the Uxmal pyramids, isn't likely to spark fireworks. Mexico is already one of Bush's strongest Latin American allies, and the truth is the U.S. president can't deliver much more than pleasantries and a pat on the back. "With Iraq, the Libby verdict, Bush is probably grateful to get out of the country," said Ana Maria Salazar, a political analyst in Mexico City and a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of Defense for drug enforcement. "They'll talk about security issues, but not much is going to come out of this trip."
RELATED: In Mexico, Bush Seeks to Bolster Uneasy Alliance
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/world/americas/13mexico.html?ref=washington

Shrine Bombing as War's Turning Point Debated
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201760.html
Feb. 22, 2006, is the day the Bush administration says everything in Iraq changed. Before that day, military and administration officials frequently explain, Iraq was moving in the right direction: National elections had been held, and a government was forming. But then the bombing of the golden dome shrine in Samarra derailed that positive momentum and unleashed a wave of brutal sectarian violence. Even now, more than a year later, the president and other administration officials cite Samarra as a turning point -- "a tragic escalation of sectarian rage and reprisal," President Bush called it in a March 6 news conference. "One of the key changes in Iraq last year," White House spokesman Tony Snow said in January. Many Iraq specialists and defense analysts contend that this narrative of the mosque bombing is misleading, yet also revealing of how U.S. strategy in Iraq has evolved. Experts say the attack did not begin a civil war but rather confirmed the ongoing deterioration and violence in Iraq -- conditions the White House and the generals had resisted recognizing.
RELATED: Shiites want the help of Sadr's militia
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iraq13mar13,1,899419.story?coll=la-headlines-world

Bomb kills 9 Afghan policemen in convoy
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-afghan13mar13,1,114075.story?coll=la-headlines-world
A roadside bomb targeting a police convoy killed nine officers and critically wounded one Monday in western Afghanistan, officials said. The police were traveling in the Bakwa district of Farah province, provincial police spokesman Baryalai Khan said. The Bakwa police district commander was among the nine killed. One of the three vehicles in the convoy was destroyed, Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said.
RELATED: Taliban force diminished, outgoing U.S. envoy says
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703130158mar13,1,4870306.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed

Dispute Halts Delivery Of Atomic Fuel to Iran
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201296.html
Russian officials said Monday that nuclear fuel will not be delivered to Iran this month as planned and that the September completion of a Russian-built nuclear power plant will be postponed because of an escalating dispute between the two countries. Moscow and Tehran have been arguing for weeks over what Russia calls Iran's failure to make $25 million monthly payments on the $1 billion plant in the southern city of Bushehr. Iran insists that it has made all scheduled payments. "It will be impossible to launch the reactor in September, and there can be no talk about supplying fuel this month," the state-owned Russian contractor Atomstroiexport said in a statement Monday.

2002 Saudi Plan Revived as Spur to Arab-Israeli Talks
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/world/middleeast/13mideast.html
Israeli officials, pressed by Washington, are suddenly finding much to praise in a Saudi peace proposal that was dismissed when it was offered in 2002, at the height of a series of Palestinian suicide bombings. In the last two days, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni have spoken of “positive” elements in the Saudi initiative, which was expected to receive a new endorsement from the Arab League at its summit meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on March 28.

U.N. chief nuclear inspector heads to North Korea
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-03-13-un-north-korea_N.htm
The chief U.N. nuclear inspector headed to North Korea on Tuesday for talks on how to implement a landmark nuclear disarmament agreement after playing down expectations that his trip heralded the communist country's rapid disarmament. Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, stopped in Beijing on his way to Pyongyang for discussions on how to implement the agreement reached at six-nation talks last month.

U.N. Panel Calls for Action in Darfur
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200177.html
A U.N. human rights team criticized the international community Monday for failing to halt atrocities in Darfur, saying in a sharply worded report that the United Nations must act now to protect civilians from a violence campaign orchestrated by Sudan's government. The panel, headed by Nobel peace laureate Jody Williams, departed from the usual diplomatic niceties of U.N. reports to accuse major nations of letting Sudan obstruct efforts to quell ethnic fighting that has killed 200,000 people and displaced 2.5 million in four years.

Mugabe Foes Vow To Intensify Action
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201639.html
Zimbabwe's opposition vowed Monday to continue ratcheting up pressure on President Robert Mugabe, as their most prominent leader, Morgan Tsvangirai, sat in prison with serious head injuries that have left him struggling to walk, talk or eat. "The world can expect more intensified action following the brutalization of . . . the leadership," said Eliphas Mukonoweshuro, a senior official with Tsvangirai's opposition party, speaking by telephone from Harare, the capital. "This is not going to stop."
RELATED: Zimbabwe Opposition Groups Say Leaders Beaten
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/world/africa/13zimbabwe.html?ref=world

Pro-Putin Party Builds a Wide Lead
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201221.html
The pro-Kremlin United Russia party had commanding leads in 13 of 14 regional elections held Sunday, preliminary vote counts showed Monday, while the new Fair Russia party, which calls itself an opposition grouping but is favored by the presidential administration, was making a strong first-time showing. In the last major electoral contest before national parliamentary elections in December, the Kremlin took votes across the political spectrum, leaving it almost certain to control the next parliament as it manages the current one through United Russia's overwhelming majority, analysts said.

Colombia paramilitary scandal widens
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-colombia13mar13,1,1937636.story?coll=la-headlines-world
The scandal tying political supporters of President Alvaro Uribe with outlawed paramilitary leaders widened Monday as prosecutors filed electoral fraud charges against Trino Luna, the governor of the influential coastal state of Magdalena. Also, Interpol disclosed that it had issued an international arrest warrant on kidnapping charges for Alvaro Araujo Noguera, a former congressman and minister who is the father of former Foreign Minister Maria Consuelo Araujo. She resigned last month after her brother, Sen. Alvaro Araujo, was jailed on suspicion of conspiring with paramilitaries to kidnap a political rival. The theme of paramilitaries' infiltration of the Colombian government came up Sunday during President Bush's visit to Bogota.

Top

Immigration

Kennedy, Eager for Republican Support, Shifts Tactics on an Immigration Measure
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/washington/13immig.html
Facing a rebellion from some crucial Republicans, Senator Edward M. Kennedy has abandoned efforts to produce a new immigration bill and is proposing using legislation produced last March by the Senate Judiciary Committee, then controlled by Republicans, as the starting point for negotiations this year, lawmakers said Monday. Mr. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat who is a principal architect of immigration legislation in the Senate, now controlled by Democrats, said he was shifting gears in hopes of winning Republican support and speeding the passage of immigration legislation this spring. Four of 10 Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee voted last year for the committee’s bill, which would tighten border security, create a temporary worker program and legalize illegal immigrants.

Minuteman Project In Turmoil Over Financial Allegations
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201297.html
The Minuteman Project, an anti-illegal-immigrant organization that has monitored the southern border, is embroiled in a nasty legal fight over accusations of financial improprieties that has splintered the group and probably will sideline it during the busiest time of the year for border crossing. Former leaders of the Minuteman Project accuse founder Jim Gilchrist, 58, of using $300,000 of the group's money to support his pet causes, including promoting a book he co-wrote and funding an unsuccessful run for Congress in a 2005 special election. Last month, saying they are the group's board of directors, they took over the Minuteman Project Web site and bank accounts, and fired Gilchrist as president. Gilchrist fired back with a lawsuit accusing his former associates of defamation.

Former cop pleads guilty to fleecing Hispanics
http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/stories/2007/03/12/metillegal0313a.html
A former Cedartown police officer pleaded guilty Monday in federal court to stopping Hispanics and stealing money from them. Douglas Damiano, 37, admitted that he stopped the motorists under the pretext of a traffic stop but then either asked them for their wallets or went through their vehicles looking for money. The rogue cop, authorities say, figured the victims were illegal immigrants and would not report him to authorities.

City's illegal immigration laws go on trial
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-hazleton13mar13,1,1857192.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Hazleton, Pa., defends its measures, but civil liberties lawyers say they unfairly target Latinos.
RELATED: Immigration debate squeezes some businesses
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/employment/2007-03-13-immigration-usat_N.htm

Top

Health Care and Public Safety

N.M. governor to sign bill requiring girls to get HPV vaccine
http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2007-03-12-hpv-vaccine_N.htm
New Mexico is on the verge of becoming the latest state to require girls entering sixth grade to be vaccinated against a sexually transmitting virus that can cause cervical cancer, a spokesman for the governor said Monday. The state House approved the bill Sunday, and Gov. Bill Richardson will sign it once he receives the legislation, spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said. "This is an important anti-cancer vaccine, and the governor believes it's imperative for all girls to be protected against cervical cancer," Gallegos said.

FDA issues guidelines for packaged produce
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-food13mar13,1,2157265.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
In an effort to prevent more illnesses from bacteria-tainted produce, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Monday announced voluntary guidelines for processors of packaged fruits and vegetables, the produce industry's fastest-growing sector. The list of steps to minimize the spread of bacteria includes recommendations for multiple washings of produce, cold storage, regular water testing and monitoring employees for signs of infectious disease. Many processing and packaging companies already follow the federal guidelines, which were first proposed a year ago. The national guidelines will apply to bagged spinach, shredded lettuce, salad mixes, baby carrots, cut melons, broccoli florets and other fresh-cut produce. But critics in Congress and from consumer groups say voluntary programs are inadequate because numerous lethal outbreaks of food-borne illnesses have been traced to produce.
RELATED: F.D.A. Offers Guidelines to Fresh-Food Industry
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/washington/13fda.html?ref=us

Top

Economy

Treasury Prices Climb As Safe Haven
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/13/AR2007031300429.html
On Friday, Treasury prices had fallen after a report on hiring for February showed continued strength for that sector. The jobs data reaffirmed for many that the Federal Reserve continues to face an economy with high levels of resource utilization, and as a result, the threat of higher inflation remains. On Friday, markets pared back expectations of central bank rate cuts due to the jobs data. The gains enjoyed by the bond market Monday face a series of tests this week, considering the active calendar of economic data. February retail spending data arrive Tuesday, followed by last month's wholesale inflation data Thursday and consumer inflation data Friday. Thursday also sees the release of the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's March manufacturing index, in a report that's often a major source of volatility for bond traders.

China Vows Action as Trade Gap Swells
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200359.html
China reported a trade surplus in February of $23.76 billion, a ninefold surge from the same period a year earlier and one of the highest monthly totals ever. It came as top government officials reaffirmed promises to take measures to reduce the widening gap. The U.S. government for years has been concerned that artificial controls on the Chinese currency, the yuan, make Chinese exports to the United States cheaper while making U.S. exports to China more expensive.
RELATED: China’s Trade Surplus Nearly Ties Record
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/business/13yuan.html?ref=business

Businesses tell lawmakers corporate scandal laws hurt U.S. competitiveness
http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/2007-03-12-business-laws_N.htm
High-level government officials are listening, and asking the questions, this week as the campaign by business interests for a softening of the laws and rules laid down amid the 2002 corporate scandals gets a serious hearing. An array of companies and business leaders have been making the case that the requirements spawned by the crisis of corporate malfeasance are overly onerous and costly — and hurt the competitiveness of U.S. financial markets by driving some companies away from them.
RELATED: Bush Aides and Business Meet on Shift in Regulation
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/business/13regulate.html?ref=washington

Nasdaq ups competition with NYSE
http://www.usatoday.com/money/markets/2007-03-12-symbol-salvo-usat_N.htm
Four-letter words won't be first to pop into investors' minds when it comes to Nasdaq stocks anymore. Upping the war with the New York Stock Exchange for stock listings, the Nasdaq on Monday said it will start accepting companies with one, two and three letters in their stock symbols.

Halliburton Chief's Move to Dubai Evokes Warnings on Hill
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201299.html
The announcement sparked warnings from members of Congress, who suspected that the company once run by Vice President Cheney was trying to trim its tax bill and remove itself from the limelight here, where it has come under fire about the way it obtained and executed government contracts, especially those connected to troubled reconstruction projects in Iraq. "The CEO of Halliburton has decided to leave this country to move his offices to Dubai because he says it is 'a great business center.' That is a bizarre announcement," said Sen. Byron L. Dorgan (D-N.D.), who is a member of the Senate Commerce Committee. Dorgan, who said he would seek hearings on the move, added: "I want to know, is Halliburton trying to run away from bad publicity on their contracts? Are they trying to run away from the obligation to pay U.S. taxes? Or are they trying to set up a corporate presence in Dubai so that they can avoid the restrictions that currently exist on doing business with prohibited countries like Iran?"
RELATED: Halliburton Office Move Is Criticized
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/business/13halliburton.html

Civil charges filed against Nortel's ex-CEO, 3 others
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/telecom/2007-03-12-nortel_N.htm
Federal regulators brought civil charges against the former CEO of Nortel Networks (NT) and three former subordinates Monday, accusing them of manipulating the company's earnings by more than $1 billion from 2000 to 2003. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Frank Dunn, the CEO and onetime CFO of the Canadian telecommunications company, inflated Nortel's flagging earnings in 2000 by changing the company's revenue-recognition rules to allow for "bill and hold" transactions. The change let Nortel jack up its sales figures during a difficult period for the telecom industry, the SEC alleged.
REALTED: Former Executives of Nortel Are Accused of Accounting Fraud
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/technology/13nortel.html

SEC: 3 traders toyed with Google options
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/computersecurity/hacking/2007-03-12-cyber-scam-stocks_N.htm
It's not just penny stocks that cybercrooks are manipulating for illicit profit. The Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday announced civil charges against three men who allegedly manipulated Google "put options" and Sun Microsystems shares after-hours as part of scams built around using stolen log-ins to break into online brokerage accounts. The Justice Department also issued criminal indictments against the three accusing them of breaching consumer accounts at E-Trade, TD Ameritrade, Merrill Lynch and Fidelity Brokerage Services.

Top

Housing and Homelessness

Key Congressman Optimistic on Fannie-Freddie Bill
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201326.html
The chairman of a key House panel said yesterday that he was cautiously optimistic that, after years of failed attempts, the latest effort to revamp oversight of mortgage funding giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will bear fruit. Rep. Paul E. Kanjorski (D-Pa.), chairman of the subcommittee on capital markets, said his counterparts in the Senate and the Bush administration have expressed willingness to support something close to a bill introduced last week.

Mortgage Lender Says It Can't Pay Its Creditors
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200447.html
New Century Financial, once a highflying lender of risky mortgages, said yesterday that it does not have the money to pay its lenders, fueling speculation that it might not survive much longer. The New York Stock Exchange halted trading of New Century's shares, which had dropped to $1.66 from $3.21 Friday. The California company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday that all of its lenders have either pulled its funding or have said they will do so. "They need to come up with an alternative source of funding or else they are going to file for bankruptcy," said Matthew Howlett, an industry analyst at investment bank Fox-Pitt Kelton.
RELATED: Bankruptcy looms for New Century
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2007-03-12-new-century_N.htm
RELATED: Foreclosures may hit 1.5 million in U.S. housing bust
http://newstandardnews.net/content/ion/index.cfm/bulletin/6569

Top

Media

BBC correspondent abducted in Gaza
http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2007/03/13/bbc_correspondent_abducted_in_gaza/
Police identified the journalist as Alan Johnston, who has been the BBC's correspondent in Gaza for three years. Officials said his rental car was found abandoned in Gaza City and that a search was under way for the British national.

All in U.S. eligible for TV box coupons
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/2007-03-12-tv-box-coupons_N.htm
All U.S. households, not just the poor, will be eligible for $40 government subsidies to help pay for boxes that will allow analog TVs to continue to work after the nation's transition to digital television is completed in 2009, the Commerce Department said Monday. But lawmakers and consumer advocates say funding shortages and the set-up of the program will likely cause confusion and saddle many consumers with new costs. Congress last year set aside $1.5 billion to fund the purchase of boxes to convert digital signals to analog after Feb. 17, 2009, when TV stations must stop broadcasting in analog. Each household may request up to two $40 coupons to help pay for the converter boxes, which are expected to cost $40 to $60 each, and are alternatives to digital TV sets.

Shake Hands, Come Out Lobbying
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201370.html
The floridly polite tone of a recent congressional hearing -- "gentlelady" this and "honorable colleague" that -- vanished the instant the microphone was turned over to David K. Rehr, president of the National Association of Broadcasters. He was there to oppose the proposed merger of the nation's two satellite radio companies, and he employed two techniques: slash, and burn. Nodding toward his seatmate who heads one of the companies, Rehr told lawmakers: "Two entities that have a pattern and practice of violating their FCC licenses cannot be trusted with monopoly power. . . . People who want to attain a government-sanctioned monopoly, with all due respect, will about say and do anything to grab it." Take that, satellite radio.

Tech Firms Push to Use TV Airwaves for Internet
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201395.html
A coalition of big technology companies wants to bring high-speed Internet access to consumers in a new way: over television airwaves. Key to the project is whether a device scheduled to be delivered to federal labs today lives up to its promise. The coalition, which includes Microsoft and Google, wants regulators to allow idle TV channels, known as white space, to be used to beam the Internet into homes and offices. But the Federal Communications Commission first must be convinced that such traffic would not bleed outside its designated channels and interfere with existing broadcasts.

Top

Education

DePauw Cuts Ties With Troubled Sorority
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200384.html
DePauw University's president on Monday ordered a sorority off campus by fall after Delta Zeta kicked out nearly two dozen members and drew accusations that only attractive, popular students were asked to remain. School President Robert G. Bottoms said the values of the sorority did not fit with the 2,200-student private college in western Indiana.
RELATED: After Evicting Members, Sorority Is Itself Evicted
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/education/13sorority.html?ref=us

Top

Science and Technology

Journeys to the Distant Fields of Prime
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/science/13prof.html?ref=science
Four hundred people packed into an auditorium at U.C.L.A. in January to listen to a public lecture on prime numbers, one of the rare occasions that the topic has drawn a standing-room-only audience. Another 35 people watched on a video screen in a classroom next door. Eighty people were turned away. The speaker, Terence Tao, a professor of mathematics at the university, promised “a whirlwind tour, the equivalent to going through Paris and just seeing the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe.” His words were polite, unassuming and tinged with the accent of Australia, his homeland. Even though prime numbers have been studied for 2,000 years, “There’s still a lot that needs to be done,” Dr. Tao said. “And it’s still a very exciting field.”

Top

Military

Surgeon General Of Army Steps Down
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200544.html
Lt. Gen. Kevin C. Kiley, the Army's surgeon general, agreed to step down from his position after weeks of intense public criticism stemming from revelations about poor conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, defense officials said yesterday. Though there had been repeated calls for Kiley to resign as the Army's top doctor during hearings on Capitol Hill, he refused to step aside even as he was grilled about horrid living conditions and a tangled bureaucracy at the Army's flagship hospital. Kiley at first played down reports of problems at Walter Reed-- where he had served as commander from 2002 to 2004 -- but later was far more contrite.
RELATED: Walter Reed woes claim third official
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-vets13mar13,1,1951481.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

Army's Disability Benefit Review System Feels Strain
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201510.html
The thousands of soldiers wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have overwhelmed the Army's system for evaluating their eligibility for disability benefits, leading to a near-total failure to complete such reviews in a timely manner, the service's inspector general concluded in a report released yesterday. The report also found that medical "hold" facilities lacked critical staff and formalized training for personnel caring for wounded soldiers, with more than half of unit commanders reporting "inadequate" staffing. It also cited inadequate and unreliable databases for tracking the wounded.
RELATED: Report: Benefit delays plague Army hospital system
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-12-army-benefit-delays_N.htm

Many veterans bring war home
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703130157mar13,1,4477089.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
In a war with no front lines, soldiers can never feel safe. The effect of that constant anxiety, combined with the trauma of witnessing and participating in horrific acts of violence, became more clear with the release of a study finding that more than 13,000 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan have post-traumatic stress disorder. In all, nearly 1 in 4 returning soldiers who sought medical care was diagnosed with a mental health problem, from depression to substance abuse. Some experts expect those numbers to rise and say the military has not devoted enough resources to treat such veterans. Ex-Army Sgt. Crystal Cason struggled with suicidal thoughts, depression and nightmares before she sought help. "I'm damaged," she told the doctors at first. "You can't fix me, so don't even try."
RELATED: Veterans fight the war within
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703130170mar13,1,2642076.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed

A club of grief, back in action
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-goldstar13mar13,1,7432348.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Gold Star Mothers, who've lost a child in military service, hoped to fade into history. But new wars have brought new members.

For U.S. Troops at War, Liquor Is Spur to Crime
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/world/middleeast/13alcohol.html?ref=world
In May 2004, Specialist Justin J. Lillis got drunk on what he called “hajji juice,” a clear Iraqi moonshine smuggled onto an Army base in Balad, Iraq, by civilian contractors, and began taking potshots with his M-16 service rifle. “He shot up some contractor’s rental car,” said Phil Cave, a lawyer for Specialist Lillis, 24. “He hopped in a Humvee, drove around and shot up some more things. He shot into a housing area” and at soldiers guarding the base entrance. Six months later, at an Army base near Baghdad, after a night of drinking an illegal stash of whiskey and gin, Specialist Chris Rolan of the Third Brigade, Third Infantry Division, pulled his 9mm service pistol on another soldier and shot him dead. And in March 2006, in perhaps the most gruesome crime committed by American troops in Iraq, a group of 101st Airborne Division soldiers stationed in Mahmudiya raped a 14-year-old Iraqi girl and killed her and her family after drinking several cans of locally made whiskey supplied by Iraqi Army soldiers, military prosecutors said.

Army rushes to promote its officers
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/03/13/army_rushes_to_promote_its_officers/
To fill a growing number of vacancies in the officer corps, the Army is promoting captains, majors, and lieutenant colonels more quickly and at a higher percentage than before the Iraq war, a trend that some military specialists worry is lowering the overall quality of the officer corps. The Army, already stretched thin from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, attributes the accelerated promotion rates to the pressures of war and the urgent need for field commanders. Another reason for the vacancies, military analysts say: unit leaders are quitting the Army faster than anticipated -- after multiple tours of duty in Iraq. The shortage of captains, majors, and lieutenant colonels is especially pronounced among experienced officers who have between five and 15 years in uniform, according to Army officials.

Don't drop `don't ask, don't tell,' Pace says
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703130169mar13,1,5722276.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Monday that he supports the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays serving in the military because homosexual acts "are immoral," akin to a member of the armed forces conducting an adulterous affair with the spouse of another service member. Responding to a question about a Clinton-era policy that is coming under renewed scrutiny amid fears of future U.S. troop shortages, Pace said the Pentagon should not "condone" immoral behavior by allowing gay soldiers to serve openly. He said his views were based on his personal "upbringing," in which he was taught that certain types of conduct are immoral.
RELATED: Gen. Pace calls homosexuality 'immoral'
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-13-pace-homosexulaity_N.htm

Top

Energy Policy

Ethanol Undergoes Evolution as Political Issue
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201722.html
What's the closest thing in politics to a religious experience? The ethanol conversion. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) experienced one in May of last year. Long opposed to federal support for the corn-based biofuel, she reversed herself and endorsed even bigger ethanol incentives than she previously voted against. Now running for president, Clinton is promoting a $50 billion strategic energy fund, laden with more ethanol perks. Political opponents depict Clinton's about-face as pandering to Iowa Democrats, who will cast the first votes of the 2008 nominating season. When the senator made her first trip to Iowa in January, the Republican National Committee circulated a synopsis of her ethanol record, awash with "no" votes. "A Calculating Clinton Flips on Ethanol to Score a Run with Iowa Voters," the headline read.

State Monitor Finds TXU Abused Texas Power Market
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/13/business/13TXU.html?ref=business
The TXU Corporation manipulated the Texas electric market in 2005, costing consumers $70 million and giving the utility $20 million in extra profits, according to an outside expert whose report was released by state regulators on Monday. TXU, the largest power generator in Texas, sold power to the market at inflated prices and caused electricity prices to rise 15.5 percent during a four-month summer stretch, the market expert said. Staff members of the state Public Utility Commission said the expert had concluded that the utility’s behavior “constitutes market power abuse.” The report, by Potomac Economics, further complicates TXU’s pending $45 billion sale to a group of private investors.

Gas Prices Jump And Are Set to Keep On Rising
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200869.html
Gasoline prices have jumped 33 cents a gallon across the United States over the past month and are expected to climb still higher at least through March, according to the AAA automobile club. Nationwide, the average price of a gallon of regular gasoline rose to $2.54 yesterday from $2.21 a month ago, according to a survey by AAA. Analysts blamed higher crude oil prices, greater demand and fears of shortages.
RELATED: Gas prices jump 5 cents, sixth straight weekly increase
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2007-03-12-gas-prices_N.htm

Top

Environment and Conservation

Carbon confusion
http://www.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles/2007/03/13/carbon_confusion/
"I really thought I was doing something good," Demetry, 42, said after being told what became of her money. "I thought if I contributed this much money it would be helping the environment that much more." Demetry's $150 purchase is part of the fast-growing world of voluntary carbon offsets -- an unregulated, largely on line marketplace. Although specialists say some of the money is well spent, it can be difficult for consumers to figure out if they are buying any new environmental benefit. Sales of voluntary offsets skyrocketed worldwide from $6 million in 2004 to $110 million last year, according to Abyd Karmali of ICF International a consulting firm. Everyone from the Dixie Chicks to Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain now invests in greenhouse gas-reduction projects to offset personal emissions. The projects can include planting trees, destroying methane, or harnessing wind, solar, or other types of renewable energy that reduce demand for fossil fuels. The trend is so hot that the New Oxford American Dictionary declared "carbon neutral" -- the balance between producing and reducing carbon -- the 2006 word of the year.

Top

Opinion

Editor’s note: the New York Times has converted to a subscription-based editorial section. We are no longer clipping their op-ed columnists.

Betrayed by the FBI
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-0703130225mar13,0,3549057.story?coll=chi-newsopinion-hed
In the anxiety-ridden aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the Bush administration asked for new investigative tools so it could head off future plots before they could be carried out. Despite the fears of civil libertarians that these powers would be abused, Congress passed the USA Patriot Act on the assumption that the executive branch could be trusted to act responsibly. Later on, in response to queries from Congress, the Justice Department insisted it was indeed acting responsibly. Now, though, we learn that this trust was badly misplaced.
RELATED: Make the FBI follow the law
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/editorials/articles/2007/03/13/make_the_fbi_follow_the_law/

Froomkin: 'Eight-Gate' and Karl Rove
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2007/03/12/BL2007031200711.html
When it comes to Republican political shenanigans, Karl Rove is often the most likely suspect. The political mastermind of the Bush presidency, Rove has exercised a singular amount of control from his West Wing office through his network of loyal operatives inside government and out. One of his trademarks in the White House has been boldly crossing lines that previous administrations had only dared to blur. For instance, it was Rove who publicly advocated using national security as a wedge campaign issue. And critics charge that it is largely thanks to him that the Bush White House has subordinated domestic policy to politics, focusing less on the common good than on partisan goals such as providing tax cuts for the rich. So perhaps it should come as no surprise that the more we learn about the firing of eight U.S. attorneys for allegedly political reasons, the more Karl Rove's name seems to come up.
RELATED: Purge of prosecutors suggests willingness to abuse authority, law
http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/stories/2007/03/12/0313edattorney.html
RELATED: Stern: Dismissing eight US attorneys
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/03/13/dismissing_eight_us_attorneys/

Tucker: Libby truly is not alone; liars fill Bush's team
http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/tucker/stories/2007/03/09/0311edtuck.html
It's too bad I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby is likely to be the only Bush-Cheney confidant prosecuted for an aversion to the truth. There are plenty of unindicted liars walking the halls of the Bush White House. Not a week goes by without a leader in the Bush administration uttering a sentence or two that stretch credibility to the breaking point. Clearly, though, the most outrageous fabrications and most scurrilous falsehoods of the past six years were told in defense of the decision to invade Iraq.

Canellos: Soldiers' silence may benefit only politicians
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/03/13/soldiers_silence_may_benefit_only_politicians/
The debate over the Iraq war has turned into a battle over which party can outdo the other in demonstrating concern for the troops. All policy choices start with protecting the American fighting men and women. But rarely has the object of so many lip-quivering tributes seemed so faceless and so silent in the midst of so much attention. Nobody really knows how the troops feel about the length of the war, who the troops blame for healthcare delays, or whether the troops become demoralized whenever Congress criticizes President Bush's war plan.
RELATED: Greenway: 'Surge' doomed to final failure
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/03/13/surge_doomed_to_final_failure/

A soldiers' hospital's duty
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-reed13mar13,0,2462717.story?coll=la-opinion-leftrail
PURGING THE ARMY brass responsible for appalling outpatient conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center does not by itself correct the wrongs done to veterans and recovering soldiers, some of whom had to endure dirty and vermin-infested quarters, medical neglect and a Dickensian maze of paperwork and bureaucracy. But accountability is a necessary part of returning medical care for military personnel to the level the American people believed that they were providing before last month's series of articles in the Washington Post detailed the failings.

Records in the Open . . .
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201200.html
THE PAPERS generated by a president and his White House staff are the property of the American people. Or at least they should be. A 2001 executive order by President George W. Bush that has been roundly -- and rightly -- criticized by Democrats, Republicans and historians effectively makes them the property of the officeholder and his or her descendants. But that could change if a bipartisan bill championed by Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is approved.
RELATED: . . . And Library Donors, Too
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201203.html

von Hippel: Shun the Spotlight on U.S. Aid
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031201124.html
President Bush traveled to Latin America this week wrapped in the mantle of social justice. Proffering a basket of new initiatives, from a visiting hospital ship to English language training for Latin American youth, he and other administration officials underscored U.S. aid to a region where tens of millions live in poverty. As the president put it, "I want to remind people throughout our neighborhood that America cares about them...And I want the American people to get credit for their generosity in Central and South America." The administration should be applauded for focusing on issues like education and healthcare that matter to Latin Americans. Yet if advancing social justice is truly the Bush administration's goal, then demanding credit for the American taxpayer is the wrong way to achieve it. Paradoxically, the more attention the president draws to U.S. aid, the less grateful its recipients may feel, and the less effective our dollars may be in helping Latin Americans climb the development ladder themselves.

Miller: Slaves among us
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-miller13mar13,0,4392116.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail
THE EXISTENCE of slavery in the 21st century comes as a shock to many Americans who believe that the institution ended with the Civil War. Although slavery today is not legal, it flourishes. The international slave trade reaches into every country around the world and involves, at the least, a few million people and, by some estimates, as many as 27 million. It includes the old-fashioned buying, selling and owning of humans as well as many forms of sexual exploitation and "bonded" labor — in which people are held against their will and forced to work on farms or in factories to pay off obligations that never end.

Dionne: Hagel's Waiting Game
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200974.html
For Republicans, 2008 promises to be a disconcerting if exciting year because for the first time since the 1964 Goldwater insurgency, the party is struggling over its philosophical direction. The old conservatism is in crisis, Bush Republicanism (of the son's variety but not the father's) is a tainted brand, and no candidate has emerged as the Next New Thing that the party wants or needs.

Robinson: The Moment for This Messenger?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/12/AR2007031200983.html
So far, it's this sense of mission that has defined Obama's campaign rather than his specific agenda for the country. Obama invites people to believe in him, and in the power of "both-and."

Lehigh: Clinton scores a hit
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/03/13/clinton_scores_a_hit/
Those I talked to came away impressed -- and judging from the response she got from the party establishment, that was clearly the overall verdict. Here's what's interesting. Clinton did so with a speech that didn't have the crowd popping out of their seats like political jacks in the box at adrenalin-pumping applause lines.

PAPERS REVIEWED TODAY

COLORADO

Rocky Mountain News

Denver Post

Boulder Daily Camera

Colorado Daily

Greeley Tribune

Fort Collins Coloradoan

Colorado Springs Gazette

Pueblo Chieftain

Grand Junction Sentinel

Craig Daily Press

Aspen Times

Glenwood Springs Post-Independent

Vail Daily

Steamboat Pilot

Montrose Press

Durango Herald

Cortez Journal

Telluride Daily Planet

Canon City Daily Record

Top

NATIONAL

New York Times

USA Today

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Boston Globe

Washington Post

Los Angeles Times

Chicago Tribune

ProgressNow.org
1536 Wynkoop St. #200
Denver, CO 80202

You received this mailing because you subscribed to the ProgressNow.org daily news digest list, which is strictly opt-in. We hope you have enjoyed this mailing; but if you have received it in error, or if you prefer not to receive any future news digest mailings, please visit http://www.progressnowaction.org/page/unsubscribe and your address will be removed from the list within 24-48 hours.