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TOP STORIES

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National

Gates wants war crimes trials moved to U.S.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-gates30mar30,1,3058610.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Thursday that he has been pressing the Bush administration to move war crimes trials of suspected terrorists from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to courts in the U.S. because the military tribunals may appear tainted in the eye of the international community. No matter how open the trials are under a new law, Gates said they may not be deemed credible by the outside world because of previous military practices at Guantanamo, which included interrogation techniques that allowed physical coercion. "My own view is that because of things that happened earlier at Guantanamo, there is a taint about it," Gates testified to a House Appropriations subcommittee. "I felt that no matter how transparent, no matter how open the trials, if they took place at Guantanamo, in the international community they would lack credibility." Gates repeated his support for closing the prison and has expressed concern before that past abuses there have harmed America's reputation abroad. But his comments come at an awkward time, with the trials resuming this week after a year-long hiatus.
RELATED: Gates Signals Willingness to Close Prison
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/washington/30gitmo.html

More detainee policy news in NATIONAL/CIVIL LIBERTIES

More Than 100 Killed in Baghdad, Nearby Town
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032900385.html
Bombs tore through crowds of after-work shoppers in Baghdad and a town north of the capital on Thursday in an onslaught of violence that killed more than 100 people, according to Iraqi government and hospital officials. Both areas -- a bazaar in the eastern Baghdad neighborhood of Shaab and the farming town of Khalis in Diyala province -- are populated predominantly by Shiites, and Iraqi government officials quickly blamed the Sunni insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq. The attacks followed two violent days of bombings and reprisal killings in the northern city of Tall Afar and threatened to increase the likelihood of a resurgence of open sectarian warfare despite the heightened U.S. military presence in Iraq.
RELATED: 132 Iraqis killed in wave of bombings
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iraq30mar30,0,2857428.story?coll=la-home-headlines
RELATED: More Than 100 Are Killed in Iraq as a Wave of Sectarian Attacks Shows No Sign of Letting Up
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/world/middleeast/30iraq.html?ref=world

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

Panel Asks Rove for Information on '08 Election Presentation
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901962.html
The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee sought more information yesterday about a presentation by a White House aide given to political appointees at the General Services Administration that discussed targeting 20 Democratic congressional candidates in the next election. In a letter to White House political affairs director Karl Rove, the committee chairman, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), asked about the Jan. 26 videoconference by Rove deputy J. Scott Jennings, which was directed to the chief of the GSA and as many as 40 agency officials stationed around the country.

More GSA partisan scandal news in COLORADO/ELECTION

Report Faults Interior Appointee
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902003.html
A senior Bush political appointee at the Interior Department has repeatedly altered scientific field reports to minimize protections for imperiled species and disclosed confidential information to private groups seeking to affect policy decisions, the department's inspector general concluded. The investigator's report on Julie A. MacDonald, deputy assistant secretary for fish and wildlife and parks -- which was triggered by an anonymous complaint from a Fish and Wildlife Service employee and expanded in October after a Washington Post article about MacDonald -- said she frequently sought to reshape the agency's scientific reports in an effort to ease the impact of agency decisions on private landowners. Inspector General Earl E. Devaney referred the case to Interior's top officials for "potential administrative action," according to the document, which was reported yesterday in the New York Times.

Top

Colorado

65 Tornadoes Sweep Through Six States, Killing Four People
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/us/30tornado.html?ref=us
Four people were killed in Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas after 65 tornadoes swept through six states on Wednesday, officials said yesterday. Two people died when a tornado swirled through their rural neighborhood near Elmwood, Okla., a state emergency official, Dixie Parker, said. They were identified as Vance and Barbra Woodbury, a husband and wife. The authorities spread into Beaver County on Wednesday, warning residents to take shelter and to offer assistance, Mrs. Parker said. “There was no house left,” she said. “It was demolished, and we found them in the field. One was still alive, the husband. He passed away just before the ambulance got there.” The tornado appeared to have cut through their house, as the closest neighbors had just uprooted trees, Mrs. Parker said. Tornadoes also struck Illinois, Kansas and Nebraska, said Patrick Slattery of the National Weather Service, with some regions pummeled by large hailstones and heavy snowfall. “It was a big storm, a big system,” Mr. Slattery said. “The majority of these were almost in a straight north-south line along the Kansas-Nebraska border. The effects stretched from Colorado and Wyoming, with blowing snow.”
RELATED: A perfect storm for spawning tornadoes
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5453022,00.html
RELATED: Tornado leaves heartache
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5453024,00.html
RELATED: Former Gov. Romer praises resilience of his hometown
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452855,00.html
RELATED: Hit hard in past, Limon sending aid, water
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452859,00.html
RELATED: Musgrave calls for National Guard troops
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5450993,00.html
RELATED: Holly tornado: total destruction
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552519
RELATED: Tornado takes the life of mom flung into tree
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552520
RELATED: Stories of survival amid rain of rubble
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552736
RELATED: No warning sounds
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20679&template=article.html
RELATED: Nature's nightmare
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1175264942/1
RELATED: Townspeople begin cleanup, tally blessings
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1175264942/4
RELATED: Governor stunned by tornado's power, destruction
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1175264942/5

Immigration reform sputters
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552038
A renewed congressional drive to pass immigration reform hit a roadblock Thursday when lawmakers split along party lines on a White House proposal. Republicans either defended the Bush administration's ideas or called them starting points for discussion. Democrats said parts of the proposal were unworkable, including high costs to apply for permanent residency, and a temporary-worker program that would not allow workers to bring their families. Those party-line differences came less than a day after a bipartisan group of senators, including Colorado Democrat Ken Salazar, met to start work on a new immigration bill. "I do not want a comprehensive immigration reform proposal that's not going to be workable," Salazar said. "When we create conditions that are so onerous, it won't solve the problem." The differences underscored how controversial and difficult it still may be to pass legislation, even though the Democratic- controlled Congress and the Bush administration want immigration reform.

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

Groups blast plan to purge voter rolls
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452854,00.html
A plan to remove more than 117,000 Denver voters from active voter files because they didn't cast ballots in November or January is coming under fire. Four nonprofits are urging the Denver Election Commission not to "scrub" voter files because voters listed as "inactive" won't receive a ballot in the mail for the May 1 municipal election. The groups are calling on the City Council to pass an ordinance allowing the commission to use voter files that predate the troubled November election. "Scrubbing the voter list based on a faulty election has the potential of disenfranchising thousands of voters who may wish to participate in upcoming elections, including the presidential election in 2008," the groups said Thursday. At a minimum, the groups said, the commission should mail an additional notice to voters who are in "inactive" status. "We are following the law," said Alton Dillard, spokesman for the commission.

New law protects hospital whistle-blowers
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452084,00.html
Gov. Bill Ritter took action Thursday to make patient safety a top priority. As health-care workers cheered and hooted during a Capitol ceremony, Ritter signed the Health Care Worker Whistle-Blower Protection Bill and an executive order creating a task force to study nurse staffing levels. After years of fierce battles between hospitals and nurses over staff-to-patient ratios, Ritter praised all sides for "sitting down and hammering out differences" to better serve patients. "The common ground here: Providing the best possible health care and consumer information to the people of Colorado, while also protecting the interests of our health care workers and our hospitals," Ritter said. It took five years to pass House Bill 1133. It provides whistle-blower protection to nurses and other health-care workers who until now could be legally fired for reporting patient-safety concerns, said Rep. Morgan Carroll, who sponsored the bill with fellow Aurora Democrat Sen. Bob Hagedorn.
RELATED: Protecting health workers
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552509

COLORADO NEWS

Top

Election

Confab over labor threat
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552491
Following a big labor threat to convince Democrats to pull their national convention from Denver, the president of the AFL-CIO is headed to town to meet with Howard Dean in an attempt to settle differences. AFL-CIO president John Sweeney plans to meet with Democratic National Committee chairman Dean, local labor, the city's top political leaders and members of the convention's host committee. The meeting is the result of talks among Sweeney, Dean and U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Denver, and is timed to coincide with Dean's April 12 visit to Denver. "Everybody needs to have 'The Frank Talk,"' DeGette said Thursday. "These issues need to be resolved well in advance of the convention." DeGette met with Sweeney shortly after the AFL-CIO threatened on March 8 to ask national Democrats to find a new city for the convention if the state didn't adopt a pro-labor measure like the one Gov. Bill Ritter had recently vetoed. Meanwhile, Dean's office has been in weekly contact with Sweeney's. "Chairman Dean is delighted that president Sweeney accepted his invitation to join him in Denver," said Luis Miranda, a DNC spokesman. Sweeney also asked to meet privately with Ritter, who angered local and national labor groups by vetoing a bill that would have made it easier for unions to form in Colorado. But the governor's office said Thursday that Ritter would be at an out-of-state education conference on the 12th, and that Sweeney knew of the scheduling conflict.

The James Dobson/Fred Thompson controversy
http://blogs.denverpost.com/washington/2007/03/29/the-james-dobsonfred-thompson-controversy/
Former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson has not declared his intent to run for the presidency, and yet he’s running third among Republicans in some polls and is already at the center of a war of words between Dr. James Dobson and US News & World Report. Yes, the latest hoopla from the never-boring 2008 race involves comments made by Dobson that seemed to endorse former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and question the religious faith of Thompson, whose most recent job is portraying a lawyer on the television show “Law & Order.” “Everyone knows (Thompson’s) a conservative and has come out strongly for the things that the pro-family movement stands for,” Dobson told US News. “But I don’t think he’s a Christian.” Dobson also told the magazine that Gingrich was the “brightest guy out there,” a month after the former House Speaker confessed to the Focus and the Family founder that he’d had an affair while leading impeachment proceedings against President Clinton. The story prompted an angry retort from Thompson spokesperson Mark Corallo, who said his boss was indeed a Christian who was “baptized into the Church of Christ.” On Thursday, Dobson responded to the whole mess by accusing US News reporter Dan Gilgoff of mischaracterizing his words.

Musgrave tagged as 'most vulnerable'
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/NEWS01/703300320/1002
The White House views Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Fort Morgan, as one of the Republican Party's five most vulnerable House incumbents in 2008, according to documents released this week to a House committee. The disclosure didn't surprise Musgrave's campaign spokesman or the head of the state Democratic Party. "Clearly, the last election was a close election in what happened to be the worst Republican year since Nixon's impeachment. And we survived it," Musgrave campaign spokesman Jason Thielman said. "When you win an election in a close situation, it only encourages those that want to defeat you." The White House list of targets in the 2008 House election was revealed Wednesday in a hearing of the House Oversight Committee, which was looking into allegations that the White House's Office of Political Affairs gave an improper briefing to 40 executives of the General Services Administration. Democrats on the committee alleged the Jan. 26 briefing on Republican prospects in 2008 violated prohibitions against using federal government facilities for election-related activities.

State keeping eye on county
http://www2.steamboatpilot.com/news/2007/mar/30/state_keeping_eye_county/?local_news
Local election officials received praise and a warning from the state Thursday. Four months after Routt County’s calamitous November election, which saw hundreds of local voters wait for hours in long lines, Colorado Secretary of State Mike Coffman visited Steamboat Springs to assess the work being done to improve future elections. While Coffman said Routt County is “on the borderline” for addition to the state’s Election Watch List, which requires state monitoring of the next countywide election, he also praised the recent work of the Routt County Citizens Election Review Committee, led by local attorney Mark Fischer and Routt County Clerk and Recorder Kay Weinland.

Wampler joins council race
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103300066
Local businessman Michael Wampler has thrown his hat into the ring for a City Council seat, saying he will campaign "on a platform that emphasizes the importance of keeping the character of Aspen."

Drop ballots in mailbox today
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/NEWS01/703300312/1002
Today is the last day to drop municipal ballots in the mail to make sure they get to City Hall in time for Tuesday's election, city officials said. "I wouldn't risk it any later than (today)," Fort Collins City Clerk Wanda Krajicek said Thursday.

Top

Effective and Ethical Government

Ritter tax plan clears legal hurdle
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452419,00.html
Gov. Bill Ritter's controversial proposal to raise money for education by blocking a projected drop in property tax rates won a legal battle Thursday. An opinion issued by the Office of Legislative Legal Services supports Ritter's contention that the legislature has the right to authorize the tax rate freeze. The "opinion reflects precisely what I said from the start of this conversation: The legislature has the full authority to stabilize the local share of K-12 funding in this fashion," Ritter said in a statement. Ritter's plan would bring in $84 million more a year in taxes in all but three of the state's 178 school districts. The money would fund full-day kindergarten and preschool and shore up the state education fund. "If we don't, the state education fund will be broke in 2011," Ritter said. Lawmakers killed the plan this month when it was attached to the annual school finance bill. Republicans called it a tax hike, and many Democrats were uncomfortable voting for it as well.
RELATED: Tax-rate freeze gets green light (Under the dome, 3/30)
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552512

Senate approves anti-war resolution
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452092,00.html
The Colorado Senate approved an anti-Iraq War resolution Thursday after nearly two hours of debate, in which Republicans denounced the measure as a slap in the face to U.S. troops. The resolution, which now goes to the House, passed on a straight party-line vote, with 20 Democrats in favor and 14 Republicans opposed. It urges Congress to oppose the escalation of the Iraq War and President Bush's plan to send 21,000 more troops into the war zone. Democrats argued that the legislature has an obligation to debate Bush's war policy at a time the country clearly is divided over the issue. They also said Colorado is receiving fewer federal dollars because the war has cost the nation an estimated $500 billion.
RELATED: State dems to Bush: No troop surge in Iraq
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_1b_antiwar_memorial.html
RELATED: Colorado Senate rejects surge plan
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070330_2.htm
RELATED: Senate approves rebuke of Iraq buildup
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552511
RELATED: Senate opposes buildup of troops
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20713&template=article.html
RELATED: Senate passes anti-war memorial resolution
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1175264942/10

"Hole" in ethics rules to get plug
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552508
Complaints from a state legislator have prompted House Speaker Andrew Romanoff to draft new ethics rules prohibiting lawmakers from threatening each other. Although state Rep. Debbie Stafford of Aurora says she was the recipient of political advice from a fellow Republican colleague, and not threatened, Romanoff said the matter showed a gap in House ethics rules. "I don't want to imply misconduct on anyone's part because I don't have enough information to warrant that conclusion," said the Denver Democrat. "But the incident has revealed a hole in our ethics rules, which we can close." The new rules being drafted by the legislature's legal staff would parallel ones governing lobbyists. A lawmaker would not be able to threaten another lawmaker with "violence or economic or political reprisal." If, after an investigation and hearing by House members, a lawmaker is determined to have threatened a colleague, the punishment would be a reprimand, censure or expulsion. Stafford's intraparty squabble started when she felt pressured by lobbyists whose clients opposed a construction-defects bill backed by Democrats. After a recent bill she sponsored was heavily opposed by homebuilders, and subsequently killed, Stafford said she was "mad at the homebuilders because they are extremely punitive." But, she said, she was trying to remain open on the construction-defects bill. However, "heavy-handed lobbying" from the industry started to anger her. Additionally, she found herself supporting the bill.

THE BREAKFAST CLUB (Roll Call, March 30)
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452438,00.html
Memo to staff: Next time, don't forget to call the cook. Gov. Bill Ritter recently invited the six-member Joint Budget Committee to breakfast at the Governor's Mansion. But when committee members arrived, there was no food for them. Turns out the staffer who was supposed to notify the mansion about breakfast forgot. "We all went to Racine's and ordered breakfast," said Sen. Steve Johnson, R-Fort Collins.

Starting something new: CU law grad is county's first sustainability guru
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/starting-something-new/
Ann Livingston is about to do what no one else in Boulder County has ever done — and she's got three days left to get ready. On Monday, Livingston becomes the county's first-ever sustainability coordinator, a position that puts her in charge of making Boulder County a model for sustainable practices throughout the country. The $70,000-a-year job was approved last year by the county commissioners. "She had a combination of experiences — working with local governments, communities and interest groups — and tremendous knowledge about the field and a lot of energy to put into it," Commissioner Ben Pearlman said about the county's decision to tap Livingston for the job. Livingston, 32, comes from a legal and public-policy background, graduating from the University of Colorado School of Law in Boulder in 2000 and working in Denver as a land-use attorney for Environment Colorado, formerly known as the Colorado Public Interest Research Group.

County exec’s rehiring called ‘double-dipping’
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20705&template=article.html
Longtime El Paso County Administrator Terry Harris, who retired from his $142,000-a-year job to great fanfare Jan. 8, is back working for the county part time at $68 an hour. County officials and Harris acknowledged Thursday the return of the 48-year county veteran — and his possible compensation package of $41,300 for 76 days of work — is likely to be seen by some as classic featherbedding. At least one of their colleagues, Commissioner Douglas Bruce, thinks hiring the retiree to work on a project in the county’s planning services department is “deplorable double-dipping.” Harris said he knows what the perception of some critics will be. It’s an old refrain for him.

Blog accusing wife of affair costs Aurora staffer his job
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452096,00.html
A veteran member of Aurora's legal staff was fired this week after setting up an Internet blog accusing his wife of having an affair with the city's fire chief. The city hired an outside investigator Thursday to look into allegations of the affair and that Chief Casey Jones, who is married, authorized a pricey BlackBerry for the woman and golfed with her on city time. Aurora City Attorney Charlie Richardson learned of the Internet blog over the weekend. He said he decided after a hearing Wednesday that it would be appropriate to terminate Assistant City Attorney Rob Werking, who had worked for Aurora 15 years. Richardson said he arrived at his decision because the blog "disrupted harmony" in the workplace and that Werking also "breached city confidences" in an e-mail.
RELATED: Affair between fire chief, legal counsel alleged
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5553459

Complaints lodged against [Williamsburg] mayor
http://www.canoncitydailyrecord.com/Top-Story.asp?ID=6539
A courtroom tantrum by the mayor here led to a Board of Trustees meeting Wednesday night where public complaints were read and opinions flurried during an emotionally-charged session. A letter of reprimand was issued to Mayor Oscar Turley by board members after written complaints were submitted by residents concerning Turley’s behavior during a recent municipal court hearing. During a March 13 hearing, Turley said to Judge Leon W. Smith, “Bite me,” after Smith found Turley to be in violation of disregarding a subpoena. Turley was supposed to appear in court Feb. 13 to testify in a residential matter where he was a subpoenaed defense witness. Following the absence, Smith charged Turley with contempt of court.

Better together: Governments discuss development issues at forum
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103300110
Call it conflict resolution for government officials. The Weld County Commissioners met Thursday night with leaders from several Weld municipalities in an effort to create better dialogue among county officials and leaders of other communities in Weld. The group met in Platteville as the Committee for Positive Weld County Partnerships. The tension in the room was at times palpable as officials discussed topics centering around development in rural areas of the county and those inside cities and towns.

Top

Civil Liberties and Equality

Protest turns into a circus
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=15459
Deputies arrested the manager of a travelling circus Wednesday night on suspicion of harassing protesters outside the Boulder County Fairgrounds Indoor Arena. Deputies said they planned to ticket the man after he made a “lewd comment” to one of about nine animal-rights protesters but arrested him because he couldn’t provide officers with identification. Before his arrest, the man identified himself as Phil Hendricks, manager of the L.E. Barnes and Bailey Brothers Circus.

Library to change policy on exhibits
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_1a_library_board.html
The Mesa County Public Library District Board of Trustees voted to suspend the acceptance of applications for its public display wall until it can approve a new exhibit and display policy. The decision was made at Thursday night’s board meeting, where the library board’s attorney, Susan Corle, was also present to discuss ways to improve its policies. The library’s actions stem from the free-speech debate surrounding a controversial religious art display in February, which some people felt was anti-gay and consisted of defamatory speech.

CSU honors Chavez
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/NEWS01/703300319/1002
The event, part of a week-long celebration of Chavez created by Colorado State University, included a number of performances, speeches and educational. "The celebration helps to continue the educational process of what many times has been left out of history," said Rich Salas, assistant director for El Centro Student Services at Colorado State University and member of the Cesar Chavez Celebration Committee. As part of the celebration of the Hispanic culture and Chavez's life, Quetzalcoatl dancers performed traditional dances as residents of Fort Collins munched on a dinner provided by Consuelos New Mexican Restaurant, 1401 W. Elizabeth St.

Top

Immigration

UNC students learn about immigration
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103300107
Immigration myths were quashed for several students Thursday during a panel at the University of Northern Colorado focusing on the past and present of the hot topic. "It was really interesting and it cleared up a lot of the misunderstandings," said Diana Jaramillo, a freshman at UNC. "There were so many things I didn't know." The presentation, called "Beyond ICE: The Past, Present and Future of Weld County," featured UNC professors Charles Collins, who teaches cultural geography, and Priscilla Falcón, who teaches Mexican American Studies. Immigration attorney Kim Baker-Medina from Fort Collins was also part of the panel to discuss legal issues.

Blind man seeking citizenship wins suit
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452423,00.html
A blind Jordanian with an American green card has convinced a Denver federal judge that authorities have waited too long to approve or reject his bid for U.S. citizenship. Zuhair Mahd, a 33-year-old computer expert and industrious blogger, took his case to federal court last May, saying that U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services took longer than the allotted time to process his application. He was not shy. In his suit, in which he acted as his own lawyer, Mahd named Homeland Security Director Michael Chertoff and FBI Director Robert Mueller as defendants.
RELATED: New paperwork sought in fight for citizenship
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552585

Top

Health Care and Public Safety

Sex-education bill clears Senate panel
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452417,00.html
School districts that offer sex-education courses would have to include information on contraception and sexually transmitted diseases under a measure approved Thursday by a Senate committee. Republicans blasted the measure, arguing that the state shouldn't prescribe how schools teach sex education. "If people knew what we were talking about in here - math, science and condoms - they would be horrified," said Sen. Mike Kopp, R-Littleton.

Riesberg to host community forum on hunger this weekend
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103290114
State Rep. Jim Riesberg, D-Greeley, is hosting a special community forum at the Weld Food Bank Saturday to explore issues of hunger and nutrition in northern Colorado and throughout the state.

Test devices make it by DIA security
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552494
Checkpoint security screeners at Denver International Airport last month failed to find items simulating dangerous weapons and explosive materials carried on by undercover agents, sources told 9News. The Transportation Security Administration screeners failed most of the covert tests because of human error, the sources said. Alarms went off on the machines, but screeners did not follow TSA standard operating procedures, such as hand-searching luggage, wanding or patting down the undercover agents. "The good news is we have our own people probing and looking and examining the system," said U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., who sits on the House homeland security and transportation committees. "The bad news is they're finding weaknesses."

Commissioners support grant bid
http://montrosepress.com/articles/2007/03/29/local_news/5.txt
The Tri County Resource Center is one step closer to securing grant funding for its emergency domestic violence shelters in Montrose and Delta. The Montrose Board of County Commissioners signed off on a certification of local approval Tuesday, which will help Tri County obtain a $26,100 Emergency Shelter Grant from the Colorado Division of Housing.

Groups encourage organ donor registration
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103290113
More than 1,700 people in Colorado and Wyoming are waiting for an organ transplant. To help increase the number of donors, Colorado Safeway supermarkets are offering donor registry forms at pharmacies during April. The effort is in partnership with Donor Alliance and the American Transplant Foundation for National Donate Life Month.

PETA makes push in local case
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=15463
A national animal advocacy group is lobbying the Boulder County District Attorney’s Office to “vigorously prosecute” a Niwot woman accused of animal neglect. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals sent a letter to District Attorney Mary Lacy asking that her office seek jail time and a mental evaluation for Marcy Trescott-Helmick, a Niwot woman charged with nine counts of misdemeanor animal cruelty and 34 counts of violating Boulder County’s Improper Care of Animals ordinance, if she is convicted on the charges.

Top

Crime and Penal Reform

Shootings Add to Denver’s Anxiety, and Its Unsolved Crimes
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/us/30denver.html?ref=us
A rash of seemingly random shootings last weekend has baffled the police here and added to the unease of a city that in recent months has experienced a series of unsolved violent crimes.

Gun seller sentenced after praise by judge
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452104,00.html
A judge called Stan Ford likable, articulate, educated, hardworking, civic-minded and law-abiding - mostly. Then he sentenced him to a year and a day in prison. Ford, a former Denver firefighter, was found guilty last June of selling an Olympic Arms Mini-16 machine gun to an FBI informant. The jury acquitted him on three other gun charges stemming from a government investigation that was shaky from the start. "The investigation of the defendant commenced in response to a red herring - that the defendant was a domestic terrorist, which was and is absolutely false and unfounded," said U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn at Thursday's sentencing.
RELATED: Ex-firefighter sentenced for gun sale
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5550334

Tribune files motion to unseal latest search warrant in Shawna Nelson case
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/70329011
In another step in what is quickly becoming one of Greeley’s most sensational murder cases, attorneys representing The Tribune today asked the courts to open a sealed search warrant in the Shawna Nelson case. Nelson, 35, a former police dispatcher and wife of a sheriff’s deputy, is accused of killing Heather Garraus, wife of a Greeley police officer. The murder was committed on Jan. 23, and since that date, Nelson has been held on first-degree murder charges. While the first search warrants and all court records in the case were originally sealed by the courts, they were officially opened in February. But last week, a search warrant on Friday was again sealed until April 26 by District Court Judge Roger Klein. No one involved in the case has been allowed to reveal the location targeted by the search warrant, or what evidence police sought.

Inmate sues Mesa County Jail a second time on medical care
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_1b_Jail_lawsuit.html
For the second time in two years, Jeffrey Bartosiewicz has sued the Mesa County Jail, claiming jail staff and doctors repeatedly disregarded his medical needs and under-prescribed him arthritis medicine. According to documents on file with the U.S. District Court in Denver, Bartosiewicz, who in 2006 was sentenced to six years in prison, has sued Mesa County Sheriff Stan Hilkey, jail staff and a handful of doctors for allegedly depriving him of proper medical treatment. Norma Mestas, spokeswoman for the Mesa County Sheriff’s Department, declined to comment on the case, saying her agency has not been served with any court papers.

Cops: Fatal crash suspect hit sheriff
http://vaildaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/103290057
Patrick Strawmatt allegedly slammed his Toyota SUV into a Park County Sheriff's vehicle, then punched the sheriff in a drunk-driving arrest that required three officers to handcuff him. That was Feb. 15. The next day, he walked free on $15,000 bail. Now, Strawmatt, a 42-year-old ex-cop, is in jail again on $1 million bail, suspected of killing two Mesa State College students here last week in another drunk-driving incident. Police allege Strawmatt rammed into a car that held Jake Brock of Eagle and Jennifer Kois of Brighton, both 19, on Interstate 70. Park County authorities say Strawmatt was drunk in the incident there as well.

Man who killed cellmate abused as child, family testifies
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452080,00.html
A convicted murderer who is facing possible execution was beaten repeatedly with a coconut branch as a child or sometimes had coffee thrown in his face, family members testified in federal court Thursday. William Sablan, 43, was found guilty in the death of a fellow inmate, Joey Estrella. In October 1999, Sablan strangled Estrella, 33, in their federal prison cell, cut his throat at least 60 times with a contraband plastic razor and removed the victim's organs.

Teen gives initial OK to deal in Damm case
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452825,00.html
Jared Guy walked out of the Boulder County Jail on Thursday after his bond was reduced to $5,000 because he tentatively agreed to testify against his friends in the Linda Damm murder case. Following his release, Guy, 18, embraced his mother as she cried softly and held him. He was wearing the black blazer and blue jeans he had on at the winter dance at Westminster's Standley Lake High School, where he was arrested a month ago.
RELATED: Damm suspect out of jail
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/damm-suspect-out-of-jail/

Top

Economy

Nacchio 'constantly' upbeat
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/tech/article/0,2777,DRMN_23910_5452424,00.html
Former Qwest CEO Joe Nacchio told his financial adviser "constantly" in 2000 and 2001 that he believed in the future of the company and expected Qwest's stock price to rise, the adviser testified at Nacchio's insider trading trial Thursday. David Weinstein, who gave Nacchio financial advice for nearly 20 years, told jurors he encouraged Nacchio to diversify by selling more options but that Nacchio wanted to wait until the stock price went higher. "You know Joe Nacchio well," defense attorney Herbert Stern said. "Do you believe he was telling you the truth?" "Yes," Weinstein said. The testimony contradicts prosecutors' allegations that Nacchio unloaded nearly $101 million in Qwest stock in early 2001 because he had inside information that the stock price was about to slip. Nacchio, who is charged with 42 counts of insider trading, has pleaded not guilty.
RELATED: Restatement issue off the table
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/tech/article/0,2777,DRMN_23910_5452415,00.html
RELATED: Nacchio right-hand man on stand
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552027
RELATED: Alleged asset transfer nixed
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552547
RELATED: Special coverage: Nacchio on trial
http://cfapp2.rockymountainnews.com/business/nacchio/

3 Companies in Telecom Win U.S. Deal Worth Billions
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/technology/30telecom.html?ref=business
The federal government said yesterday that it had selected AT&T, Verizon and Qwest Communications to bid on portions of the government’s biggest telecommunications contract ever, leaving one longtime partner, Sprint Nextel, out in the cold. The contract, by the General Services Administration, is valued at about $20 billion over 10 years, but could grow to as much as $48 billion. None of the three companies selected know yet what portion of the total business they will receive under the contract, known as Networx Universal. Rather than split the business upfront, they will compete for the opportunity to provide telecommunications services to any of 135 government agencies.
RELATED: Qwest lands federal deal
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/tech/article/0,2777,DRMN_23910_5452506,00.html
RELATED: Qwest lands big role in telecom
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552028

United reports "material weakness" in tax accounting
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5550014
United Airlines parent UAL Corp., the world's second-largest carrier, said it found "material weakness" in its tax accounting that may lead to misstatements in future financial results. An internal audit found United's internal controls "did not operate effectively to ensure proper accounting and disclosure of income taxes," the Elk Grove Township, Illinois- based carrier said today in a U.S. regulatory filing. UAL used similar language to describe the finding in a March 16 filing.

Judge freezes Boulder debt operation's assets
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/judge-freezes-boulder-debt-operations-assets/
A federal judge in Denver this week froze the assets of a Boulder consumer debt-reduction business at the request of the Federal Trade Commission, saying that since at least 2004 the operation charged some customers hidden fees and did not clear up their debt as advertised. The temporary restraining order freezes the assets of Boulder-based Debt Set Inc., Debt-Set Corp. and Resolve Credit Counseling Inc., as well as the assets of executives William Riggs, Michelle Tucker and Lee Tucker — a married couple also known as Leo and Michelle Mangan — and Isaac Kahn. The FTC also seeks a permanent injunction, saying, "Consumers nationwide have suffered or will suffer substantial monetary loss as a result of the defendants' ongoing violations."

Washington hears beekeepers’ woes
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=news&article_path=/news/07/news070330_3.htm
Beekeepers from across the country told a congressional subcommittee in Washington, D.C., on Thursday that the mysterious disappearance of millions of honey bees since last fall threatens the pollination of fruit, vegetables and nuts, a $20 billion-a-year industry in the U.S. The enigma - bees are here today, gone tomorrow - is known as colony-collapse disorder. Beekeepers have battled mites, pesticides, bacteria and fungal diseases for years, but they've never had entire colonies vanish overnight.

Top

Housing and Homelessness

Homeless court offers hope to indigents
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552492
The tent city of homeless people that springs up most nights on the steamy grates beside Denver's City and County Building served as more than just a place for Nicholas Tucker to beat freezing temperatures. The grates were a nightly reminder to the 27-year-old that he couldn't afford to miss another court date for his minor drug-related arrests. "Every night for a month I've been sleeping on the grates so I would remember to be there on time," said Tucker, a Littleton High School dropout. "I have a long problem with not being places on time."

Shelter efforts may be merged
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=15461
Players from two parallel efforts to offer emergency shelter to the homeless are now talking about collaborating. Earlier this month, a church-based group launched its own emergency shelter program at two sites, while the OUR Center began developing a plan for a warming center this fall. The two sides were presenting details of their efforts at Wednesday’s Longmont Housing Opportunities Team meeting when a few attendees expressed concern that the two services might overlap or compete.

Affordable housing for teachers?
http://summitdaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/103290077
When a Breckenridge Town Council member asked Summit School District Board of Education if they lose teachers because of the cost of living here, the answer was yes, and fairly often. "We train teachers for other schools," said school board treasurer Stuart Adams at the town council work session this week where the two groups met to discuss affordable housing. Superintendent Millie Hamner, Ph.D., told the council, "We know as the third largest employer in Summit County that if we don't think forward as far as housing we may not have places for our teachers, bus drivers, employees to live." A starting teacher in the county makes about $33,000 - which is competitive with other resort communities, but housing is still a problem, she continued.

Making room for workers in Minturn
http://vaildaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/70329008
David Clapp hopes that the private ski resort south of town, if it’s built, provides adequate housing for its employees — so does Eagle County. "There’s not really any way to get more people in this town," said Clapp, a Minturn resident who ran for town council last year. The Ginn Development Co. pledges to house 40 percent of its employees, a step up from other developers in the area, the company says. However, disagreement exists as to the number of employees the development will spawn.
RELATED: Housing more and less than others
http://vaildaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/70329007

Top

Media

Malone's Discovery buys out Cox's share
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552545
Discovery Communications Inc., the producer of documentary channels on cable television, will buy Cox Communications Holdings Inc.'s 25 percent share of the company, boosting billionaire John Malone's stake. Cox will receive $1.28 billion and ownership of the Travel Channel and Antenna Audio, which provides self-guided tours and multimedia presentations at museums, Silver Spring, Md.-based Discovery said Thursday in a statement. The purchase gives Malone's publicly traded Discovery Holding Co. of Douglas County a 66 percent stake in the cable programmer. Malone must still buy out minority investor Advance/Newhouse Communications to gain full control.

Top

Education

CSU isn't getting fair share of funding pie, president says
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452413,00.html
Colorado State University President Larry Penley lashed out at Gov. Bill Ritter and other state officials Thursday, saying that CSU is getting less than its fair share of funding and may have to cut more than $5 million from its proposed budget. "The governor is unfairly permitting substantially larger funding increases for (the University of Colorado) than for CSU," Penley said in a news release. Penley said CU is being allowed to increase tuition by between $941 and $1,398 per student, while CSU got permission to raise tuition by just $412 per student. Ritter's spokesman, Evan Dreyer, responded that Penley was pushing "an impractical, surprise plan" that would have meant a 46 percent tuition increase for thousands of students.
RELATED: CSU threatens program cuts in tuition dispute
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552729
RELATED: Penley's funding fix draws derision
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/NEWS01/703300349/1002
RELATED: CSU faces prospect of budget trimming
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/NEWS01/703300348/1002
RELATED: Lawmakers irked by Penley's budget tactics
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1175264942/8

Rep. Merrifield's e-mail rips charter school supporters
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452414,00.html
An e-mail written by the House Education Committee chairman saying there must be "a special place in hell" for charter school supporters has some top lawmakers hopping mad. A political Web site called Face the State touched off a firestorm Thursday when it posted an e-mail written by Rep. Mike Merrifield, D-El Paso, to Sen. Sue Windels, D-Arvada. "There must be a special place in hell for these Privatizers, Charterizers and Voucherziers. They deserve it!" he wrote. Merrifield made his comments during an e-mail exchange in which he and Windels, chairwoman of the Senate Education Committee, discussed whether to push for a full repeal of the State Charter School Institute, provided they could get Gov. Bill Ritter's backing. "It shows there's absolutely no good faith on the Rep. Merrifield's part, who is clearly more concerned with defending a crippled and ineffective status-quo public education system then creating opportunities for all kids," said Sen. Peter Groff, D-Denver. Merrifield made no apologies Thursday for the e-mail. He said his public stance against charter schools, which he contends are stripping scarce resources from public schools, isn't a secret.
RELATED: E-mail bashing charter schools leaves bad taste
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20709&template=article.html

Charter school files paperwork in bid to stay in business
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/education/article/0,1299,DRMN_957_5452020,00.html
A troubled Denver charter school filed a 20-page legal brief this week with the Colorado Board of Education in the school's last-ditch attempt to stay open next fall. The paperwork, filed on behalf of Life Skills Center of Denver, outlines reasons why it believes Denver Public Schools unfairly refused to renew its contract by using what it said was incorrect attendance data and low testing results. But DPS officials have maintained that they used correct data when they presented it to the Denver Board of Education. In February, the board voted 6-1 against renewing the contract with Ohio-based White Hat Management, which operates the charter school.

School, city deal on hold
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=15462
The St. Vrain Valley School District Board of Education will not approve an intergovernmental agreement with the city of Longmont until the city decides developers can give the school district extra money to help build schools. “I don’t see how the board could approve the IGA with these new issues that have come up,” said Sandi Searls, school board president. The matter was up for discussion Wednesday, but not scheduled for a vote. The hangup is over the school district’s voluntary capital mitigation policy, a program in which developers agree to give the school district extra funds — more than required by the impact fees — to help the district build schools.

Revised curriculum across the district
http://summitdaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/103290078
Art, music, library, health and physical education teachers got together at this week's Summit School District Board of Education meeting to share their plans to improve curriculum. Every five years teachers from the same subject throughout the district meet about this, said Rebecca Wilson, director of curriculum and instructional programs. Then, $200,000 is split between them for new equipment, books or whatever they decide on. Next year's focus will be on social studies and foreign languages, Wilson added.

School Board presented with possible budget cuts
http://craigdailypress.com/section/localnews/story/25940
The Moffat County School District Board of Education saw a list of possible reductions and cuts for the 2007-08 budget at its meeting Thursday evening. "Everything is on the list, and nothing is for sure," Superintendent Pete Bergmann said. "There are no good answers." As the lowest funded district per pupil in the state, Moffat County administrators have been evaluating ways to cut expenditures and increase revenue.

New Aims aviation facility takes off
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103290108
Huge employee shortages in the aviation industry are good news for officials at Aims Community College.

Two appeal CU case dismissal
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452941,00.html
Two women whose sexual assault allegations plunged the University of Colorado into scandal filed motions in federal courts Thursday, arguing that they had new evidence that should reinstate their gender-discrimination lawsuit. Lisa Simpson and a woman referred to in court papers as Jane Doe allege that they were sexually assaulted in December 2001 by CU football players and recruits, and that the school fostered an environment that caused it. The case was dismissed in March 2005 after U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn ruled that CU officials did not have prior notice that football players or recruits posed a danger to women. But the women alleged in motions filed in both U.S. District Court and the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals that then-football coach Gary Barnett knew about another alleged assault, involving a recruit, months before they were attacked.
RELATED: Motion: Barnett knew of alleged assault
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/motion-barnett-knew-alleged-assault/

Top

Military

Clifton veteran takes Iraq story to talk show
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_1B_Montel.html
Clifton resident Keli Frasier will be a guest on an upcoming episode of “The Montel Williams Show” where she will be talking about her experiences as an Army reservist in Iraq. Frasier was contacted by the show’s producers after she was featured in an article in The New York Times Magazine’s March 18 edition, “The Women’s War.” Frasier, who returned from Iraq in 2004, was diagnosed by a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs counselor as having post-traumatic stress disorder, according to the Times article. The title of the episode is, “American Dreams ... Shattered?” “She wanted the American dream, she wanted an education and to serve her country,” said Kathy Gulinello, senior associate producer with “The Montel Williams Show.” “She fought bravely, she fought strongly, but some things keep coming back to her,” Gulinello said. One of those things, said Gulinello, is Frasier’s memory of attending to a young male soldier who lost his leg. Frasier told the Times reporter that she witnessed her squad leader die in a roadside ambush. Since she returned from Iraq, she told the Times, she has been fired from three low-wage jobs and dropped out of college.

Heart of a Marine
http://craigdailypress.com/section/localnews/story/25939
The year was 2004. Craig resident Cory Hixson sat in a German hospital, nursing an eye injury he suffered while fighting in Iraq. One thought kept coming back to him while talking to other injured U.S. troops. The Marine Corps lance corporal wanted to go back. Immediately. "I wanted to be (in Iraq) more than anything," the 23-year-old Hixson said on Thursday. "I didn't want to be here in the U.S. My platoon was like my brothers. ... I just wanted to be there fighting with them, to watch their backs." His left eye, which was hit by shrapnel, didn't heal. It had to be removed. Hixson could have stayed in the Marines, but strictly in an administrative capacity. It was not an option for the "grunt," not if he couldn't be with his infantry brothers. That dedication to his fellow soldiers is why Greg Merschel, spokesman for the Veterans Committee of the Western Slope, nominated Hixson for an all-expense-paid hunting trip to RecordBuck Ranch in Utopia, Texas.

Airmen's mettle no longer denied
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552521
Fitzroy Newsum of Denver flew planes during World War II and then again in the Korean War, but neither experience proved as daunting as what he saw during military training. As a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, the first group of African-American pilots in the U.S. military, Newsum, 88, endured discrimination and blatant racism. "Some were really vicious," Newsum said of his training officers. "But I weathered the storm. I was determined they weren't going to get the best of me." On Thursday, President Bush awarded 350 Tuskegee Airmen, including Newsum and four others from Denver, the Congressional Gold Medal.
RELATED: Tuskegee Airmen are saluted at the Capitol
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-tuskegee30mar30,1,5920414.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

Top

Religion

Episcopal parish fragments further as two clergy leave
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452094,00.html
The breakup of an Episcopal parish continued Thursday in Colorado Springs. A priest and a deacon who were hired by the renegade rector, the Rev. Don Armstrong, have chosen to stand with the Episcopal Diocese rather than side with "the secessionist" Armstrong, the diocesan office confirmed. The Rev. Michael O'Donnell, a priest, and the Rev. Sally Ziegler, a deacon, will join an alternative Palm Sunday service this weekend at 1 p.m. at Shove Chapel, 1010 N. Nevada Ave., on the campus of Colorado College. Both clergy were hired by Armstrong at the 2,000-member Grace and St. Stephen's church, which is now at the center of a bitter war between Armstrong and Colorado Bishop Rob O'Neill.
RELATED: Grace cash may be frozen; diocese heading to court
http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=20704&template=article.html

Top

Energy Policy

CSU planning its own wind farm
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552177
Colorado State University said Thursday it plans to develop a wind farm in northern Colorado that would be the largest university-owned wind facility in the world. The project would generate more than enough electricity to power CSU's entire Fort Collins campus. Excess-power sales would generate an estimated $30 million to the university over the next 25 years. The venture is proposed for the 11,000-acre Maxwell Ranch, a property owned by the university near the Wyoming border, and will cost $100 million to $300 million. The project is "another step in the university's goal to develop reliable and ecologically sound energy alternatives to fossil fuels and to continue groundbreaking research in this area," said Larry Penley, president of CSU.
RELATED: Colorado State University to build wind farm near Wyoming
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/70329018

Genesis watershed plan delayed to April 4
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_1b_Genesis_plan_delay.html
The community development plan that is expected to outline how Genesis Gas and Oil will protect the Grand Junction and Palisade municipal watersheds during natural gas development will be delayed by at least two days. The public meeting regarding the plan will be delayed by a week. The plan originally was scheduled to be released Monday, but it is now expected to be released on April 4, said John Redifer, facilitator of the working group devising the plan with Genesis.

Petitions for DMEA board candidates available Monday
http://montrosepress.com/articles/2007/03/29/local_news/4.txt
Local residents have the opportunity Monday to begin petitioning to campaign for the Delta-Montrose Electric Association Board of Directors. “A lot of people are surprised by the vigor and commitment these campaigns entail,” DMEA spokesman Tom Polikalas said. “Some of these board elections become almost as competitive as legislative seats.”

Top

Transportation and Infrastructure

Taxi deregulation tabled; panel seeks to fix system
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5452412,00.html
As an overflow crowd of immigrant cab drivers and disabled passengers watched intently, a House committee postponed a hotly contested measure that would end the near-monopoly that three cab firms have over the Denver area market. But the House Transportation and Energy Committee did advance a bill requiring the three cab companies to disclose the lease fees they charge drivers, fees that many call exorbitant. After grappling with 24 amendments to the original bill that would deregulate cab service, several lawmakers said they need more time to understand how to fix the complex problem.
RELATED: Taxi deregulation bill steers in new direction
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552510

Ritter names Toor, Vaad to transportation study panel
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=15466
Two area elected officials are among the 30 Coloradans Gov. Bill Ritter is asking to suggest solutions to the state’s transportation funding problems. Ritter announced this week that he’s named Boulder County Commissioner Will Toor and state Rep. Glenn Vaad, a former Weld County commissioner, to the governor’s Colorado Transportation Finance and Implementation Panel. “Colorado’s transportation system is at a crucial crossroads. Our primary sources of federal and state transportation are not keeping with rising maintenance and construction costs,” Ritter said in a Monday statement. “We must explore new ways to prioritize our transportation needs and secure sustainable funding sources for a 21st century transportation system.”

Officials at forum say money short for disabled transportation
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070330/NEWS/103290111
When Sherri Kaspar had cancer, getting to Denver to have surgery was no easy task. Kaspar, who is on Medicaid, is in a wheelchair and has no vehicle of her own to get her to the doctor's appointments she has every Monday. And when she turned to the county to help her get from her Kersey residence to the hospital, they told her they could only take her to Denver on one day a week -- Mondays --because there simply was not enough money to make more than one trip per week to the metro area. The county takes Kaspar to other doctor's appointments in Greeley on Thursdays. Kaspar ended up waiting 5 weeks to have her cancer surgery because scheduling for the operation wouldn't fit with the county's transportation schedule.

All roads leading to hybrids' share
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552025
Hybrid vehicles and alternative fuels are poised to lose their novelty status and become mainstream transportation tools, officials said Thursday at the Denver Auto Show. While few motorists are now using E-85 ethanol fuel, Detroit automakers are ramping up production of "flex fuel" cars and trucks that can burn ethanol or gasoline. Colorado will triple the number of E-85 fueling stations this year in an effort to stimulate sales of the renewable fuel. Toyota has increased production of its popular Prius gasoline-electric hybrid in an effort to eliminate lengthy waiting times endured by customers wanting to buy the cars.

Top

Environment and Conservation

Rep. Musgrave wants full study of Aurora deal
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1175264942/3
A third member of Congress is calling on the Bureau of Reclamation to conduct a full environmental impact statement on a contract that would allow Aurora to store and exchange water in Lake Pueblo for 40 years. U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Colo., has written a letter to Reclamation Commissioner Robert Johnson asking for the more rigorous environmental review for the project. “I request that a full-scale EIS be authorized that will clearly determine and state the impact of these long-term storage agreements on communities, farmers and ranchers in the Arkansas River basin,” Musgrave said. Musgrave joined Reps. John Salazar and Mark Udall, both Democrats, in calling for an EIS after Reclamation issued a “finding of no significant impact” last week.

Rocky, County talk issues
http://coloradodaily.com/articles/2007/03/29/news/c_u_and_boulder/news2.txt
Parts of Rocky Mountain National Park lie within Boulder County, and two RMNP officials stopped by the County Courthouse Thursday to talk about immediate park challenges and future plans. Vaughn Baker, RMNP superintendent, and Larry Gamble, RMNP chief of planning, gave a brief presentation to the Board of Boulder County Commissioners and said 2007 would, in part, be a year that will include a decent amount of reconstruction and renovation. “I've been telling everyone that we're doing this to get ready for the (2008) Democratic National Convention - just kidding,” joked Baker after talking about trailhead, roadway, campground and concession projects scheduled for this spring and summer. For starters, Trail Ridge Road - the main drag through the heart of the park - will have repairs done during the late spring and summer. The road reaches elevations of higher than 12,000 feet, which means colder temperatures, lingering snow accumulations and almost no opportunity to do roadwork except during the visitor season.
RELATED: Parking in RMNP proposal
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/parking-rmnp-proposal/

Area streams, Glenwood Canyon, meet criteria for wild and scenic designation
http://postindependent.com/article/20070330/VALLEYNEWS/103300061
A Bureau of Land Management report issued this week has identified Glenwood Canyon and several streams in the region as eligible for wild and scenic river designation. Like wilderness areas, free-flowing wild and scenic rivers have special federal protection. According to the report, BLM prepared the study in conjunction with a major revision of the 1984 resource management plans for both the Glenwood Springs and Kremmling field offices. "The eligibility list gives us a list of river and steam segments within our boundaries with regionally or nationally significant values," said Glenwood Springs BLM field manager Jamie Connell. "We will now use this information to conduct a suitability study to determine whether a stream segment would make a worthy addition to the national Wild and Scenic Rivers system."

Snowstorm does little to replenish basins
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5452939,00.html
The snowstorm that hit the state this week may help lawns but might not be enough to stop water rationing this summer. The 4 to 6 inches of snow that fell on Colorado slowed the rapid runoff but did little to replenish the basins or the reservoirs. "The statewide snowpack is 76 percent of average, down considerably from March 1, when it was 92 percent statewide," said Mike Gillespie, snow survey supervisor with the Natural Resources Conservation Service.
RELATED: Storm boosts March snowfall
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/winter-in-spring/
RELATED: Will Vail Valley see a water shortage?
http://vaildaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/70329021

Mine waste in your back yard?
http://summitdaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/103290079
Not all Wellington neighborhood residents are thrilled about an Environmental Protection Agency plan to shuffle mine waste from the Forest Service-owned Claimjumper parcel to a storage site near their homes in French Gulch. "It's a very concerning thing to hear," said Brandon Head, who lives within spitting distance of the route trucks would use to deliver some 6,000 to 10,000 tons of rock containing elevated levels of zinc, cadmium, lead and arsenic.
RELATED: Breck town council members weigh options on mine waste plan
http://summitdaily.com/article/20070329/NEWS/103290082

Two men fined for illegal elk killing
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_3a_Illegal_Elk_Killing.html
Two Gunnison County men will face stiff fines after illegally spraying a herd of elk with gunfire, killing four elk south of Gunnison last November.

Top

Opinion

Protect the integrity of tenure
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5551536
Tenure has come under fire in recent years - from politicians and the public - for protecting absurd characters such as Ward Churchill and, as some see it, for giving university professors jobs for life. But the basic tenets of tenure must be protected because the benefits of academic freedom are so profound. That's why we were pleased to see the recent Colorado Court of Appeals ruling that would seem to secure some rights for tenured faculty at Metropolitan State College.

Seek compromise on Iraq
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5551534
President Bush, instead of threatening a veto, needs to find a way to work with Congress. It's called compromise.

Telling details from top Gonzales aide
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5551535
Among the more telling details to emerge from the congressional testimony Thursday of former Justice Department aide Kyle Sampson was his unabashed linking of political loyalty with prosecutorial performance. A U.S. attorney who is a "loyal Bushie" is expected to "promote the president's priorities and initiatives in the area of law enforcement." That's legitimate if it means focusing prosecutorial resources on, say, drug crimes. But it's wholly inappropriate if it translates into pressuring U.S. attorneys to focus investigations for partisan reasons, which is one of the allegations in the burgeoning scandal over the firings of eight U.S. attorneys.

Caveat homeowner: Lawmakers support fair balance in home transactions
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/mar/30/caveat-homeowner/
Rep. Debbie Stafford, an Aurora Republican, was among those supporting the Pommer bill. She did so even though, she alleges, a fellow legislator warned her that she'd be targeted in future elections by the home-building barons. As Pommer explained this week, HB 1138 is neither anti-builder nor anti-business. "This gives homeowners a fighting chance if they find out that their new home has serious problems," Pommer said. "We're leaving in place the limits on liability that the home builders say they need, but restoring the legal rights homeowners need to protect the huge investment they make in their house." No "good builder" would object to that. For most people, the purchase of a home is the most significant investment in life. Buyers deserve more than a contractually enshrined caveat emptor.

Keep needed funding boost for colleges
http://www.durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=opin&article_path=/opinion/opin070330_1.htm
An amendment offered on Wednesday shifted to construction at colleges - funds that would have otherwise gone to transportation. The Senate's preliminary approval of the amended budget was a welcome move. Colorado's colleges and universities receive woefully inadequate state support, particularly for capital improvements, and the $45 million that Sen. Sue Windels', D-Arvada, amendment will bring can help chip away at the backlog of needs on campuses across the state.

Spencer: Firearms culture gives a 15-gun salute to irony
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5552493
Authorities have talked a lot about Duane Morrison's tactics. They have talked a bunch about his state of mind as he took hostages at Platte Canyon High School, sexually assaulted some and shot to death 16-year-old Emily Keyes before killing himself. Not much has been said about Morrison's guns. In a country in love with nearly uncontrolled access to firearms there is depressingly little to say. The most damning statement comes on pages 9 and 10 of the just-released case summary. "Investigators have since recovered four of the ... firearms incident to the Platte Canyon hostage crisis," says the Colorado Bureau of Investigation report. "... The whereabouts of Morrison's remaining eleven (11) firearms are unknown at this time." That's America, folks. Morrison had 15 guns, 11 of them still unaccounted for.

Hunting for balance on nation’s public lands
http://www.gjsentinel.com/opin/content/news/opinion/stories/2007/03/30/3_30_sportsmen_edit.html
Pressures on the Bureau of Land Management to speed up approval of drilling permits and facilitate energy development in general “have led to virtual abandonment of other land management responsibilities for wildlife on many BLM trust lands,” a representative of the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership told the House Committee on Natural Resources Committee in Washington Tuesday. Dr. Rollin D. Sparrrowe was one of several representatives of national sportsmen’s groups and wildlife organizations, along with one Colorado state legislator, who expressed similar concerns before the committee. It is a message that lawmakers in Washington need to understand: The accelerated pace of energy development on federal lands, as called for in the energy legislation approved by Congress in 2005 and pushed by the Bush administration for several years, is harming wildlife habitat and reducing opportunities for hunters and fishermen.

Poverty a looming issue for Fort Collins
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070330/OPINION01/703300323/1014/CUSTOMERSERVICE02
Many Fort Collins residents have heard about some of the statistics, but have they seen the face of poverty? This week, some women bravely shared their story in support of a local nonprofit's five-year fund-raising campaign, but also to demonstrate to the community that poverty is a growing issue, particularly for divorced women and children.

To the barricades
http://pueblochieftain.com/editorial/1175264942/1
The day after Reclamation issued its EA report, it ran a legal notice in this newspaper announcing that it had concluded two negotiation sessions with Aurora over the sprawling Denver suburb’s request for a storage contract for Lake Pueblo. In other words, Reclamation and Aurora have been playing footsie behind the scenes while going through the subterfuge of a shoddy environmental assessment. It’s time to take the gloves off and fight Reclamation and Aurora. The very future of the Lower Arkansas Valley - including Pueblo - is at stake. We can’t let them shove this outrageous contract down our throats.

Lewis: Jurors robbed of story in its entirety
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5552026
Prosecutors in the insider-trading case against former Qwest chief executive Joe Nacchio not only lack a smoking gun, they haven't even been able to produce a dead body. The most salient fact about the Qwest debacle is that Qwest restated its books for 2000 through 2002, erasing $2.5 billion in revenue that never existed. Another key fact is that Qwest stock fell from $60 to 99 cents a share in 2002 as the company nearly went bankrupt after Nacchio's reign. Prosecutors seem hobbled by Judge Edward Nottingham's rulings against mentioning these startling revelations to the jury. As far as the jury has been told, Nacchio lived up to his projections each quarter, and Qwest stock never fell below $20 a share.

Johnson: 'These are not bad kids' in LARASA Learning Center
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_5451874,00.html
Had they blindfolded you to get in, you would figure the basement of the white, low-slung building west of downtown to be another high school classroom. Computers are everywhere. A dozen teenagers sit intently studying the screens, all of them neatly dressed. Yet you know this is no ordinary classroom. These kids, as you have been told, are among the scores of Denver-area students who dropped out or were kicked out of mainstream schools. Virtually all of the nearly 100 students enrolled at LARASA Learning Center at 1st Avenue and Cherokee Street claim some street gang affiliation, though administrators estimate as few as 15 percent truly are active members. With stories of horrific gang violence now dominating the front pages and TV news, the school seemed a good place to hang out for a while.

Stunned
http://pueblochieftain.com/editorial/1175264942/2
A TORNADO stunned the small Southeastern Colorado town of Holly on Wednesday night, claiming at least one life, seriously injuring eight others, destroying five homes and damaging many others. Our hearts and prayers go out to this plucky little agricultural town 4 miles west of the Kansas line that has produced among others former Gov. Roy Romer. It’s a close-knit community, and this storm has shaken it to the core.

Marolt: Global warming from an extraterrestrial source
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070330/COLUMN/103300058
In short, we are approaching a crisis of galactic proportion. Soon, we will force ourselves into space in search of alternative energy sources. Apparently, we are alone in not seeing this. Aliens are scared of our pending encroachment on their space, so to speak. Thus, in order to save our planet from the global microwaving caused by alien visitations, we must convince these creatures that we do not pose threat to them and their home planets. We need to demonstrate that we can get our energy demands under control. There are no options but to behave as if all the fuels ever available to us exist right here on our own spinning sphere. As they currently observe, we should reduce consumption of oil to a semi-sustainable level. We must learn to get by driving smaller cars less often and larger ones hardly at all. We are obliged to tap into the sun's vast energy, without endeavoring to actually travel to it. Most of all, we have to quit fighting over oil. This is what must be most disconcerting to aliens watching from outer space. If we are willing to wage bloody war and kill our own kind over oil, what is the only awful thing any reasonable extraterrestrial can infer? Of course, perhaps this theory is wrong and extraterrestrials couldn't give a flip about our energy usage. In that case, we should do nothing and simply wait for them to zap us into oblivion.

NATIONAL NEWS

Top

Election

Grass Roots Planted In Cyberspace
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902382.html
If there's a social networking site that John Edwards is not a part of, we'd like to know what it is, pronto. No one's sure exactly what role these sites -- a.k.a. socnets -- will play in the upcoming election. But whatever it is, Edwards isn't taking any chances. The man's flooding the zone. He's on the big ones: Flickr, YouTube, Facebook, et al., where supporters and well-wishers are sending their best to his wife, Elizabeth. Writes a fan on MySpace this week: "Washington State sends you love and health. Lots of love to you and Elizabeth. Stay strong!!!" Edwards is also on some of the newest, somewhat obscure, mostly unheard of URLs. Blip.tv, anyone? He's there. 43Things.com? There, too. In fact, the former senator is signed up in at least 23 socnets -- more than any other presidential candidate. And that's not counting John Edwards One Corps, his own networking site that campaign officials say has 20,000 members and 1,200 chapters across the country.

Portrait of a pragmatist
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703300121mar30,1,282774.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
Barack Obama packed his few belongings into his newly purchased but creaky old Honda and headed west from New York into a political and social battle zone. When the raw, 23-year-old community organizer hit Chicago in early 1985, the racially charged fighting between Harold Washington, the city's first black mayor, and white ethnic aldermen led by Ed Vrdolyak had earned the city a bitter nickname: Beirut on the Lake.
RELATED: Activism blossomed in college
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703291042mar30,1,6836385.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
RELATED: Clooney steps cautiously into Obama's camp
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-et-cause30mar30,1,7479249.story?coll=la-headlines-politics

Fred Thompson's Presidential Hopes Could Put 'Law' Reruns in Lockup
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/28/AR2007032802174.html
If Fred Thompson, the onetime Tennessee senator better known to most Americans as District Attorney Arthur Branch on "Law & Order," runs for president, some fans may be in for a letdown. Television stations are expected to suspend reruns of the show if he makes a real-life bid for the White House. Federal campaign law requires broadcasters to give all candidates equal time on the airwaves. That rule applies to entertainment programs like "Law & Order," meaning stations that run the show would be required to give other GOP candidates a like amount of prime-time exposure.

Romney names Jeb Bush as possible No. 2
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-romney30mar30,1,6783859.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on Thursday dropped some names of potential running mates in the 2008 race, adding that such speculation was premature. Among those Romney mentioned for the second slot on the Republican ticket were three Southerners: South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. "There's some wonderful people right here in this state, as you know, Gov. Sanford being one of them," said Romney, formerly governor of Massachusetts, to a round of applause. He had been asked about vice presidential picks by a member of a crowd of about 400 people gathered for his campaign stop in this earlyvoting state. "I have to be honest with you, I haven't given a lot of thought to that, so I don't want to put any names in that hat right now," Romney said.

Giuliani Sees Policy Role for Wife
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902017.html
Former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani told ABC News's Barbara Walters that he would welcome his wife, Judith, at White House Cabinet meetings and other policy discussions if he were elected president next year. "If she wanted to," Giuliani said in the "20/20" interview to be broadcast tonight. "If they were relevant to something that she was interested in. I mean that would be something that I'd be very, very comfortable with."
RELATED: Giuliani says if he wins, wife could join Cabinet meetings
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703290982mar30,1,4800180.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
RELATED: Giuliani testimony indicates briefings on Kerik
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/03/30/giuliani_testimony_indicates_briefings_on_kerik/

They all agree on this issue: money
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-money30mar30,1,1083348.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Twelve years ago, Sen. Phil Gramm of Texas rocked the political world when he reported that he had raised a then-stunning $13.4 million by the end of the first quarter of the race for the Republican presidential nomination. Despite his success at impressing donors, Gramm finished fifth in the Iowa caucuses and dropped his presidential bid before voters could even cast a ballot in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary. Nevertheless, Democratic and Republican candidates for president in 2008 are furiously raising money in the final days of the first quarter of 2007, which ends Saturday. Results that are surprising or disappointing have the potential to recast the pecking order, shifting new attention to some candidates while putting pressure on others to reconsider the race.
RELATED: '08 candidates race clock on fundraising
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-29-fundraising-clock_N.htm
RELATED: Presidential Candidates Focus on Fund-Raising
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/us/politics/30campaign.html?ref=washington

Top

Effective and Ethical Government

Senate Sets Stage For Iraq Face-Off
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902432.html
Faced with his second rebuke in a week from congressional Democrats on Iraq policy, President Bush yesterday summoned Republican allies to his side in an effort to shift momentum in the escalating battle over the course of the war. Bush, who has alienated many Republicans on Capitol Hill, invited the entire House GOP caucus to the White House for the first time in his presidency. The meeting came on the same day that the Senate gave final approval to a $122 billion war spending bill that calls for the withdrawal of most U.S. forces from Iraq by March 31, 2008.
RELATED: Senate: Home in 1 year
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703291003mar30,1,5394590.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
RELATED: Iraq: It may be a rough road to a Senate-House compromise
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-warvote30mar30,0,3586406.story?coll=la-home-headlines
RELATED: Bush-Congress showdown over Iraq intensifies
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/03/30/bush_congress_showdown_over_iraq_intensifies/

Democrats' Budget Plan Narrowly Passes in House
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902125.html
Democrats marshaled a $2.9 trillion budget blueprint through the House yesterday, uniting a diverse coalition behind a spending plan that would increase funds for education, health care and veterans' services while aiming to erase the federal deficit within five years. To balance the budget, the proposal would permit President Bush's signature tax cuts to expire on schedule in 2010, prompting Republicans to accuse the new congressional majority of plotting a massive tax increase. Those charges helped persuade a dozen Democrats, including several freshmen from conservative districts, to reject the blueprint, which was approved on a vote of 216 to 210.
RELATED: Budget changes raise tax hike questions
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-29-budget-questions_N.htm
RELATED: House Budget Is Clear on Spending, Vague on Revenue
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/washington/30budget.html

Ex-Aide Contradicts Gonzales on Firings
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032900352.html
Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales was more deeply involved in the firings of eight U.S. attorneys than he has sometimes acknowledged, and Gonzales and his aides have made a series of inaccurate claims about the issue in recent weeks, the attorney general's former chief of staff testified yesterday. In dramatic testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee, D. Kyle Sampson also revealed that New Mexico U.S. Attorney David C. Iglesias was not added to the dismissal list until just before the Nov. 7 elections, after presidential adviser Karl Rove complained that Iglesias had not been aggressive enough in pursuing cases of voter fraud. Previously, Rove had not been tied so directly to the removal of the prosecutors.
RELATED: Bush Loyalist Rose Quickly at Justice
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901964.html
RELATED: Ex-Aide Rejects Gonzales Stand Over Dismissals
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/washington/30sampson.html

4 are charged in N.M. case that fired lawyer has cited
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-newmexico30mar30,1,2038866.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
A former state senator and three other people were charged with corruption Thursday in a highly politicized case that a former federal prosecutor told Congress he thought led to his firing. A federal grand jury accused former Senate President Pro Tem Manny Aragon and the others of conspiring to skim $4.2 million in public funds meant for construction of a county courthouse. David C. Iglesias, one of eight U.S. attorneys fired last year, told Congress this month that he rejected what he thought to be pressure from Sen. Pete V. Domenici and Rep. Heather A. Wilson, New Mexico Republicans, to rush the indictments, which could have hurt Democrats in the November elections. Spokesmen for Domenici and Wilson, who was in a hotly contested race at the time, said Thursday that they would have no comments on the indictments.

Policy Aide's Departure Continues Transformation of Bush's Staff
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902092.html
Over the past several years, Peter H. Wehner has sent a blizzard of e-mails around the White House and the rest of Washington, offering strategy and policy ideas to President Bush and making the case for those policies to outsiders. The president calls them "Wehner-grams," and their author has been so prolific that they now fill 24 binders. But sometime in the coming weeks, Wehner will gather those 24 binders in a box and sign off of his well-worn White House e-mail account for the last time. Wehner, the White House director of strategic initiatives and the official in-house intellectual for a president often derided as anti-intellectual, will be the latest Bush aide to move on.

A Slow Leak in the Senate Judiciary Committee
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901967.html
Round up the usual suspects! A leak has sprung on Capitol Hill! And some folks at the Senate Judiciary Committee are most unhappy about it. Seems Jennifer Leathers, a committee hearing clerk, sent an e-mail to the committee's staff on Wednesday at 10:20 a.m.: "Attached is the written testimony and CV of D. Kyle Sampson, former chief of staff to the attorney general, for tomorrow's hearing titled 'Preserving Prosecutorial Independence: Is the Department of Justice Politicizing the Hiring and Firing of U.S. Attorneys? -- Part III.' " Nine minutes later, a clearly concerned Bruce A. Cohen, the committee's chief counsel, sent a follow-up to everyone: "Please do NOT release the testimony in advance of the hearing. Mr. Sampson's lawyer has asked that it NOT be released, NOT be made public. This is for Judiciary senators and their staffs to prepare for the hearing and NOT to be released." Then came the inevitable e-mail from Cohen at 6:40 p.m.: "I hear that the AP has a copy of the Sampson testimony. If you provided it to the AP or provided [it] to someone who provided it to the AP please come forward and identify yourself to me or Mike immediately." (That's Michael O'Neill, the committee's minority chief counsel.) So far, no confessions.

With Tony Snow gone, his deputy takes charge of the White House press machine
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703290757mar30,1,4341428.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
Dana Perino, a good-humored taskmaster who is standing in as spokeswoman for President Bush for the foreseeable future, has spent considerable time training her dog Henry, one smart vizsla. When Perino says, "Tell us what you really think about John Kerry," Henry fetches one of her flip-flops. When Perino asks if "anybody thinks that Bill Clinton should be in jail," Henry barks. This playful turn reveals the partisan side of Perino, who has devoted a considerable part of her career to representing Republicans in Washington.

Top

Civil Liberties and Equality

Another Guantanamo challenge for justices
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-29-gitmo-scotus_N.htm
The Supreme Court is poised to announce — as early as Friday — if it will take up another confrontation over the rights of foreign terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Two groups of detainees held for more than five years are asking the justices to reverse a U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that Guantanamo prisoners do not have the right to challenge their detention before U.S. judges. If the justices decide to take up the decision, it will mark the third time the high court has scrutinized a ruling by the D.C. Circuit court related to the Guantanamo detainees. In the first two instances, the justices reversed the lower court.
RELATED: Justices Weigh Opening New Phase on Guantánamo
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/washington/30scotus.html?ref=washington

Ex-Clinton aide slams US on rights
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/03/30/ex_clinton_aide_slams_us_on_rights/
The United States could face graver national security threats if its own human rights shortcomings are not properly addressed, a former Clinton administration official told a House Foreign Affairs Committee yesterday. John Shattuck , now chief executive of the John F. Kennedy Library Foundation, criticized what he called the US government's disregard for international human rights laws, pointing to the abuse of foreign detainees in Iraq and the incarceration of foreign citizens at Guantanamo Bay without granting them prisoner-of-war status.

Alleged Sept. 11 Financier Tells Tribunal He Knew Little of Plot
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901958.html
An alleged senior financier of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States acknowledged he had a role in helping the hijackers but said he is not a member of al-Qaeda and denied having much prior knowledge of the plot, according to a transcript released by the Defense Department on Thursday. Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi, a Saudi national who allegedly played a key role in the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, told a Combatant Status Review Tribunal last week that he was in contact with four of the Sept. 11 hijackers and that he received a series of money transfers from the men in the days before the plot was carried out, according to the transcript. He also told the tribunal that he spoke with Mohamed Atta but was unaware of what was going to unfold.
RELATED: 9/11 suspect denies wiring money to hijackers
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-gitmo30mar30,1,3447237.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

Guantanamo prosecutor to seek less than 20 years for Australian
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-03-29-hicks_N.htm
The prosecution will seek a sentence of "substantially less" than 20 years for Australian David Hicks, a Guantanamo detainee who pleaded guilty to a terrorism-related charge this week, the chief prosecutor for the military tribunals said Thursday. The prosecutor, Air Force Col. Morris Davis, had said earlier he would ask for a sentence of about 20 years, on par with the punishment for American Taliban fighter American John Walker Lindh. "We will argue for something substantially less than John Walker Lindh," Davis told reporters on Thursday, without elaborating.

Relatives of Emmett Till meet with FBI
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703290755mar30,1,3554994.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
A month after a Mississippi grand jury decided not to bring any new charges in the 1955 killing of Emmett Till, his relatives met with authorities Thursday at the headquarters of the FBI in Chicago to hear about evidence gathered in the latest investigation of the infamous case. After meeting with the family, the FBI released a report and summary, including a timeline constructed with witness statements and transcripts from the trial of two white men acquitted that year by an all-white jury in the killing of the black 14-year-old. Family members said FBI agents and the Mississippi prosecutor who handled the case told them the grand jury had determined there simply was not enough evidence against anyone to proceed with a new charge. Part of the investigation had centered on Carolyn Bryant Donham, the white woman whom Till had whistled at in Money, Miss., before he was beaten and shot. She had been suspected of pointing out Till to her husband, Roy Bryant, who was one of the two men acquitted who later confessed.

Papers show Census role in WWII camps
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-03-30-census-role_N.htm
The Census Bureau turned over confidential information including names and addresses to help the Justice Department, Secret Service and other agencies identify Japanese-Americans during World War II, according to government documents released today. Documents found by two historians in Commerce Department archives and the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library confirm for the first time that the bureau shared details about individual Japanese-Americans after Japan's Dec. 7, 1941, attack on Pearl Harbor. The Census Bureau played a role in the confinement of more than 100,000 Americans of Japanese descent who were rounded up and held in internment camps, many until the war ended in 1945. In 1942, the Census turned over general statistics about where Japanese-Americans lived to the War Department. It was acting legally under the Second War Powers Act, which allowed the sharing of information for national security.

Top

Foreign Policy

Security Council Voices Concern Over Iran Captives
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032900216.html
Britain escalated international pressure Thursday in its week-old confrontation with Iran over the seizure of 15 naval personnel, winning from the U.N. Security Council a statement of "grave concern" over the capture. But in five hours of intense debate at the council, Britain failed to get tough language it proposed that blamed Iran and demanded the immediate release of the 14 men and one woman. Russia balked at wording that the British had been seized in Iraqi waters while serving under a U.N. mandate. China, Qatar, Indonesia, Congo and South Africa also resisted blaming Iran, which contends the British trespassed into its waters, according to U.N. diplomats.
RELATED: Britain Considering New Iranian Demands
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/30/AR2007033000373.html
RELATED: Discord over gulf borders runs deep
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-border30mar30,1,1612224.story?coll=la-headlines-world

Saudis Publicly Get Tough With U.S.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902207.html
Of all the foreign leaders President Bush has dealt with over the past six years, few have been as direct or blunt in private as Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, according to U.S. officials. At one point in 2002, Abdullah showed Bush images of Palestinian children killed by Israeli troops and demanded to know whether he was committed to solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Now, that private toughness has become public, just as Saudi Arabia has begun to play an uncharacteristically assertive diplomatic role in the region in an effort to calm potential flashpoints in Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. In a speech Wednesday before a summit of the Arab League, Abdullah decried what he called the "illegitimate foreign occupation" of Iraq and called for a lifting of the "unjust embargo imposed on the people of Palestine" that has been led by the Bush administration.
RELATED: U.S. objects to Saudi description of Iraq as occupied
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-occupy30mar30,1,5736412.story?coll=la-headlines-world

Planned House Vote on Armenian Massacre Angers Turks
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/washington/30turkey.html?ref=washington
A planned vote in Congress that would classify the widespread killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Turkish government early in the 20th century as genocide is threatening to make bilateral relations unusually tense. The speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, backs the resolution and at first wanted a vote in April. But under Turkish pressure, Bush administration figures have lobbied for the Democrats in charge of Congress to drop the measure.

Iraq eyes future tourism
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2007-03-29-spring-fair_N.htm
Thinking about Spring Break in Iraq? Odds are, probably not. But an exhibition organized this past week by Iraq's Tourism Ministry sought to lay the groundwork for one fine day in the future when intrepid tourists might just consider taking a vacation here.

Arabs Call on Israel To Take Peace Offer
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902337.html
Arab leaders on Thursday reiterated their offer to normalize ties with Israel and showed signs of flexibility in their terms for peace. At a news conference at the end of a summit where the Arab leaders' peace plan was the main issue on the agenda, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal said Arab countries would establish normal ties with Israel as soon as it had resolved its disputes with its immediate neighbors. "We cannot change the plan because it offers peace, and changing it would mean we're no longer offering peace," Faisal said, echoing Arab League chief Amr Moussa's insistence that there would be no changes in the plan ahead of negotiations.
RELATED: Olmert reaches out to Saudis over peace plan
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/30/AR2007033000604.html

Japan Deploys Missile Defense System
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/world/AP-Japan-Missile-Defense.html
Japan began deploying its first advanced Patriot missile defense system Friday near Tokyo, part of an effort to accelerate missile defense capabilities following North Korea's missile and nuclear tests last year. The installment comes about a year earlier than originally scheduled.

25 Killed in Assault on Somali Insurgents
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902270.html
Ethiopian helicopters and tanks battered a market and several Mogadishu neighborhoods Thursday in a major strike against insurgents that killed at least 25 people and wounded more than 100 others, witnesses and residents said. Most of the casualties appeared to be civilians. As helicopters buzzed overhead and fired on the blasted-out city, hundreds of tired and hungry residents accustomed to bearing daily mortar attacks fled for safety. It was among the most violent days in Mogadishu since December, when Ethiopian and Somali troops ousted a popular Islamic government and installed a U.S.-backed transitional administration. That government has little support, and the Ethiopians who remain are widely regarded as occupiers.

African leaders rally around Mugabe, call for talks to defuse crisis
http://www.boston.com/news/world/africa/articles/2007/03/30/african_leaders_rally_around_mugabe_call_for_talks_to_defuse_crisis/
African leaders rallied around President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe yesterday, ignoring calls for tougher action against him and suggesting dialogue as the solution to his country's deepening political crisis. Mugabe has faced growing Western censure over the past two weeks after his police arrested political opponents who said that they were severely beaten in custody, sparking calls for his neighbors to step up pressure on his regime.

US official says Russia ramping up espionage
http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2007/03/30/us_official_says_russia_ramping_up_espionage/
Russia has fully restored its espionage capabilities against the United States after a period of decline following the Cold War, a senior US counterintelligence official said yesterday. Joel Brenner, the head of the Office of the National Counterintelligence Executive, said the United States is concerned that Russia is continuing to ramp up its operations. "The Russians are now back at Cold War levels in their efforts against the United States," he said at an event hosted by the American Bar Association. "They are sending over an increasing and troubling number of intelligence agents."
RELATED: Putin calls for space industry boost
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-03-29-putin-space_N.htm

France cries out for change. But not now
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-france30mar30,1,1682346.story?coll=la-headlines-world
In the small city of Evreux, voters' conflicted nature is evident as the presidential election approaches.
RELATED: Tensions Over French Identity Shape Voter Drives
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/world/europe/30france.html?ref=world

Castro returns with a scathing editorial
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-03-29-castro-editorial_N.htm
Fidel Castro signaled he is itching for a return to public life after eight months of illness that has kept him out of sight, lambasting U.S. biofuel policies in a front-page newspaper editorial. But Castro's scathing attack in the Communist Party daily Thursday left questions unanswered: What future role will he play in domestic politics and government? When will he appear again in public? In his article, the 80-year-old revolutionary asserted that President Bush's support for using crops to produce ethanol for cars could deplete corn and other food stocks in developing nations, putting the lives of billion people at risk worldwide.

Top

Immigration

Guest-Worker Program Part of Government's Immigration Plan
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902401.html
The Bush administration yesterday circulated a new plan for immigration reform that would create a guest-worker program for illegal immigrants currently in the country but would require them to return home and pay a large fine to gain permanent U.S. residency. On the enforcement side, the plan calls for deploying about 6,000 additional Border Patrol agents along the southern border, together with 200 miles of vehicle barriers, 370 miles of fencing and a 300-mile virtual wall of electronic sensors. An employment verification system would feature new, tamper-proof identification cards for immigrants.
RELATED: GOP immigration plan favors workers over relatives
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-immig30mar30,1,4762545.story?coll=la-headlines-nation

69 arrested in Baltimore immigration raid
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-immigraid30mar30,1,5853729.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Immigration agents arrested 69 people Thursday in raids on a temporary-employment agency's offices and places where it provided illegal immigrants as workers, including the port of Baltimore, authorities said. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents also seized a bank account containing more than $600,000 from the company, Jones Industrial Network. The company's offices and eight other businesses were searched, including three where the temp agency was suspected of providing workers who were illegal immigrants, ICE said. The investigation began last year after immigration officials learned that temp agencies had provided illegal immigrants as workers to the port and other unwitting employers, ICE said.

Local police confront illegal immigrants
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-03-29-illegal-immigration_N.htm
More than 60 law enforcement agencies across the country are teaming up with the federal government to have the power to arrest illegal immigrants, a move that could add hundreds of new officers to the effort. At least 14 police and sheriff's departments have already received training from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

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Reproductive Choice

Family Planning Official Resigns
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902016.html
The doctor in charge of the Bush administration's family planning programs resigned yesterday after revealing that state Medicaid officials had taken action against his private medical practice in Massachusetts. Eric Keroack, an obstetrician-gynecologist, became deputy assistant secretary for population affairs in November, advising Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt on matters such as reproductive health and adolescent pregnancy. He oversaw $283 million in annual family planning grants designed to provide access to contraceptive supplies, especially for low-income people. Family planning advocates panned the pick, noting that Keroack also had served as medical director of A Woman's Concern, a nonprofit Christian pregnancy counseling organization in Massachusetts that on its Web site opposed the distribution of contraceptives as "demeaning to women."
RELATED: HHS official facing legal action resigns
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/03/30/hhs_official_facing_legal_action_resigns/

Top

Health Care and Public Safety

Governor wants end to curb on stem cells
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/03/30/governor_wants_end_to_curb_on_stem_cells/
[Massachusetts] Governor Deval Patrick will announce this morning that he wants the Department of Public Health to reverse restrictions on stem cell research imposed by his predecessor, according to an administration official with direct knowledge of the governor's intentions. The research limits, drafted by Governor Mitt Romney's aides and adopted last August by the state Public Health Council, generated widespread criticism from scientists, leading legislators, and even Romney's lieutenant governor, Kerry Healey.

New class of drugs uses body's defenses
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703290999mar30,1,11459.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
A government panel gave the go-ahead Thursday for the first in a new class of anti-cancer drugs: an experimental agent that works by mobilizing the body's natural immune system to fight prostate cancer. If the federal Food and Drug Administration accepts the recommendation of its advisory committee, as it usually does, the drug will become the first therapeutic cancer vaccine to win regulatory approval.

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Crime and Penal Reform

Georgia public defender system on trial
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-nichols30mar30,1,5083375.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
When Georgia instituted a statewide public defender system in 2005, human rights groups praised it as a milestone in ensuring that poor criminal defendants received their constitutional right to a fair trial. Until then, counties determined how indigent people would be represented. In some counties, the courts operated like assembly lines, with defendants pleading guilty after talking with their appointed lawyers for a few minutes. But some people accuse the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council, which runs the system, of spending too much time and money on indigent people. One defendant has provoked particular anger: Brian Nichols, the rape suspect accused of escaping from an Atlanta courthouse in 2005 and killing a judge, a court reporter, a sheriff's deputy and a U.S. customs agent. Nichols' defense has cost $1.4 million, and the trial has not begun. Last week, Superior Court Judge Hilton Fuller postponed the trial until Sept. 10 because the public defender system had run out of money. Almost all of the council's 75 capital cases are on hold.

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Economy

Economy's Growth Better Than Expected
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032900568.html
The economy grew at an annual pace of 2.5 percent in the fourth quarter, hobbled by slumps in home building and in corporate spending that show few signs of abating. The growth rate for the gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services produced in the country, had been initially calculated at 3.5 percent and was revised to 2.2 percent last month, the Commerce Department said. For all of last year, the economy grew 3.3 percent, compared with 3.2 percent in 2005. The growth rate in the third quarter was 2 percent.

Stocks and Bonds: Shares Rise Despite Concerns About Iran
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/business/30stox.html
Stocks ended higher in volatile trading yesterday as investors weighed fears about mounting tension involving Iran against a report that indicated better-than-expected economic growth. The major indexes bounced around as crude prices surged to a six-month high. Investors remain nervous about the West’s response to British sailors held captive in Iran, and oil prices crossed the $66 mark.

Ruling Could Lead to Tariffs on Chinese Goods
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/business/30yuan.html
In a ruling that could lead to new trade barriers on imports from China, a federal judge on Thursday dismissed a bid by China to block the Bush administration from imposing tariffs on Chinese goods produced by heavily subsidized government companies. The ruling, by Judge Gregory W. Carman of the United States Court of International Trade in New York, clears the way for the Commerce Department to decide whether to impose the tariff barriers on one specific product, high-gloss paper, as early as Friday.

Enron Class-Action Suit Is Dismissed
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/business/30enron.html
A Manhattan federal judge has dismissed a class-action lawsuit accusing JPMorgan Chase of helping Enron hide fraud. The plaintiffs asserted that they bought JPMorgan stock based on the bank’s reputation for integrity and financial discipline, when in fact the company was helping Enron, a major client, hide billions of dollars of debt. In a ruling released yesterday, Judge Sidney H. Stein said the plaintiffs failed to show that JPMorgan deceived them by playing down its exposure to Enron or overstating its own reputation for integrity. Judge Stein dismissed the complaint with prejudice, meaning the plaintiffs cannot raise their assertions again. He had dismissed an earlier complaint in March 2005, but allowed the plaintiffs to refile their case.

Data Theft Grows To Biggest Ever
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032900237.html
At least 45.7 million credit and debit card numbers from customers in the United States, Britain and Canada were stolen over a period of several years from the computers of TJX, the discount retail giant disclosed in a regulatory filing this week. The figure, which the company said is incomplete, represents the largest reported computer theft of personal data in history. TJX, whose 2,500 stores include clothing chains T.J. Maxx and Marshalls, reported the breach in January but disclosed its massive scale for the first time in a filing made to the Securities and Exchange Commission after business hours Wednesday.

Dell Discloses Accounting Errors
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902039.html
Dell, one of the world's largest makers of personal computers, said yesterday that an internal audit committee has found a number of accounting errors and evidence of misconduct in its months-long review of earnings statements. Dell also said it would miss an April 18 deadline to file its annual 10K financial report to the Securities and Exchange Commission until the internal review is completed. In a short news release, the Round Rock, Tex., company said the internal audit had "identified a number of accounting errors, evidence of misconduct and deficiencies in the financial control environment."
RELATED: Dell Reports It Has Found ‘Misconduct’
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/technology/30dell.html?ref=business

New Orleans Proposes to Invest in 17 Areas
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/us/30orleans.html?ref=us
New Orleans unveiled its latest redevelopment plan Thursday, choosing 17 zones where the city has decided to concentrate resources in order to stimulate investment and renewal. The 17 development zones, each about a half-mile in diameter, are scattered throughout New Orleans. They vary from a devastated shopping plaza in the eastern section of the city, to blocks in the ruined Lower Ninth Ward and to areas not hard-hit by Hurricane Katrina but still in need of renewal, as officials put it, including the old St. Roch Market in the Bywater area. The plan is at least the fourth such effort since the storm, and at about $1.1 billion, notably more modest than its predecessors.

Top

Worker's Rights and Corporate Accountability

Court Affirms Ruling Against Airline Strike
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/business/30air.html
Flight attendants at Northwest Airlines are not allowed to strike, a federal appeals court ruled yesterday, affirming a lower court ruling and lifting a cloud hanging over the bankrupt carrier. The ruling, from the Federal Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, protects Northwest from a potentially devastating strike threatened by the workers after Northwest voided their labor contract last year with court permission.

Florida union officials get prison
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-union30mar30,1,3508181.story?coll=la-headlines-nation
Saying the case boiled down to a violation of trust, a federal judge sentenced the former president of a national labor union to 6 1/2 years in prison Thursday for misusing funds designated for the union's employee benefit plans. Michael McKay, 59, who spent 12 years at the helm of the American Maritime Officers Union, was convicted in December of racketeering conspiracy and fraud after a lengthy jury trial. U.S. District Judge James Cohn sentenced McKay's brother Robert, 56, to 15 months. Robert McKay, who was also convicted of racketeering conspiracy, had served as secretary-treasurer of the Dania Beach-based labor union.

Top

Housing and Homelessness

Panel Backs Bill To Restrain Fannie, Freddie
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902036.html
Long-running efforts to tighten oversight of Fannie Mae Mae and Freddie Mac took a step forward yesterday as a House committee passed a bill that would create a stronger regulator for the mortgage-funding companies. The bill also would require the federally chartered companies to contribute to a new fund for affordable housing, which Democrats supported but many Republicans opposed.

Sweeping mortgage bailout unlikely
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-bailout30mar30,0,4891093.story?coll=la-home-headlines
Borrowers, don't hold your breath for a bailout. As mortgage delinquencies soar, many consumer advocates and political leaders are calling on government to help what may ultimately be millions of homeowners facing foreclosure. But the modest federal and state aid proposals advanced so far suggest that most people struggling with onerous loan payments are unlikely to get government assistance. The Bush administration has ruled out a blanket program to help homeowners stave off foreclosure, reasoning that it's "not an appropriate role for the federal government," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.

Subpoena Issued to Beazer Homes on Mortgage Loans
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/business/30lend.html
Beazer Homes USA, one of the largest home builders in the country, said yesterday that it had received a grand jury subpoena from a United States attorney’s office, which is seeking documents related to its mortgage origination business. The company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the subpoena came from the United States attorney’s office in the Western District of North Carolina. Beazer said it was cooperating with the investigation.

Top

Military

U.S. to replace aircraft carrier in Persian Gulf
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-nimitz30mar30,1,3831275.story?coll=la-headlines-world
The U.S. Navy said Thursday that it had ordered an aircraft carrier to the Persian Gulf to replace one of two patrolling the region, as the United States wound down naval war games on Iran's doorstep. The Nimitz carrier strike group will sail from San Diego for the gulf on Monday, a navy spokesman said. It will replace the Dwight D. Eisenhower. Strike groups typically include four or five frigates and destroyers and a submarine. "You are looking at the early part of May that you would have the transition. It would be without any overlap. There is no plan to overlap them at all," Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Davis said by telephone from naval headquarters in Washington.

Disuse of military medical record system leads to errors
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/03/30/disuse_of_military_medical_record_system_leads_to_errors/
Lapses in using a digital medical record system for tracking wounded soldiers have led to medical mistakes and delays in care and have kept thousands of injured troops from receiving benefits, according to former defense and military medical officials.

Congress cool to new nuclear warhead
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-29-congress-warhead_N.htm
An administration proposal to build a new generation of more reliable nuclear warheads to replace the current stockpile was met with skepticism Thursday from key lawmakers who will decide how much money to give the program. Rep. Pete Visclosky, D-Ind., chairman of the House Appropriations subcommittee with jurisdiction over nuclear weapons programs, said he was "troubled by the giddiness" at the Energy Department over development of the new warhead program. The panel's ranking Republican, Rep. David Hobson, R-Ohio, said he was worried the warhead development was aimed not so much to meet the military's requirements but "to prove that we can still design nuclear weapons."

Top

Religion

Church directive against gay rights bill sparks furor in Italy
http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2007/03/30/church_directive_against_gay_rights_bill_sparks_furor_in_italy/
A directive by Italian bishops ordering Catholic politicians to vote against gay rights legislation has caused a political uproar and prompted new charges of church interference in domestic affairs. The long-awaited note, issued on Wednesday by the Italian Bishops Conference, was significant because it specifically targeted politicians as they consider a law to give homosexual and heterosexual unmarried couples more rights.

Nun cited in bid to beatify John Paul II is 'deeply moved'
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0703290690mar30,1,2899632.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed
The French nun whose testimony of a mystery cure from Parkinson's disease could prompt the Roman Catholic Church to beatify Pope John Paul II is a gentle, simple woman who is "deeply moved" by what has happened to her, a priest who knows her said Thursday. Sister Marie-Simon-Pierre's identity had been kept quiet until Wednesday, when a French newspaper published her name.

Top

Energy Policy

Standoff in Iran Sends Oil to Six-Month High
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902044.html
Tensions over the fate of 15 British sailors and marines captured by Iran in the Persian Gulf last week helped drive crude oil prices to a six-month high yesterday, threatening to boost gasoline prices just two months before the start of the summer driving season. Traders sent the price of crude oil up by 3 percent, to $66.03 a barrel in New York yesterday, after Iran put off a previously announced plan to release a British woman being held and Prime Minister Tony Blair said Britain would not negotiate. The price of gasoline for April delivery in New York commodity markets jumped 7.83 cents, or 3.8 percent, to $2.1355 a gallon, the highest closing price since Aug. 11.
RELATED: Drivers brace for higher gas prices as crude oil climbs to $66 a barrel
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2007-03-29-oil-thu_N.htm
RELATED: Drivers Shrug as Gasoline Prices Soar
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/business/30gas.html?ref=business

$1.5m fine imposed for violations tied to W.Va. mine deaths
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/03/30/15m_fine_imposed_for_violations_tied_to_wva_mine_deaths/
The federal Mine Safety and Health Administration has levied a $1.5 million fine against Massey Energy Co. for 25 violations that contributed to the deaths of two West Virginia coal miners in January 2006. "The number and severity of the safety violations that occurred demonstrated a reckless disregard for safety," said MSHA's director, Richard Stickler.

Top

Transportation and Infrastructure

Senate leader's billboard boosting flops
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-03-30-billboards_N.htm
Power and money suffered a rare setback in the Senate on Thursday as Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., stopped the top Senate Democrat from inserting a favor for the billboard industry into a must-pass emergency funding bill. Alexander raised a parliamentary point of order to force removal of the measure, which he and other opponents said would have effectively exempted certain billboards in 13 Southern states from regulation under the Highway Beautification Act. The move was a defeat for Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., who championed the provision, and for the Outdoor Advertising Association. The industry group's members and their employees gave more than $167,000 to congressional candidates in the last election cycle and spent more than $800,000 lobbying Congress last year.

Top

Environment and Conservation

Decline of Big Sharks Lets Small Predators Decimate Shellfish
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901963.html
A sharp decline in big sharks along the Eastern Seaboard has prompted a boom in other marine species that is devastating valuable commercial fisheries, researchers are reporting today in the journal Science. The study -- by a team of Canadian and U.S. scientists -- found that intense fishing for sharks in the northwest Atlantic over the past 35 years has produced a cascade of unexpected effects. With fewer large predators in the sea, the number of rays, skates and small shark species has exploded, and these species are decimating such shellfish populations as North Carolina bay scallops and the Chesapeake Bay's American oysters.
RELATED: Study Finds Shark Overfishing May Lower Scallop Population
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/science/30sharks.html?ref=science

Olympic Trials for Polluted Beijing
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902267.html
Less than a decade ago, this city was an industrial wasteland. The sky could be seen from Beijing's ancient monuments less than a third of the year. Nearby lakes were so contaminated that they couldn't be used to water crops. And children were warned not to play outside in the noxious air. So when China applied to host the 2008 Olympics, it encountered deep skepticism about its ability to pull off the feat in one of the world's most populous and polluted cities. There was real concern about athletes choking on chemical-laden air as they ran the 100-meter dash. Seven years and $40 billion later, the Chinese have had remarkable success on many fronts. Practically every construction project is running ahead of schedule. The Chinese can brag of heroic feats of logistics and engineering: the "bird's nest" latticework of the 91,000-seat Olympic Stadium, the shimmering blue skin of the Water Cube aquatics center, a 70-mile high-speed railway, four new subway lines, an energy-efficient airport terminal. But Beijing still has not conquered its pollution.

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.

Ignatius: 15 Britons In a Sea Of Intrigue
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901985.html
We are in a season of skulduggery in the Middle East, with a strange series of events that all involve the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. The murky saga is a reminder that the real power in Iran may lie with this secretive organization, which spawned Iran's firebrand president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Revolutionary Guard orchestrated the seizure of 15 British sailors and marines last week near the mouth of the Shatt al Arab waterway between Iraq and Iran. The British say they have technical data to prove that their people were outside Iran's territorial waters when they were captured, and they have protested vigorously to Iranian diplomats. But the Iranian Foreign Ministry doesn't seem to know anything about the case. Indeed, it may have been one of the indirect targets.

Milbank: Taking One for the Team, When He Could Remember
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901366.html
Kyle Sampson, the former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, was in his fourth hour testifying yesterday about the firing of federal prosecutors when Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy cut him off. "We've just received word that the Republicans have objected, under the Senate rules, to this meeting continuing," Leahy (D-Vt.) announced before angrily bringing down the gavel. Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), in the middle of questioning Sampson, was puzzled. "Does it apply to a Republican, too?" he inquired. It turned out that nobody had really objected -- Republicans blamed a procedural mistake in their cloakroom for the false alarm -- and order in the committee was restored. But not before Democrats turned the gaffe into a PR bonanza.
RELATED: Candor at the Capitol
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901959.html
RELATED: Story Time in the Senate
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/opinion/30fri1.html

Froomkin: The Rap on Karl Rove
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2007/03/29/BL2007032901233.html
It seems fitting that even as Karl Rove's politicization of the White House's policy apparatus draws greater scrutiny from Congressional investigators, Rove himself last night was prancing in front of members of the Washington press corps, who appeared to be delighted. "I'm MC Rove," the political guru yelped as he flailed about in an improvised rap sketch at the Radio and Television Correspondents' Association dinner. It has to be seen to be believed. Here are video excerpts via C-Span and the AP.) Mary Ann Akers blogs for washingtonpost.com with the details. Rove is indeed the Bush era's master of ceremonies -- and its leading beat-the-rapper. He is also peculiarly able to charm journalists. But as the Democratic Congress begins to exert its investigatory powers, Rove's profound influence -- even in areas where his hyper-partisanship is inappropriate -- is increasingly being challenged.

Brownstein: Warning signs for the Democrats
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oew-brownstein30mar30,0,4753357.column?coll=la-opinion-center
An exhaustive national survey of American attitudes released last week sent the same message as the Democratic sweep in the 2006 midterm elections: a shift among independents is providing the party its best opportunity since Bill Clinton's inauguration in 1993 to establish a durable electoral advantage over the GOP. It's another question whether Democrats can seize that opportunity better than they did in 1993, when missteps by Clinton and the party's congressional majority set up a GOP landslide just one year later. And, in fact, two other trends in contemporary public opinion spotlight dangers lurking for the Democrats again today.

Hello, Pay-Go
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901960.html
THE HOUSE and Senate have now passed budget plans for next year. First the good news: The resolutions enshrine "pay-go," which is a procedural impediment to additional deficit spending. Pay-go means that more spending on things such as entitlement programs or tax cuts will have to be offset by either tax increases or spending cuts elsewhere. It's an eminently responsible idea that should force Congress to make some tough but needed choices as it allocates cash over the coming months.

Cover contraception
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-contraception30mar30,0,1683548.story?coll=la-opinion-leftrail
A federal court creatively interpreted the law to rule that health plans don't have to cover contraception. That could amount to discrimination.

A Step for Voting Rights
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/30/opinion/30fri3.html
The Maryland Legislature struck a blow for democracy when it voted to overturn a law that barred more than 50,000 ex-offenders from the polls in the last presidential election. By signing the measure into law, Gov. Martin O’Malley would make Maryland part of a growing movement for electoral fairness. He also would simplify one of the most complicated and confusing voting bans in the nation.

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva: Our Biofuels Partnership
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032902019.html
Tomorrow I will visit with President Bush at Camp David to follow up on conversations we had a few weeks ago in Sao Paulo. We have taken an important first step toward committing our countries to developing clean and renewable energy sources that will ensure the prosperity of our peoples while protecting the environment. We are launching a partnership to enhance the role of ethanol fuel in our countries' energy mixes while moving to make biodiesel fuel more widely available. Simultaneously, we are creating opportunities to expand these programs onto the global stage. This initiative builds on what Brazil has achieved in biofuels. Thirty years of research and innovation have made my country self-sufficient in oil by replacing 40 percent of our gasoline consumption with ethanol.

Robinson: Just 585 Days Till Election Day
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901988.html
"We've got to stay awake because we have a march to finish," Hillary Clinton said this month in Alabama, attempting the singsong cadence of a Baptist preacher calling sinners to the Lord. Clinton's subject was the ongoing struggle for civil rights, but she might as well have been talking about this Bataan Death March of a presidential campaign, which -- unbelievably -- has only just begun.

Goodman: The personal in politics
http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2007/03/30/the_personal_in_politics/
WHAT I KEEP remembering during the long conversation about cancer and politics, about ambition and parenting, about Elizabeth and John Edwards, is the video I watched the day before their announcement. On YouTube, the candidate was shown grooming his hair in a TV green room, while a soundtrack from "West Side Story" played the tune "I Feel Pretty." It was no less an attack ad for its snide humor. The message was that Edwards was not one of "us." He was a member of some android species of politician. Then John and Elizabeth came before the public with two statements: Her cancer is back. The campaign will go on. They began talking publicly about how two people choose to live in the face of illness and the universal death sentence that is suddenly more imminent. This is what Elizabeth says: "Either you push forward with the things that you were doing yesterday or you start dying." "I am denying it [cancer] control over how I spend the rest of my life." "The best thing you can give your children is wings." It doesn't get more real than this. Nor does it get more raw. Nor more human.

Dionne: Not an Election for Playing It Safe
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/29/AR2007032901986.html
Sometimes, taking risks is less risky than avoiding them. The front-runners for the 2008 presidential nominations are being too careful for their own good. Among the Republicans, Sen. John McCain has done everything possible to make himself safe for the party's conservatives, abandoning the edgy, maverick personality that captured imaginations, if not victory, seven years ago. His reward: He's lost the lead to Rudy Giuliani.

Raasch: Is Fred Thompson about ready to lay down the Law and Order?
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/columnist/raasch/2007-03-29-thompson_N.htm
Evangelist James Dobson, who has taken it upon himself to pass judgment on a number of GOP wannabes, told U.S. News and World Report recently he didn't think Thompson was a Christian. Thompson's spokesman Mark Corallo disputed that, saying he was a member of the Church of Christ. Corallo told Gannett News Service that the USA TODAY-Gallup Poll, which showed Thompson at 12%, caught the ex-Tennessee senator's attention. "He said it's just one more thing to think about," Corallo told GNS. "There's no doubt it caught his eye. No doubt it caught all of our eyes. I was bowled over." The poll, which was taken March 23-25, indicated that a lot of Thompson's support was coming from Giuliani and Romney. McCain's support was roughly equal to what it had been in a poll the first week of March, going up from 20% to 22%. But Giuliani dropped 13 points, to 31%, and Romney dropped 5 to just 3%. Romney risks becoming this cycle's Lamar Alexander — an ex-governor with an impressive resume, polished public style and robust media, but a candidate who ultimately fails to catch on.

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