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TOP STORIES
High Court Upholds Curb on Abortion
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/18/AR2007041800710.html
"The government may use its voice and its regulatory authority to show its profound respect for the life within the woman," Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote. He said the ban on the controversial method for ending a midterm pregnancy is valid because other abortion procedures are still available. Kennedy was joined by Bush's appointees -- Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. -- and Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. Kennedy announced the decision before a hushed chamber, and while his opinion did not overturn Roe or the court's subsequent decisions, yesterday's ruling marked an unmistakable shift. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg acknowledged as much moments later, when she solemnly read a statement from the bench explaining her dissent. The majority opinion, she told a stone-silent courtroom, "cannot be understood as anything other than an effort to chip away at a right declared again and again by this court -- and with increasing comprehension of its centrality to women's lives."
RELATED: Abortion law is upheld
RELATED: Anti-abortion activists look to build on court victory
RELATED: High court upholds ban on abortion procedure
RELATED: GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL v. CARHART et al.
http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=000&invol=05-380
Mayors urge Bush to tighten gun control laws
Mayor Thomas M. Menino urged the Bush administration yesterday to tighten gun control laws and stand up to the National Rifle Association in the aftermath of the massacre of 32 people at Virginia Tech. "The federal government could take action . . . by getting the NRA to back off these issues," Menino said in a telephone interview. "Young kids have guns today. . . . How is this being perpetrated throughout the country? It's not just a Boston problem. It's a national problem." The mayor made his comments as he returned to Boston from New Jersey, where he attended a meeting yesterday of a coalition of mayors united against illegal guns. Menino and Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg of New York started the coalition with 15 mayors in April 2006, and it grew to 214 with the addition of 27 mayors from New Jersey yesterday. Like Menino, Bloomberg said yesterday that he will wait for the investigation to be completed before offering extensive comments on the massacre, though he did say that an average of about 30 Americans are slain by gunfire daily.
Bombers Defy Security Push, Killing at Least 158 in Baghdad
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/18/AR2007041800799.html
Bombs ripped through several mainly Shiite districts in Baghdad on Wednesday, killing at least 158 people and wounding scores more, police said, in the worst wave of carnage since President Bush announced three months ago that he would deploy additional troops to pacify the Iraqi capital. In the gravest attack, a car bomb killed at least 118 people across from the busy Sadriya market, a shopping area that the U.S. military closed to traffic and fortified with blast walls after a truck bomb killed 135 people at the market in February, in the single deadliest explosion since the war began in 2003.
RELATED: 4 bombings kill at 183 in Iraq
On the Hill, Gonzales Gets His Chance at Redemption
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/18/AR2007041802573.html
When Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales's top aide contemplated the mass dismissal of chief federal prosecutors two years ago, he advocated keeping the "loyal Bushies." Two years later, the question confronting President Bush is whether to keep Gonzales, the very model of a loyal Bushie. As Gonzales heads to Capitol Hill today for a long-anticipated public interrogation about the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, at issue is the very concept of loyalty in Bush's world. With any other president, many in Washington say, the attorney general would already be gone. Bush has defied the drumbeat from both parties to remove Gonzales, but even the White House considers today's Senate hearing make or break.
RELATED: Gonzales to Admit Mistakes in Firings
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/18/AR2007041802291.html
RELATED: One Prosecutor’s Ouster Central to Inquiry
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/19/washington/19attorneys.html?ref=washington
Today’s complete national news
Colorado
Dobson asks followers to seek veto of 4 bills
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5492961,00.html
Saying that traditional morality is under attack in Colorado, Focus on the Family founder James Dobson urged his radio listeners on Wednesday to call Gov. Bill Ritter to oppose four bills, including one that would allow gay couples to adopt children together. "Do you understand how the liberals have declared war on traditional morality and traditional family values in this state?" said Dobson. In a broadcast on Colorado stations, he criticized bills that are either close to being sent to Ritter or already on his desk, including Senate Bill 25, which would bar businesses from hiring and firing based on a person's sexual orientation or religion.
Ritter roadless petition meant to override national rule
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/04/19/4_19_3a_Ritter_roadless.html
Gov. Bill Ritter’s proposal for Colorado’s 4 million acres of roadless areas is meant to supersede the protections granted under the 2001 Roadless Rule even if the rule withstands legal challenges, his spokesman said Wednesday, clarifying a statement Ritter made last weekend. The state of Wyoming is asking U.S. District Judge Clarence A. Brimmer to issue an injunction against the 2001 rule following his earlier decision declaring the rule illegal. A hearing on the injunction was scheduled for Wednesday in Cheyenne, but at the last minute Brimmer reset the hearing to May 25 because he is presiding over a criminal trial. More than 58 million acres of land on national forests nationwide are protected under the 2001 rule. If Brimmer issues the injunction, or an appeal of a California federal judge’s decision reinstating the 2001 rule prevails, protections to Colorado’s 4 million roadless acres could be lost.
Senate panel advances health insurance bill
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/health_care/article/0,2808,DRMN_25396_5492139,00.html
A Senate committee on Wednesday approved a controversial health insurance bill that would prohibit insurers from using health status and claims history in determining rates for small businesses. The Senate State Veterans and Military Affairs committee voted 3 to 2 to let the bill move to the Senate floor. The House approved it last week. Supporters of the bill call it a crucial step toward reforming Colorado's health care system, saying it will make health insurance more affordable and accessible for businesses with 50 or fewer employees. Critics argued the bill would undermine efforts to stabilize rates that are encouraging major insurers to re-enter the small-company market.
RELATED: House supports doctor history bill
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/apr/19/house-supports-doctor-history-bill/
$150,000 on Amendment 41
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5492317,00.html
Millionaire Jared Polis, a key supporter of an ethics measure that prevents a lobbyist from buying a lawmaker even a cup of coffee, is part of a group that has spent more than $150,000 so far trying to influence legislation to carry out the law. Polis is a lead financial backer of The Article 29 Coalition, a group formed after voters last fall approved Amendment 41. House Minority Leader Mike May, R-Parker, on Wednesday ripped Polis when he heard how much the group has spent on lawyers, lobbyists and consultants. Their latest financial reports were due this week to the secretary of state. "Jared Polis is a rich kid who thinks he can buy the state of Colorado," May said. "He thinks only Jared Polis should have influence in the legislature. He can spend whatever he wants, but not others." But lobbyist Mike Feeley, who has received $17,500 so far from the coalition, says the criticism of Polis is unwarranted. "One thing everyone is clear about is the voters wanted a change between lobbyists and the legislature," he said. "No one has been prevented from the hiring of lobbyists or having their voice heard because they can't take a legislator to a Nuggets game."
RELATED: Ethics law fix stirs up gripes
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5698769
Today’s complete Colorado news
Today’s complete daily news: http://media.progressnowaction.org/digest/041907.htm
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