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TOP STORIES
Effective and Ethical Government
Worker's Rights and Corporate Accountability
Transportation and Infrastructure
Effective and Ethical Government
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TOP STORIES
National
Bush Told War Is Harming The GOP
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902461.html
House Republican moderates, in a remarkably blunt White House meeting, warned President Bush this week that his pursuit of the war in Iraq is risking the future of the Republican Party and that he cannot count on GOP support for many more months. The meeting, which ran for an hour and a half Tuesday afternoon, was disclosed by participants yesterday as the House prepared to vote this evening on a spending bill that could cut funding for the Iraq war as early as July. GOP moderates told Bush they would stay united against the latest effort by House Democrats to end U.S. involvement in the war. Even Senate Democrats called the House measure unrealistic. But the meeting between 11 House Republicans, Bush, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, White House political adviser Karl Rove and presidential press secretary Tony Snow was perhaps the clearest sign yet that patience in the party is running out.
RELATED: Moderates in G.O.P. Warn Bush on Iraq
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/washington/10cong.html?ref=washington
RELATED: Bush Threatens Veto of New Iraq Bill
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050900797.html
More Iraq war news in NATIONAL/ELECTION, NATIONAL/GOVERNMENT, NATIONAL/FOREIGN POLICY, NATIONAL/MILITARY, COLORADO/TOP STORIES, COLORADO/GOVERNMENT, COLORADO/MILITARY
Guard equipment levels lowest since 9/11
The Pentagon, bearing the brunt of criticism for shortfalls in National Guard supplies after last week's devastating tornado in Kansas, acknowledged Wednesday that Army National Guard units had only 56% of their required equipment. Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates told a Senate hearing that equipment levels were the lowest since the Sept. 11 attacks. He said that the Bush administration's defense budget request, which asks for $22 billion for the Army National Guard over the next five years, would take Guard units up to 76% of their authorized equipment levels. "There's no question that there's been a drawdown of equipment in the National Guard," Gates said, adding that even before Sept. 11, Guard units normally were equipped at about 75%. "Clearly we need to follow through with this program to rebuild the stocks of equipment that are available to the National Guard." At the hearing, a bipartisan group of senators confronted Gates with pointed questions on Guard readiness. The lawmakers argued that repeated deployments to Iraq were causing shortages in equipment needed for domestic security and national disaster response.
RELATED: Gates rejects emergency command proposal
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-05-09-gates-iraq_N.htm
More emergency response news in NATIONAL/HEALTH, COLORADO/HEALTH
Pressure grows to prosecute Cuban exile
Three months before the 1976 midair explosion of a Cuban plane off the coast of Barbados, CIA covert operative Luis Posada Carriles cabled his U.S. minders from Venezuela to report that the plot was in motion and asked for Washington's "assistance." Recently declassified CIA communications confirm that a U.S. agent got back to Posada within a few days. Other internal communications obtained by the National Security Archive research project put Posada in regular contact with Washington handlers from the time of his arrival here just before the 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion through the late 1990s, when he allegedly masterminded a series of Havana hotel bombings in an effort to crush Cuba's budding tourism business. The 79-year-old anticommunist, who turned up two years ago in Miami, has never been charged by U.S. justice officials with participating in a violent act, not even the hotel bombings purportedly financed by fellow Cuban exiles in New Jersey and about which Posada has boasted. On Tuesday, the sole prosecution brought by Washington against the Cuban-born Posada, an immigration fraud charge, was quashed by a federal judge in Texas, leaving a man branded by the U.S. Justice Department as "a dangerous criminal and an admitted mastermind of terrorist plots" free to roam a country he entered illegally and from which another court has ordered him deported.
RELATED: Legal Victory by Militant Cuban Exile Brings Both Glee and Rage
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/10miami.html
More immigration policy news in NATIONAL/IMMIGRATION, COLORADO/ELECTION, COLORADO/IMMIGRATION
Giuliani to Support Abortion Rights
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/politics/10giuliani.html?ref=us
After months of conflicting signals on abortion, Rudolph W. Giuliani is planning to offer a forthright affirmation of his support for abortion rights in public forums, television appearances and interviews in the coming days, despite the potential for bad consequences among some conservative voters already wary of his views, aides said yesterday.
RELATED: Yankee Rings Become Issue for Giuliani
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/politics/10rings.html
More 2008 presidential race news in NATIONAL/ELECTION, COLORADO/ELECTION
Colorado
Ritter sticks up for tax plan
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5529501,00.html
Gov. Bill Ritter Wednesday came out fighting on behalf of his property tax plan to finance schools. Republicans call the plan a tax increase and have vowed to make it a central issue in 2008 elections. Addressing a crowd of supporters moments before signing the plan into law, Ritter, referring to Republicans, said, "We'll fight you tooth and nail because we believe it (the plan) was the right thing to do." On Tuesday, the Independence Institute, a free-market think tank, announced its intention to sue to halt the tax plan. The Independence Institute argues the plan would raise taxes for property owners in more than 100 of the state's 178 school districts and therefore violates the Taxpayer's Bill of Rights.
RELATED: Governor signs tax-rate freeze
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5858650
RELATED: Ritter bill set to add to PSD funds
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070510/NEWS01/705100412/1002
RELATED: Court fight may be next
http://www.gazette.com/articles/gazette_22150___article.html/tax_thursday.html
RELATED: Ritter signs school finance bill despite threat of lawsuit
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/4
RELATED: Tax rate freeze means more money for Moffat County
http://craigdailypress.com/section/localnews/story/26511
RELATED: Mill-levy freeze signed into law
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_mill_levy_freeze.html
RELATED: Ritter signs School Finance Act into law
More education funding news in COLORADO/EDUCATION
Coffman demotes, reassigns elections division worker
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5529154,00.html
Secretary of State Mike Coffman has demoted an elections worker and longtime political ally who operated a side business selling voter information for mainly Republican interests. Coffman's office announced Wednesday that Dan Kopelman has been moved to a new job in the elections division and is no longer a supervisor. In addition, his $85,000 salary was cut by $9,240. "Mike is certainly disappointed by all of this," said secretary of state spokesman Jonathan Tee. "We wanted to get to the bottom of this because it's best for the office and best for Dan that it is resolved accurately and thoroughly and quickly." But Sen. Ken Gordon, a Denver Democrat who ran against Coffman last year for secretary of state, said Kopelman should not be allowed to work anywhere in the elections division because he is too partisan.
RELATED: Election worker's salary docked (News briefs)
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5857677
Plea for Amend. 41 injunction now in judge's hands
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5858545
Elected officials, public employees and nonprofit agencies challenging Colorado's new ethics law are reading it out of context to the point of absurdity, a deputy attorney general argued Wednesday. Amendment 41's ban on gifts to government workers applies only when there is a breach of public trust, Maurice Knaizer said during closing arguments of a hearing on whether to block the law's enforcement. Knaizer rebutted the claims of about a dozen witnesses who testified that Amendment 41 infringes on their rights. One woman said she resigned as a Fire stone planning commissioner because she thought her children would lose their college scholarships. And a University of Colorado police officer said the ethics law prevented him from collecting more than $50 a person for a co-worker whose son died. Amendment 41, passed by voters last year, bans lawmakers from taking anything from lobbyists and prohibits government workers and their families from receiving gifts worth more than $50, except on special occasions.
RELATED: Ethics-law backers keep their papers from public view
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5529166,00.html
RELATED: Ethics group persuades judge to seal some of its campaign records
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20070509/NEWS/105090082
Coloradan faces charge of dereliction
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529210,00.html
A Colorado Marine officer is among seven Marines facing criminal hearings that began this week at Camp Pendleton, Calif., into the 2005 killings of 24 Iraqi civilians in Haditha. Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, 42, of Rangely, is tentatively set to face an Article 32 hearing May 30. Chessani and three other officers are charged with dereliction of duty in failing to report and investigate the deaths. An Article 32 hearing is equivalent to a preliminary hearing in civilian court to determine whether sufficient evidence exists to try the defendant. Chessani commanded the 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment, which included the platoon whose troops are charged with the Nov. 19, 2005, killings, although Chessani himself was not there. Three enlisted Marines are charged with murdering the Iraqis in a sweep through a Haditha neighborhood following an ambush that destroyed one of their vehicles and killed a fellow Marine.
More Haditha massacre news in NATIONAL/MILITARY
Election
Romney turns tables on Sharpton 'bigotry'
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529215,00.html
Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney defended his Mormon faith and accused the Rev. Al Sharpton of religious bigotry on Wednesday while barnstorming through central Iowa. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, grew emotional at times when denouncing Sharpton's statement Monday night that "those of us who believe in God" would defeat Romney. "His comment was a bigoted comment," Romney told reporters after his first stop of the day in Clear Lake, Iowa. "It shows that bigotry still exists in some corners." As the day went on, Sharpton tried to clarify his remarks, initially saying he did not mean to disparage Mormons during his Monday night debate with atheist author Christopher Hitchens. But by Wednesday evening, in an interview broadcast on CNN, Sharpton took issue with being called a bigot and challenged Romney to say whether he believed in the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the past, when blacks were not considered equals. "That's not bigotry. That's responding to their bigotry," Sharpton told CNN.
'08 race hits Tancredo roll calls
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_5858587
Rep. Tom Tancredo missed nearly two dozen votes last week while in California for a presidential candidates' debate, bringing to 39 the number he has skipped this year while seeking the Republican nomination. "Even if I were not running for president, I cannot, I have not been able to, make every single vote," Tancredo said. "I'm doing the best I can." The Littleton Republican has missed 13 percent of his votes this year, tops among Colorado's congressional delegation. But Tancredo doesn't come close to leading the list of presidential candidates missing their congressional voting duties. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has failed to cast his vote 43 percent of the time, according to a Washington Post database that tracks legislative action.
Salazar dismisses VP talk
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5855751
U.S. Rep. Mark Udall, D-Colo., was the latest political insider to mention the possibility of Salazar as a vice presidential candidate. He told The Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction on Saturday that he thinks a westerner such as Salazar or New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson would make the ticket "more compelling." Richardson is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination. Udall is running for the Senate seat that will be vacated next year by retiring Colorado Republican Wayne Allard. Democrats have scored important wins in several Western states in recent years. Many think the party should try to capitalize on those victories in 2008. Udall said Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry could have won in 2004 had he picked up any three of these four states: Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona or Nevada. Salazar agrees that a westerner would help the Democrats pick up key electoral votes. But, he added, "who that will be, I have no idea."
RELATED: Salazar as vice president?
http://blogs.denverpost.com/washington/2007/05/09/salazar-as-vice-president/
RELATED: Udall: Westerner on '08 presidential ticket could turn Colo. blue (5/9)
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/09/5_9_Western_candidate.html
PARTY PICKS (Extra!, May 10)
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529459,00.html
The Democratic State Convention may be coming to Colorado Springs next year. This is not a misprint. Colorado Democratic Party Vice Chairman Dan Slater said Tuesday that party leaders are considering Broomfield and Colorado Springs for next year's convention. "I think it would be very helpful for Democrats in this area to know they are part of the political mainstream," Democratic activist Rick Haas says. The state GOP is also looking at two potential convention sites: Broomfield and Colorado Springs. Party leaders say the other's choice won't influence theirs other than to make sure they're not held on the same weekend if they're in the same city.
Are runoff results predetermined?
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070510/NEWS/105100048
If history does repeat itself, then the results of the upcoming city runoff election are already a done deal. Since Aspen instituted runoffs in 2001, the majority of voters have selected the same candidates in both elections. "The runoff positions have not changed the May positions," said City Clerk Kathryn Koch. There have been three runoff city elections in the past eight years, all of which have generated the same outcomes of the prior votes. In 2001, Helen Klanderud got 850 votes in the mayoral election, and Rachel Richards received 658. In the runoff, Klanderud won. In May 2003, Torre got 566 votes in the race for City Council, and Tony Hershey received 542. Torre won the runoff. In May 2005, Jack Johnson received 823 votes for council, and Dee Malone got 671 votes. Johnson won in the runoff.
State Court will hear PEA campaigning complaint
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070510/NEWS01/705100414/1002
An ongoing court battle over the use of Poudre School District resources for partisan election campaigning has been accepted by the Colorado Supreme Court and could be heard as early as this summer. The complaint by Fort Collins residents Wayne Rutt and Paul Marrick against the Poudre Education Association stems from the PEA's use of the district's e-mail system to distribute election material to members in 2004 favoring Democrat Bob Bacon. The complaint also said district employees and buildings were being used for campaign purposes.
Bruce’s suit vs. city hits a snag
http://www.gazette.com/articles/city_22172___article.html/bruce_ballot.html
A district court judge Wednesday refused to hear any argument from anti-tax activist Douglas Bruce in his lawsuit against the city of Colorado Springs over stormwater fees, ruling Bruce failed to properly serve city officials. Bruce said he was relying on a 2-year-old waiver of service city officials gave him in a prior lawsuit, and that he tried to hand-deliver a copy of the complaint to the City Clerk’s Office Monday. “This has never been required by the city before,” Bruce said. “Well, those are the rules if the city requires that,” said 4th Judicial District Judge Rebecca Bromley. Senior attorney Shane White from the City Attorney’s Office said: “I have a copy of the complaint, but it was not legally served. I have no authority to accept service.” At issue is Bruce’s attempt to get a measure on November’s ballot to overturn the city’s new stormwater fee and require voter approval to create future enterprise funds and lower the city’s property tax.
DMEA election candidates finalized
http://www.montrosepress.com/articles/2007/05/09/local_news/3.txt
Five candidates vie for three districts in this year’s Delta-Montrose Electric Association board election. “They all have very impressive backgrounds,” said DMEA spokesman Tom Polikalas. The candidates each provided petitions with at least 25 members’ signatures to qualify for the 2007 ballot, which will be mailed the week of May 23.
Effective and Ethical Government
Salazar wants ideas of Iraq panel made binding on officials
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5857988
Sen. Ken Salazar launches an effort today to make the recommendations of the Iraq Study Group binding, including a condition that ongoing involvement in the war depend on progress meeting milestones. Salazar, working with Republican Sen. Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, will send out a letter today asking senators to support legislation they'll soon introduce. Their bill would make mandatory many ideas of the bipartisan panel of foreign-policy experts led by former Secretary of State James Baker and former Rep. Lee Hamilton. Salazar's bill, among many requirements, would force President Bush to file reports every 90 days on progress in Iraq.
GOP leader sees too much study
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/government/article/0,2777,DRMN_23906_5529216,00.html
House Minority Leader Mike May ripped Democrats during the session, saying that they were "the driving force behind more than 25 new or expanded commissions, committees or task forces." "We can't study forever," he said at the time. "The people of Colorado sent us here to do a job." House Democrats are perplexed by the criticism because voting records show that an overwhelming majority of the 18 commission bills that passed the House did so with broad bipartisan support. Five of those bills passed unanimously. And two of the bills had only one "no" vote. The commissions deal with issues ranging from education to veterans to forest restoration. May initially said "wow" Wednesday when he read the vote results for the commission bills. Then he said he stood by his criticism, made in a news release issued last week.
Riesberg to host forum to discuss results of General Assembly
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070510/NEWS/105090106
This weekend, area residents can learn what their elected leaders have been up to for the past four months. State Rep. Jim Riesberg, D-Greeley, will host a community forum Saturday to review the accomplishments of the first session of 66th Colorado General Assembly, which ended last Friday. Although lawmakers will no longer be in the Capitol every day, their work is not yet done. New bills are due by the middle of December, and lawmakers will work through the summer on various committees. Riesberg said he wants to hear residents' ideas for new legislation, and he will provide handouts for people to become familiar with the issues.
FBI didn't check bank's suspicion about checks
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529497,00.html
A downtown bank alerted federal authorities late last year that it had suspicions about Hysear Don Randell, but the Denver FBI office failed to follow up on that red flag and didn't pass along the information. Hysear, 40, is the hip-hop entrepreneur suspected of teaming with his girlfriend in a scheme to steal $10 million from the Colorado Department of Revenue, where she worked. Michelle Cawthra, a supervisor in the taxpayer services division, was arrested April 28 and accused of funneling the taxpayer money from state accounts into bank accounts controlled by Randell.
Board probes pay to auditor's aide
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529456,00.html
Denver Auditor Dennis Gallagher is the target of an ethics complaint stemming from nearly $50,000 of payments this year to his spokesman - a city employee - for campaign-related work. The city's Board of Ethics is looking into the complaint and will discuss it in executive session May 24, said Michael Henry, the board's staff director. Denis Berckefeldt, the auditor's spokesman, called the complaint "groundless." He said Lisa Jones, who filed the complaint, opposed the January special election, which Gallagher actively supported, and is unhappy that voters approved a measure to replace the Denver Election Commission with an elected clerk and recorder. "Lisa Jones is grasping at straws," he said Wednesday.
Republican booted for public comments
http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20070509/NEWS/70509013
After saying publicly that local Republicans are split, a party member has been has been kicked off a committee trying to reinvigorate the political organization after local and statewide election loses. Party chairman Randy Milhoan said he asked Sharon Greene to leave the local Republicans’ realignment committee. “I want to think like a team with people who are team players,” Milhoan said. “Yes, she was asked to leave because I didn’t like the way she was doing things.” But Greene says this is a case of different rules for different people. “Other officers of the party expressed their opinions and that was OK,” she said referring to article in Monday’s Vail Daily, “but when I did the same thing I was asked to leave.” Realignment processes are sensitive and should be kept as confidential as possible, said Henri Stone, former chairwoman of the Republican party and current executive committee member. If Greene had concerns, they should have been voiced to the party and not in the newspaper, she said.
Big lineup for GOP event
http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2007/may/10/big_lineup_gop_event/
There will be some big elephants in a room Saturday night in Steamboat Springs. Two of the most influential Republicans in Colorado — Secretary of State Mike Coffman and Republican Party Chairman Dick Wadhams — will speak at the Routt County Republicans’ annual Lincoln Day Dinner, which begins at 5 p.m. Saturday at the Old Town Pub & Restaurant. The event is the county party’s largest annual fundraiser and also features live and silent auctions, Republican-elected officials including state Sen. Jack Taylor of Steamboat Springs and state Rep. Al White of Winter Park, and an invocation by Pastor Kevin King of Anchor Way Baptist Church.
Archuleta County lays off 22 workers
After eight years of overspending, Archuleta County announced this week that 22 employees will be laid off, and more than $700,000 in expenses will be slashed from the budget. The decisions were made Tuesday night by Archuleta County commissioners, who were facing a $2.4 million budgetary shortfall this year. The county, with a population of 12,400, is working with a $15 million budget.
Weld County property values outpace Greeley's in recent property assessment
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070510/NEWS/70509020
The median value of homes in Greeley is lower than in all of Weld County, according to county assessor Chris Woodruff. According to newly released property value assessments from the county, the median assessed value of a home in Greeley is $161,500. The median assessed value for a residential home in all of Weld is $176,000. That figure includes all cities in Weld including those in Greeley. Assessed values are used primarily to figure property taxes on residents.
Property valuations increase dramatically during past two years
http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2007/may/10/sticker_shock/
Property owners in Steamboat Springs are adapting to the news this month that valuation of their real estate for tax purposes has increased dramatically during the past two years. In some cases, property owners’ building lots are more valuable than their houses.
Property tax complaint window is open
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_1A_Assessor.html
As of Wednesday, just nine days since the assessor’s office opened its complaint window, the office has fielded more than 400 appeals, said Brent Goff, [Mesa] county’s chief appraiser. The median increase in property taxes from 2005 to 2007 was 32 percent, he said.
Civil Liberties and Equality
Plea bargain possible in Rifle school assault
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_School_assault.html
Deputy District Attorney Tony Hershey told Garfield County Juvenile Court Judge Paul Metzger the victim’s family and prosecutors are “anxious to have a resolution to this case” and will consider an agreement. The alleged assailant, Nancy Estelle Hernandez, was told she could face a charge of second-degree assault in the Feb. 23 attack on another girl in a school hallway. The assault, according to court records, caused the younger girl serious injuries. Hernandez allegedly attacked the 14-year-old, who is Caucasian, after she uttered a racial slur at a Hispanic boy, who reportedly had made a sexual comment about the 14-year-old.
RELATED: Teen charged in Rifle High School assault is advised a second time
http://postindependent.com/article/20070510/VALLEYNEWS/105100048
Immigration
Senate immigration debate starts next week
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5528730,00.html
The immigration debate is expected to get "fast and furious" in the U.S. Senate next week, when key members plan to move forward with a comprehensive immigration bill, Colorado Democratic Sen. Ken Salazar said Wednesday. The bill will include provisions addressing border security, enforcement of current laws and a pathway to legalization for the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants, Salazar said. "We need to find a way to deal with the reality of the 12 million undocumented immigrant workers who are here in this country," he said during a conference call with reporters. "And the proposal that we’re working on is to get the 12 million people to move from the darkness and shadows of our society into the sunlight."
RELATED: Senate Dems start push for immigration reform
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/2
RELATED: Salazar: Senate to work on immigration
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_3bKen_Salazar_immigration.html
Reproductive Choice
Planned Parenthood seeks safety
Planned Parenthood is building an 8-foot-tall wooden fence outside its Durango office in reaction to 14 months of weekly anti-abortion protests. A worker on Wednesday slapped wooden planks into place as protesters looked on. The protesters said they were more determined than ever to continue their weekly demonstrations, perhaps with 10-foot-tall ladders next time. "We're going to buy some ladders this week," said Chris Dunn, 27, a Durango resident who held a large, graphic photo of a 10-week-old fetus. Planned Parenthood, he said, is "just wasting their money." In Planned Parenthood's lobby, a jar asked for donations to "Help Us Build a Fence." A sign said "$15 buys a board" and urged visitors to "Pledge a Real Picket." A Planned Parenthood spokeswoman said the fence was an effort to protect the group's clients.
Health Care and Public Safety
Pit bull ban protest held in Pittsburgh
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529496,00.html
A group of people opposed to breed-specific dog laws said they held a vigil in downtown Pittsburgh on Wednesday night to mark the anniversary of Denver's pit bull ban. Laurie Maxwell, a spokeswoman for a group called Hello Bully, said a group of about 25 activists marched through downtown and held a moment of silence for dogs put down since Denver's law was reinstated two years ago after it survived a court challenge.
Flood a not-so-dry run of city's crisis response ability
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/5
When the Fountain Creek flooded Monday, it was a chance for the city to test its ability to respond to a crisis. Last month Pueblo City Council went through a brief training presentation on how emergency management agencies coordinate when catastrophe strikes. In the grand scheme of things, the Fountain flood was a relatively small event, but police, fire and public works crews were able to establish an incident command system that eventually coordinated nearly 60 pieces of equipment, four public agencies and four private contractors. "This was kind of a miniature version of a critical incident," said Pueblo Police Chief Jim Billings on Monday. "It would be a critical event if the river had risen to the point where people were at risk. Right now, we're just trying to deal with the damage."
Prepping for a deluge
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=16249
Today, the St. Vrain River running through Longmont looks pretty much the way it does most days: placid. But about 30 miles away, in the mountains above Lyons, a potential problem is arising. Button Rock Dam is holding back a nearly full Ralph Price Reservoir, and with the right kind of weather conditions, water could begin pouring over the dam’s spillway within the week.
Watson OK for play
http://coloradodaily.com/articles/2007/05/09/news/c_u_and_boulder/news1.txt
The City of Boulder has re-opened Tom Watson Park, which was closed as a precaution Monday because of a suspected bubonic plague-caused prairie dog die-off. Paul Bousquet, marketing and communications manager for the city's Parks and Recreation department, said a Parks staffer noticed something a little unusual Monday at Watson, located at 6130 N. 63rd St. “She wondered why there weren't more prairie dogs moving around beyond the fence,” said Bousquet. “That prompted her to contact the County Health department, because she saw that there was very little activity in what is usually a fairly active colony, and that's what caused her to suspect the plague out there.”
Crime and Penal Reform
State rescinds deal for private prison
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529493,00.html
Plans for GEO Group Inc. to build a private prison in the Weld County town of Ault were dropped over a disagreement about whether the state should guarantee the company a minimum number of prisoners. GEO spokesman Pablo Paez told The Associated Press on Wednesday that the state had awarded the company a contract to build the prison but later said it could not provide a minimum occupancy guarantee and rescinded the deal.
RELATED: Hudson voters OK prison; plan for Ault canceled
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5857788
Man shot by Denver police has history of minor offenses
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529208,00.html
A man who was shot Tuesday evening after he allegedly threatened police with a knife at a downtown apartment building has a history of minor run-ins with the law, mostly for trespassing, according to police records. The man was identified Wednesday as John Balestrieri, 47. He was in critical but stable condition at Denver Health Medical Center, according to police. Police were dispatched to the Renaissance at Civic Center Apartments, 25 E. 16th Avenue to help firefighters and paramedics check on someone's welfare.
Missing lawyer juggled clients' cash
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529457,00.html
On the morning popular attorney Royal "Scoop" Daniel III disappeared, his business amounted to a financial house of cards that had begun to collapse in the previous year, according to court documents. Daniel, named in an arrest warrant made public Wednesday, had been the subject of a massive public search after he vanished from his Breckenridge office April 27. But even as friends feared he'd been the victim of foul play and pleaded publicly for information about his whereabouts, investigators were methodically unraveling his complicated financial life. They discovered numerous problems with his handling of "1031 exchanges" - property transfers that required him to control large sums of money, sometimes for months. They discovered that he'd dipped into a statewide fund that provides legal aid to people who can't afford it. They even found that he'd stiffed a local theater company when his $510 purchase at a fundraising auction was rejected by his credit card company.
RELATED: Police fear "Scoop" may have fled U.S.
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5858543
RELATED: Arrest affidavit reveals details surrounding 'Scoop' disappearance
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20070509/NEWS/105090086
Crime rates dropping
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=16253
City crime statistics for the first quarter of 2007 showed a 20 percent drop in benchmark crimes compared to the same period last year, according to new numbers released by the Longmont Police Department. The overall downward trend falls in line with keystone crime data from 2005 and 2006 that showed a 30 percent overall drop. These crimes — including aggravated assault, aggravated motor vehicle theft, burglary, first-degree criminal trespass, car break-ins, sexual assault and theft — are tracked by local law enforcement and reported to the FBI for Uniform Crime Report statistics.
Police have clues in RTD vandalism
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529164,00.html
Aurora police say they have some promising leads from surveillance video and witnesses at the RTD park-n-Ride where 30 vehicles were vandalized over the weekend. "We're knocking on some doors . . . and we're going forward with the case," Detective Bob Friel said Wednesday. RTD gave police video from the cameras at the nearly 1,100-car lot that show images of some suspects, and police have heard from witnesses who gave potential leads. Vandals spray-painted, stole items or broke windows on 30 vehicles at the Airport Boulevard and 40th Avenue park- n-Ride Friday and Saturday nights.
Economy
Ritter shares economic plans
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5858554
Gov. Bill Ritter on Wednesday gave state business leaders a reason to look forward to the next legislative session while reiterating the successes of his first 120 days in office. Ritter addressed 525 members of the state's business community at a first-of-its- kind State of the State luncheon sponsored by the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce. The audience included representatives of economic- development organizations from throughout the state. Joe Blake, president and chief executive of the Denver Metro Chamber, praised Ritter's "impressive leadership," and statewide economic-development officials urged him to keep thinking regionally. "I hope he continues to see that the state includes Bayfield as much as Broomfield," said Reeves Brown, president of Club 20, a consortium of Western Slope counties.
Telluride passes hat, collects $50 million
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5529099,00.html
Telluride met a deadline for raising the $50 million it needed to preserve one of its most scenic landscapes - 570 acres of meadows and wetlands just outside the entrance to the Victorian-era resort town. A $2 million donation from Hollywood producer and director Tom Shadyac, a frequent Telluride visitor, sent the fundraising campaign over the top at the 11th hour, capping a decades-long fight with the land's owner. "This is an incredible day in the history of Telluride," Mayor John Pryor said. "This parcel defines Telluride historically, culturally and ecologically." But Neal Blue, of San Diego, who bought the land in the early 1980s, will continue to fight the town's condemnation of the land. The case is on appeal to the Colorado Supreme Court.
RELATED: Frantic fundraising pays off for Telluride's front door
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_5858544
RELATED: Telluride raises more than enough for valley floor
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_1A_Valley_floor.html
RELATED: Telluride celebrates Valley Floor victory
http://telluridegateway.com/articles/2007/05/09/news/news01.txt
FTC may have concerns over Wild Oats takeover
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5528524,00.html
Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods Markets Inc. acknowledged in its earnings announcement Wednesday that members of the Federal Trade Commission may have issues with a proposed $671 million acquisition of Boulder-based Wild Oats Markets Inc. "Although the FTC has not yet decided whether to challenge the Wild Oats transaction, members of the FTC staff have voiced concerns regarding perceived anticompetitive effects resulting from the proposed tender offer and merger," the company said in a statement.
Qwest touts products in capital
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/tech/article/0,2777,DRMN_23910_5529082,00.html
Qwest's top executives on Wednesday showcased the Denver telco's products and services at a Washington luxury hotel, the marketing debut for the government's multibillion-dollar Networx Universal program. In March, Qwest was named one of just three nationwide providers for a 10-year program that could be worth up to $48 billion. "The program requires that we proactively market (the services)," said Qwest spokeswoman Claire Mylott. "We were the first to get the thumbs up to start the marketing program."
RELATED: Qwest unveils ideas for Networx
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5858553
CH2M Hill accused by L.A. utility
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5858051
An audit of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power found that Douglas County-based CH2M Hill overbilled the utility by at least $3.3 million, and the agency wants the money back. The auditor, GCAP Services Inc., found that CH2M Hill allowed subcontractors to pass on improper markups for services to the department. The audit also found that the company lacked effective oversight of cost controls, subcontractor management and construction management. CH2M Hill spokesman John Corsi disputed the auditor's findings.
Super-fast modem born in Louisville
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/tech/article/0,2777,DRMN_23910_5529098,00.html
Imagine downloading a movie from the Internet in less than a minute. That might become the reality as soon as next year, thanks to a new, super-fast cable modem technology announced to great fanfare this week at a Las Vegas industry trade show. Cable Television Laboratories, or CableLabs, in Louisville, the industry's research group, developed the technology, and Comcast CEO Brian Roberts created a buzz showing it off. A pre-version has been launched in Europe and Asia. In fact, John Malone's Liberty Global plans to offer it soon in Japan through its Jupiter Telecommunications, or J-COM, entity. Richard Green, chief executive officer of CableLabs, said in a telephone interview from Las Vegas the technology is the third version of the industry's 12-year-old cable-modem program. Roberts unveiled the first version 11 years ago. That tape was played at the trade show this week to show how far the industry has come.
RELATED: Internet speed battle escalates
Alleged scam promised huge returns
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5858054
Dave Hester says he isn't the type to fall for get-rich-quick schemes. But he admits with some embarrassment that in 2002, he did just that. He put $10,000 into Capital Holdings, a now-defunct Denver company whose principals are being tried in Denver federal court on charges of fraud, conspiracy and money laundering. Prosecutors say the four men and others collected $56 million from more than 1,000 investors between 1999 and 2003, promising monthly returns of up to 400 percent. They operated under a variety of business names including Capital Holdings, Smitty's Investments and Reserve Foundation Trust.
Power poles, church fall prey to theft of copper
http://www.gazette.com/articles/poles_22143___article.html/copper_police.html
The price of copper is up again — and so are thefts of the metal. The potential payoff has made crooks more brazen, and police say they are tough to catch because they quickly chop their loot into unrecognizable pieces before selling it as scrap. This week, copper-seeking thieves darkened stretches of Powers Boulevard by breaking into 33 light poles and ripping out the wires inside, the Colorado Springs Police Department said.
Combing up for air
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_5858542
Lunar dust has edges as sharp as broken glass that threaten to grind away at every spacesuit or machine set down on the moon, but it holds a precious commodity for astronauts - oxygen. So at Lockheed Martin Space Systems' Waterton Canyon facility, engineers are learning to mine moon dust. Their aim is to persuade the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to send a robotic mission to the moon before astronauts' scheduled return in 2020. Engineers hope that mission will include some version of the Lockheed digger robot and soil cooker - which can mine gritty, gray lunar dust and turn it into breathable oxygen.
Worker's Rights and Corporate Accountability
Many families scraping by, study reports
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529460,00.html
One in five Colorado families are barely getting by, often going without health care and other necessities, according to a major study released today. While single mothers and people of color make up a large percentage of these families, the study found that the most common household struggling in Colorado consists of a white married couple with children. Most of the families have at least one member working full time. The study was done by the Colorado Fiscal Policy Institute, with the support of several local foundations. The institute advocates on behalf of lower-income Coloradans. "The sheer number of families struggling was a surprise to us," said Kathy White, who worked on the study. "Since the late 1990s, costs have started to outpace wages. Housing has skyrocketed and child care costs continue to increase."
RELATED: Caught between poverty, 'too much' income
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529458,00.html
RELATED: State's working families often can't make ends meet
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5859339
Housing and Homelessness
Foreclosures on track to exceed '06
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/real_estate/article/0,1299,DRMN_414_5529085,00.html
Colorado was hit by 9,254 foreclosure filings in the first quarter, putting the state on track to top last year's record foreclosures by about 25 percent. Last year, 28,453 foreclosures were filed statewide. This year, that number could rise to about 36,000. The Colorado Division of Housing released its inaugural foreclosure report on Wednesday. Despite the rising number of foreclosures, the figures are far smaller than the 16,430 filings released in earlier reports by Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac. "RealtyTrac's numbers are ridiculous and irresponsible," said Kathi Williams, director of the housing division.
RELATED: Housing market remains in storm
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5858052
Valley housing entities merge
http://postindependent.com/article/20070510/VALLEYNEWS/105100042
Three local entities are consolidating with the goal of tackling the affordable housing problem, by means that will include the creation of a development fund they hope will total as much as $10 million. The Garfield County Housing Authority, Mountain Regional Housing Corporation and Roaring Fork Housing Fund are trying to complete their consolidation before mid-summer. The new organization will be called Valley Housing Partners.
Media
Liberty Media plans to purchase up to $500 million of stock
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5528979,00.html
Liberty Media Corp., a diversified entertainment holding company, said Wednesday it will launch a Dutch auction self-tender offer to purchase up to $500 million of stock. Liberty Media, which was founded by cable pioneer John Malone, said it plans to buy up to $500 million of its Liberty Interactive Group series A common stock within a range of $23.75 a share to $25.75 a share.
Education
Ritter to deliver CU law commencement address
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/may/09/ritter-deliver-cu-law-commencement-address/
Gov. Bill Ritter will deliver the keynote commencement address for the University of Colorado Law School on Friday morning.The class of 2007 is the first to graduate since the opening of the new Wolf Law Building.
Brown: Ref. C has not restored funding for higher education
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070510/NEWS01/705100419/1002/NEWS01
A referendum that restored some state funding to higher education has done little to help the state's major research universities, the University of Colorado's president said Wednesday in Fort Collins. "Referendum C has not put money back into higher education," CU President Hank Brown said. "It's stopped the bleeding, it's stopped the cuts, but it hasn't restored funds." Brown spoke to members of the Rotary Club at a lunch at the Lincoln Center, 417 W. Magnolia St. The former senator was a strong supporter of the referendum in 2005. However, he said the state's large research institutions continue to be devastated by a lack of money. "Public funding for higher education in Colorado is off the charts in terms of being on the bottom of the chart," Brown said. At CU, funding cuts have hurt the university's health sciences programs the most, he said. After $74 million in cuts, CU ranked lowest of any state medical school in the nation receiving only 22 percent of the average for other schools, he said.
CU hopes to attract more minorities
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/may/10/cu-hopes-to-attract-more-minorities/
The University of Colorado is a part of a new alliance — supported by a $2 million, three-year grant from the National Science Foundation — to attract more minority students to computing studies. Combined, there were 38 African-American, American Indian and Hispanic doctoral graduates in computer science and engineering programs nationwide in 2004-05, according to a report from the Computing Research Association. That's 3 percent of 1,189 total graduates, the report shows. The Empowering Leadership Alliance is led by Rice University and includes CU; Boston University; University of California, Berkeley; University of Texas, Austin; and Southern Illinois University, Carbondale. Each school has its own role in the endeavor, according to CU.
MSC teaching program accredited
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_2b_teacher_center.html
Mesa State College’s Center for Teacher Education recently received accreditation for its teacher training programs from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. The Center for Teacher Education offers programs in early childhood and K-12 education, as well as a master’s degree in education. In 2003, the center gained partial accreditation. It gained complete accreditation in April.
Give charter time, state board tells DPS
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/education/article/0,1299,DRMN_957_5529484,00.html
A poor-performing charter school got a reprieve Wednesday when the Colorado Board of Education told Denver Public Schools to reconsider its decision to shutter the campus next month. The board voted 4-3 after much hand-wringing - so much so that board member Randy DeHoff made a motion to kick the decision back to DPS but then said he wasn't sure he could support his own motion. "I don't think the decision should be made either by the local board or by this board based on what people are promising they're going to do in the future rather than what they failed to do in the past," DeHoff said, though he ultimately voted in favor of sending back the decision to DPS.
RELATED: Charter school wins backing for a 2nd chance
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_5857678
Standard testing set for reading program
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5857789
Read to Achieve benefits 14,000 kids in 70 school districts with such literacy programs as reading academies, summer reading clinics and after-school tutors. The grant program, which has disbursed $101 million over six years, is funded with settlement money from the lawsuit years ago against tobacco companies. During the next school year, the program is expected to target children in kindergarten through third grade. The program came under fire last year in a legislative audit that said the state Department of Education did not track student performance well enough to show whether the program was working. The department's review process also did not effectively target funds where they are most needed, the report said.
School-closure panel wants assurances kids will benefit
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/education/article/0,1299,DRMN_957_5529500,00.html
A citizens panel studying the closure of some Denver schools said Wednesday the district must show that any students forced to move will receive a better education as a result - or their schools should not close. "If all we do is put kids in bigger, equally bad schools . . . " said panel member Tom Gougeon, a developer with Continuum Partners, shaking his head. "Game over" with the public, said Tony Lewis, another panel member who is head of the Donnell-Kay Foundation, finishing the thought.
RFHS student disappointed with school's administration
http://postindependent.com/article/20070510/VALLEYNEWS/105100049
Roaring Fork High School junior Casey Weaver thinks Jill Knaus' planned retirement is a sign of administrators sacrificing academic rigor for "showy" grade-point averages and favorable Colorado Student Assessment Program (CSAP) scores. Over 100 students walked out of class on Tuesday to protest the Spanish teacher's retirement.
School districts to cooperate to save funds
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/9
Pueblo County’s two school districts are looking for ways to cooperate and save money as both face painful budget cuts for the next school year. Dan Lere, superintendent of School District 70, appeared at this week’s meeting of the Pueblo City Schools Board of Education and discussed ideas that he and his city counterpart John Covington had developed. One agreement they’d reached was to provide combined transportation for their districts’ students who attend the Colorado School for the Deaf and Blind in Colorado Springs. Carolyn Lueck, assistant superintendent for support services in the Pueblo City Schools district, explained later that the city district uses a 14-passenger bus to transport students and that the total number of students from both districts would easily fit into the vehicle.
RELATED: City Schools identify students who need more help
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/11
RELATED: City schools issue more non-renewals to teachers
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/13
Sides set for final day of District 6 teacher contract negotiations
http://greeleytrib.com/article/20070510/NEWS/70509019
Greeley-Evans School District 6 teachers are in the home stretch in negotiations for a new annual contract, and Thursday promises to be a marathon session at the administration building. “We’ve made some progress, but we have a long way to go and we hope Thursday we’ll have that marathon day,” said Lori Maag, president of the Greeley Education Association, the teachers’ union. Maag said the union, representing about 1,100 teachers, has 15 issues remaining to be settled with the school district. Big issues still on the table are teacher salaries and planning time, particularly for elementary teachers, Maag said.
Brown gets Ward's review
http://coloradodaily.com/articles/2007/05/09/news/c_u_and_boulder/news3.txt
The clock is ticking for controversial CU Professor Ward Churchill, who is one step closer to discovering whether he'll return to the classroom or be dismissed from the university. On Tuesday a faculty committee investigating allegations of research misconduct against the tenured ethnic studies professor sent their findings to CU President Hank Brown, who will review the confidential report and make a recommendation on Churchill's fate within the next 15 business days. Churchill did not return phone calls to the Colorado Daily, although on Wednesday Churchill told the Associated Press the report was “a mixed bag.” Some speculate the faculty's vote is split between advocating reprimand or dismissal. Neither CU nor Churchill's attorney David Lane would discuss the contents of the report.
Student complains about CWA sex panel
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/may/10/student-complains-about-cwa-sex-panel/
Boulder High sophomore Daphne White was so offended by a discussion extolling sex and drugs at her school that she went to the microphone to give what she knew was an unpopular view. She chastised the Conference on World Affairs panelists at the April session for a one-sided discussion that discredited religious views and abstinence, saying they shouldn't send those kinds of messages to teens. "The panel discussion was a completely irresponsible and dangerous invitation to Boulder High students to have sex and take drugs," she told the Boulder Valley school board at its Tuesday meeting. School board members agreed it was inappropriate and asked the district to investigate. It's possible the panels will no longer be allowed at Boulder High.
Parents question principal's e-mail handle
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070510/NEWS/105100050
"Why, as a principal of a high school, would you choose something with that negative a connotation?" she asked about Parker's use of the name of Gen. Heinz Wilhelm Guderian as his e-mail (guderianh@rfsd.k12.co.us) — the only handle on the school's website that is not in some way directly related to the staff person's real name. Parker, a history teacher with 35 years of experience who teaches "Conflicts in U.S. History," says his choice of e-mail name is merely a reflection of his specialized knowledge as a historian, and of the likelihood that no one else would think of it. Therefore, it would provide greater security for his e-mail communications. Plus, he said, he originally intended the name as his password to his first account at the University of Wyoming. But he typed the name into the wrong field on the computer screen, and it became his e-mail name. He said it was too much trouble to change it, and he has stuck with it out of convenience ever since. "If it had been William Tecumseh Sherman," he said, "somebody would have been mad at me because he burned down Atlanta."
Police look into parent, student run-in
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/may/10/police-look-into-parent-student-run-in/
A Boulder woman says her son — a student at Fairview High School — was intimidated by another student's mother this week because he's black, and she wants to press charges for harassment and stalking. Boulder police said they're looking into the incident, which occurred during Fairview's lunch hour Monday, when a woman mistook one black student for another black student who she thought was dating her 15-year-old daughter. The female student, who is white, had been told by her parents that she's not allowed to date juniors or seniors. But the teen's parents found text messages on her cell phone indicating she was seeing a 17-year-old boy, said police spokeswoman Julie Brooks. "So the parents, without thinking, go to the school to confront the young man," Brooks said. The mother admonished the student she thought was dating her daughter, as he sat in his car in Fairview's senior parking lot, Brooks said. But the teen was the wrong person, she said.
Police repsond to 'suspicious incident' at Boulder High
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/may/10/police-searching-suspicious-men-outside-boulder-hi/
Boulder police have cordoned off Boulder High School in response to a "suspicious incident" this morning, spokeswoman Julie Brooks said. Brooks said she could not verify reports on 9News that two men in camouflage clothing were spotted outside the school this morning. She said the school itself is closed, as are its parking lots. "Whatever we are dealing with, we've contained within the school," Brooks said. She said the Boulder Police Department's SWAT team has been activated.
Student removed after alleged threat
http://www.canoncitydailyrecord.com/Top-Story.asp?ID=6919
A Cañon City High School senior has been removed from school and will not be attending graduation after allegedly making a threat through e-mail.
District reviews response to threat
http://www.longmontfyi.com/Local-Story.asp?id=16251
School officials weighed issues like the threats’ credibility against the disruption of an evacuation, [a spokesman] said.
Military
Carson health care gets boost
http://www.gazette.com/articles/post_22168___article.html/carson_care.html
Fort Carson is being investigated on allegations of poor care for mentally ill soldiers, but a top Army medical official said Wednesday the post’s health care efforts are an example of “what right looks like.” The statement by Brig. Gen. Michael Tucker stunned one of the critics who have successfully pushed for a congressional inquiry into health care practices on the post. Tucker has been charged with fixing the Army’s medical system, under fire since January with allegations that wounded soldiers get shoddy treatment amid a morass of bureaucracy. Tuesday, Tucker met with soldiers who have complained about their care and quizzed doctors and commanders about programs at Fort Carson. The general said Wednesday he found “best practices” at Fort Carson that need to be emulated by the rest of the Army. “I’m very impressed with what they are doing here,” Tucker said. Tucker cited the post’s PTSD screening efforts, its training for soldiers on the symptoms of mental illness and its program to track concussions among deployed soldiers as practices that others should copy. Steve Robinson, an activist who has been pushing for more scrutiny of the post, said he can’t figure out how Tucker found so much to praise at Fort Carson but was blind to medical misdeeds. “I don’t understand what he’s looking at,” said Robinson, who works with the Washington, D.C.-based Veterans For America.
RELATED: Transition unit set for Carson
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5857786
Religion
Evangelicals meet to focus on orphans
http://www.denverpost.com/newsheadlines/ci_5858649
Evangelical Christians want to ignite a movement in the nation's churches to help the world's 143 million orphans, a crisis that evangelicals are calling the "greatest social opportunity" in generations. Some of the nation's most prominent evangelicals, including Rick Warren, author of The Purpose Driven Life, met at Focus on the Family for a conference to rekindle a long-standing Christian tradition of caring for orphans. At the conference, which runs through Friday, 350 people - representatives of adoptive and foster-care agencies, churches and ministries - will discuss how to build alliances between state foster-care agencies, to minister to HIV/AIDS orphans and to teach churches to do child placement as a ministry.
Priest's 'illegal parking' taunted
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529469,00.html
First, there was a near miss with a pie. Now, surreptitious photographs of the embattled Rev. Don Armstrong are being posted, a la Candid Camera, by a self-described satire and gay-advocacy publication. "Don Armstrong deserves it for any number of reasons," said Noel Black, publisher of Newspeak. The Colorado Springs publication has posted on its Web site nine photos that purport to show Armstrong parking his car illegally. On Sunday, Armstrong nearly was hit by a pie thrown at him during the 9 a.m. service at Grace Church and St. Stephen's Parish. Marcus Hyde, the 18-year-old accused in the incident, is an occasional writer for Newspeak, Black said. Hyde did not respond to phone messages Wednesday.
Energy Policy
Ritter focuses on renewable energy at business gathering
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/other_business/article/0,2777,DRMN_23916_5529083,00.html
Gov. Bill Ritter stuck with the renewable energy theme in a speech to Colorado business leaders on Wednesday, saying the state also must focus on bioscience, aerospace and tourism. "What can we do to inspire growth in those areas?" he asked the crowd invited to the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce lunch. The Colorado House and Senate, controlled by the Democrats, considered a host of energy-related bills in the latest legislative session, passing almost two dozen. One measure Ritter signed doubles Colorado's renewable-energy standard, requiring that 20 percent of the energy generated by state utilities come from renewable sources, such as wind and solar power.
Renewable energy agreement among session's highlights
http://coloradoan.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070510/NEWS01/705100415/1002
The 2007 Legislature finished work one week early Friday, leaving in its wake many legislative winners and some losers for Northern Colorado. Renewable energy enjoyed a bipartisan boost with the Democratic-controlled House and Senate passing more than a half-dozen bills aimed at pushing the state toward becoming an economic hub for renewable energy.
Small counties urge governor to veto tax plan
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_1b_Kill_Bill.html
A series of Western Slope local leaders have encouraged Gov. Bill Ritter to kill a bill aimed at delivering more severance tax funds directly to energy-impacted communities. Rio Blanco County Commissioner Ken Parsons said he has contacted the governor in opposition to House Bill 1139, because the bill unfairly takes money away from counties that rely on severance-tax grants. The bill, which passed the House and Senate with nearly unanimous, bipartisan support, would double the proportion of severance tax funds directly returned to energy-impacted communities. The new direct-distribution funds would come out of the Department of Local Affairs’ severance-tax grant fund.
Lawsuit seeks to reverse approval of drilling in Baca refuge
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529502,00.html
Opponents of a plan to drill for oil and gas in the Baca National Wildlife Refuge have filed a complaint in federal court, saying the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service violated federal law when it approved the project. The lawsuit, filed by the nonprofit San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council, says the government should have conducted a full analysis of the impact that drilling could have on the area, which borders Great Sand Dunes National Park. It also should have held public hearings on the project, the lawsuit states. Lexam Explorations Inc., which holds mineral rights below portions of the wildlife refuge, plans to drill two oil and gas wells to a depth of 14,000 feet, according to the lawsuit.
RELATED: Group sues over plan to drill in refuge
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/16
Residents voice concerns on drilling
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_1b_Palisade_watershed.html
Residents who voiced a variety of concerns about a plan to drill for natural gas in Grand Junction and Palisade’s watersheds on Grand Mesa called on themselves to pick up the slack they said exists in the plan. Roughly 40 people turned out Wednesday night at the Palisade Veterans’ Memorial Community Center for the second of two meetings designed to solicit public input on the draft community development plan, which outlines precautions Genesis Gas and Oil will take to secure the municipalities’ drinking water. Citizens and members of Western Colorado Congress laid out a variety of complaints about the plan, ranging from its non-binding nature, to its conditional language, to what some perceived as a lack of assurances about installing casing to withstand forces and drilling fluids.
Gas prices hit all-time high
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/energy/article/0,2777,DRMN_23914_5529100,00.html
Gas now costs more than it ever did. On Wednesday, pump prices surged higher to set an all-time record in Colorado of an average of $3.126 a gallon. Last summer, the threat of hurricanes had driven up the price of crude oil and gasoline, setting a Colorado record of $3.076 on Aug. 11.
RELATED: Colorado gas prices surge to new high
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_1A_Gas_Prices.html
RELATED: Gas prices rise; prepare for more than $5 per gallon
http://www.aspentimes.com/article/20070510/NEWS/105100053
RELATED: Could gas prices rise above four dollars a gallon in Summit County?
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20070509/NEWS/105090076
Transportation and Infrastructure
DIA runway repair could cause jam
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529186,00.html
Hope for decent weather for the next two months. A wicked crosswind could restrict DIA, the world's 10th-busiest airport with six runways, to a single landing strip. Work crews are ripping out and replacing 400 damaged concrete panels around runway 8/26, prompting the extended shutdown of one of Denver International Airport's two east-west runways. DIA boasts four north-south runways. But with steady gusts from side to side they can't be used.
McClure Pass now open day and night
http://postindependent.com/article/20070510/VALLEYNEWS/105100051
State Highway 133 is now open to traffic day and night, at mile marker 29 south of McClure Pass. Several sections of rock material have been brought down and the rock face has been scaled and stabilized. The contracted portion of the work cost approximately $200,000.
Environment and Conservation
Manager: Water study must include look at climate change
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/05/10/5_10_1b_IBCC_meeting.html
Global warming is the “elephant in the room” in discussions about how a Colorado River Basin water-availability study will be conducted, said Eric Kuhn, general manager of the Colorado River Water Conservation District. Without addressing climate change, the water study may be worthless, he said Wednesday, addressing the Interbasin Compact Committee in Lakewood. The Colorado Water Conservation Board is required under a water-projects bill passed this year by the Legislature to consult with the committee and the river basin roundtables it represents before it conducts the water study. The study may look at how much water there is in the Colorado River Basin, how much of the basin’s water will be available in the future to the Western Slope and the Front Range, and how much more water can be appropriated for new uses over at least the next quarter century.
Two Elk: Running the ridge, setting fires
http://www.vaildaily.com/article/20070509/NEWS/70509005
Almost nine years after John Gulick led efforts to extinguish eight giant arson fires on Vail Mountain, he is putting the so-called “eco-attack” behind him. There have been two guilty pleas in the case of the 1998 fires, and court documents have laid out a timeline of the crime that has long been subject to speculation and theories. “This does bring some closure to it,” said Gulick, who is now Vail’s fire chief. “You had kind of an unusual, uneasy feeling about why this happened and who could do this to you.” The 1998 fires burned down Two Elk Restaurant and several other buildings on Vail Mountain and caused $24 million in damage. The Vail Fire Department’s job was to extinguish the fires, but Gulick and his colleagues had hypotheses about how the mysterious crime happened, he said.
Patterson appointed to state commission
http://www.montrosepress.com/articles/2007/05/09/local_news/2.txt
The Western Slope now has a voice on the state Solid and Hazardous Waste Commission — and it's direct from Montrose. Bill Patterson, Montrose County commissioner, pilot and businessman, was confirmed with the waste commission by the Colorado Senate Friday. "Montrose County has some significant solid waste and hazardous waste problems," Patterson said Tuesday. "This gives me an opportunity to make sure any regulations that are imposed are there for the safety of the citizens. I'm the only Western Colorado representative on the solid waste commission."
Peru mine to reopen after protests
http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_5858552
Denver-based Newmont Mining Corp. prepared Wednesday to reopen part of its Peruvian gold mine, one of the world's largest, after protesters ended their occupation of the property. Local residents demanding more jobs staged a demonstration Tuesday at the La Quinua deposit at the Yanacocha mine in northwest Peru, disrupting workers' access for two days. The protesters agreed to leave late Wednesday after Newmont said it will hold talks with the group at an unspecified later date. The closed deposit accounts for about half of Yanacocha's annual output. Newmont hoped to reopen the property today, said spokesman Omar Jabara. "As production dips, there's less work for everybody," Jabara said. "We shut the pit to ensure our workers' safety, but the trespassers now are off-site, and we're in the process of bringing things back to normal."
Mine waste cleanup gets thumbs-up
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20070509/NEWS/105090090
A controversial plan to move several thousand cubic yards of tainted mine waste to a managed storage site in French Gulch got a conditional thumbs-up from the town council Tuesday. Several mine waste piles on the national forest Claimjumper parcel - some with concentrations of lead as high as five percent - will be removed this summer and piled atop similarly polluted material near the abandoned Wellington-Oro mine, then capped, re-vegetated and monitored. In their current location, next to the Claimjumper condos, the piles have been deemed a direct health risk, especially for any children playing outside. The main threat is through ingestion, EPA toxicologist Susan Griffin said at the council meeting.
Public invited to comment on the BLM and Forest Service draft maps
http://www.montrosepress.com/articles/2007/05/09/local_news/5.txt
The Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management invite interested citizens to attend four scheduled meetings to review draft maps of the preliminary proposed action for the transportation system on BLM and Forest Service Public lands in the Gunnison area. A Powerpoint presentation on the travel analysis process will begin at 5:45 p.m. The public will then have an opportunity to review and comment on the maps in small groups between 6:30 and 8 p.m. Draft maps for the all areas will be available for review; however, maps of public lands in the vicinity of meeting locations will be emphasized.
Aspen Ski Co. fights climate change by changing minds
http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2007/may/10/green_sense_humor/
Auden Schendler managed a minor miracle at the Steamboat Grand on Wednesday night. He didn’t succeed in reversing global climate change. But he did keep a Steamboat Springs audience chuckling while speaking on the subject of “Implementing Sustainable Business Practices in the Real World.” “What a cool time to be alive,” Schendler told an audience attending Economic Summit 2007. “The challenges are remarkable. The solutions are believable. We should at least have fun.” Schendler is the director of environmental affairs at the Aspen Skiing Co.
SLV well owners face new rule on metering
http://pueblochieftain.com/metro/1178806647/8
A new rule for well owners in the San Luis Valley could pose penalties or court action if they fail to meter their use. In March, the division office for the state engineer instituted the rule, which would require wells decreed for 50 gallons or more per minute to have meters installed or be deactivated. Corey DeAngelis, chief of the division's water measurement branch, estimated that nearly 80 percent of the valley's 6,000 well users were in compliance. Although many of the well permits issued by the engineer's office since the early 1970s have required a flow meter, DeAngelis said the engineer's office had never imposed guidelines or enforcement action in the valley.
Developer hopes to build rec corridor
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5529156,00.html
A residential developer is working on a land exchange with a home builder to create a recreational corridor linking parks in Lakewood's Rooney Valley. The Canada-based developer, Carma Colorado, is working with Richmond Homes to acquire five acres that would link Forsberg Park with Coyote Gulch Park to the southeast, said Ken Parks, a Carma spokesman. If Richmond Homes and Lakewood officials approve the offer, Carma will donate the corridor to the city for open space, said Mike Partheymuller, Carma vice president.
Opinion
Griego: Hispanic Republican keeps stirring the pot
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_5529218,00.html
A recent squall has developed within a small circle of Hispanic Republicans, a subset of which has been consumed by a single question: Why won't Gil Cisneros just keep quiet? The question is not phrased in this blunt way. It would not do to accuse a man of lack of tact in his communications with elected Republicans by employing poor manners oneself. Especially not with a man of Cisneros' stature - founder and president of the Chamber of the Americas, newly elected chairman of the state chapter of the Republican National Hispanic Assembly, possessor of a resume in which both Presidents Reagan and Bush the First make an appearance. No, the question comes in the form of suggestions: You should tone it down. We need to be team players. The rumbling began within the past few weeks, coming from within a group of 300 people who receive Cisneros' frequent e-mail dispatches. By last week, it had grown loud enough that a Democratic friend of Cisneros' asked, half-jokingly: "Why are you trying to commit suicide, Gil?" Cisneros has blasted Republican politicians in Georgia and Utah with "a bad Republican is a bad Republican!" A fool, he pronounced a Utah county convention delegate who called illegal immigration a stealth weapon by which Satan plans to destroy the free world. Of course, no one sane would have defended that particular position, so Cisneros did not run into any flak until he disagreed with one of Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo's supporters who argued that the congressman was not anti-immigrant, but anti-illegal-immigrant.
Environment, education win during session
The session of the Colorado General Assembly that adjourned on Friday was one of accomplishment on several practical and pressing issues, and the success that lawmakers are enjoying is of a distinctly different flavor than the 2006 session. That there was a general election between the two sessions is of major significance as the Democratic-controlled Legislature now has a governor of the same party. But that is not to say that the two branches of government acted in lockstep. Instead, the bills that the Colorado Legislature passed - and that Gov. Bill Ritter has signed to date - were largely the result of the bipartisan negotiations that left most lawmakers comfortable with the outcomes, despite the high-profile battles that bookended the session. On balance, Colorado's people will benefit from the work of the 2007 legislative session, whether it is through reduced-cost prescription drugs, better-funded education, an increased emphasis on renewable-energy sources or more balanced regulation of gas and oil drilling.
Partisan influence taints election office
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5856425
In his campaign to become Colorado's secretary of state, Mike Coffman pledged to uphold the integrity of an office that had been diminished by partisan rulemaking under previous occupants. It was the right thing to say, and it's the right thing to do. Unfortunately, he hasn't practiced what he preached. Coffman misfired by hiring a political activist with a GOP consulting business as the state's elections technology manager. Now, Dan Kopelman, former president of Denver Metro Young Republicans, is being investigated after selling vote data to Republicans through a commercial website. The state auditor will launch a probe on the heels of a secretary of state investigation. Coffman has reassigned Kopelman from some, but not all, of his elections duty. He needs to do more. Coffman and Kopelman have been friends for more than a decade. Kopelman has worked on previous Coffman campaigns, and he was awarded a job in the state treasurer's office under Coffman.
Conserve to fight gas prices
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5856427
Gasoline prices are at an all-time high in Colorado, hitting an average of $3.09 per gallon on Monday for regular. As for premium, we can only echo J.P. Morgan's crack about the price of a yacht - if you have to ask, you can't afford it. Analysts say part of the reason Colorado prices are so high is due to a fire at a Texas refinery that supplies 17 percent of the state's gasoline. But nationwide prices weren't much better - $3.05 for regular, just shy of the record $3.07 reached in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina. Unfortunately, American consumers aren't getting anything in return for these higher prices, which are simply fattening the profits of oil companies and crude oil producers. That's because - unlike sales taxes which automatically keep pace with price increases - motor fuel taxes are unit taxes. Colorado collects 22 cents on every gallon of gasoline sold and 20.5 cents on diesel fuel. The federal government taxes gasoline at 18.4 cents per gallon and diesel at 24.4. Because these levies don't keep up with inflation, Colorado's fuel tax has lost half its purchasing power since it was last raised in 1991.
Carman: Emissions registry is a good start
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_5857787
As I walked past another enormous new faux Tuscan villa going up in Denver with a three-car garage, more square footage than your average Milan apartment building and three gigantic air conditioners ready to roar into action this summer, I wondered whether Coloradans would ever do more than pay lip service to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions. Given the view from the sidewalk, the answer seems obvious: no. Then again, there are signs that something fundamental has changed, even if most Colorado homebuilders - hellbent on following the path of the nearly bankrupt devil-may-care American auto industry - have failed to notice. People are genuinely worried about the future. The threat of climate change is too big to ignore.
Shira: All Colorado children deserve immunizations
http://www.denverpost.com/opinionheadlines/ci_5856434
The recent observance of National Infant Immunization Week provided Colorado opportunities for both celebration and introspection. Celebration because the immunization status of our children has significantly improved over the past several years. Immunization rates for children under the age of 3 have risen from a low of 56 percent in 2001 to the current level of 78 percent. There are still, however, many children who are incompletely immunized and distinctly susceptible to vaccine-preventable diseases in our cities and rural communities. Until we reach those children and have achieved and sustained a childhood immunization rate of at least 90 percent, we cannot declare victory over vaccine- preventable diseases.
Sundin: The great ethanol hoax
http://postindependent.com/article/20070510/COLUMNISTS/105100044
Senator James Imhofe of Oklahoma has called global warming the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on the American people. He's wrong - the Iraq War is the greatest hoax. But in second place is the hype over corn-based ethanol, touting it as a "green" fuel, because it is claimed to produce less carbon dioxide than other fuels.
Harsanyi: Ignorance of Darfur inexcusable
http://www.denverpost.com/headlines/ci_5858541
Rachel Amaru's yard sign reads: "Darfur: End the Genocide." And this innocuous statement has generated a minor controversy in the peace-loving town of Boulder. Turns out, Amaru's homeowners association says the sign violates covenants banning ... well, signs. Amaru contends that she was unaware of any rule prohibiting signs. After all, she had her "Kerry" yard sign out during the last presidential election. She's also displayed Israeli flags in the past. She assumed those exhibits would incite more controversy than a sign advocating an end to genocide in northern Africa.
RELATED: Sign of the climes: Darfur placard's mission accomplished
http://dailycamera.com/news/2007/may/10/sign-of-the-climes/
Downtown's future
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/editorials/article/0,2777,DRMN_23964_5529217,00.html
So how is this plan different? Two words - transit and pedestrians. In 1986, no one foresaw FasTracks, which will reshape how people get around the city and its suburbs as it is built out over the next decade. Transit riders are usually pedestrians for a while after they get off the train or the bus, and they want something more interesting to look at than parking lots. The plan wants to encourage more mixed-use development that includes street-level retail.
Littwin: Fight may come at home, but hasn't come from Iraq
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/news_columnists/article/0,1299,DRMN_86_5529220,00.html
John McCain says the reason we have to keep up the endless fight in Iraq is that if we don't, the terrorists will "follow us home." It's the old fight-them-there-so-we- don't-have-to-fight-them- at-home theory of warfare. I guess that could be a valid theory under the right circumstances. But if the arrests in the Fort Dix terror case are any indication, this isn't remotely that circumstance. You see, they're already here, whoever they are.
RELATED: Carlisle: 18 months early, the candidates take the stage
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20070509/COLUMNS/105090066
Election
Richardson Interviews for Top Job
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902479.html
If running for president is nothing more than an extended job interview, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D) may well have a jump on the field. Richardson is set to launch an ad today in Iowa that takes the form of a mock job interview. In it, an interviewer runs through Richardson's resume -- member of Congress, U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, secretary of energy in the Clinton administration, diplomat, governor -- before biting into a sandwich and asking: "What makes you think you can be president?"
Edwards: No compromise on Iraq funds
Democratic presidential contender John Edwards chided his party's congressional leadership Wednesday for entertaining compromise with the White House on a new military funding measure, saying they should stand firm in tying dollars to a timetable for U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq. The former North Carolina senator said the Bush administration's previous veto of an Iraq war funding measure and the threatened veto of the new proposal for short-term war funding shows the White House is not interested in negotiating an end to the war.
Bill Clinton Ponders a Role as First Gentleman
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/politics/10clinton.html
Bill Clinton plans to be a first gentleman for the 21st century: a post-modern, post-ego presidential spouse who does not earn an income of his own, but rather pays the bills from family savings and does what he can to help the missus down in the Oval Office.
Romney and Sharpton Clash Over Mormonism
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902359.html
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney and civil rights activist Al Sharpton traded angry, racially charged accusations yesterday, with Romney alleging that Sharpton had uttered "bigoted" comments about Mormonism. On the campaign trail in Iowa, Romney was asked about Sharpton's comment during a debate Monday that "those of us who believe in God" will defeat Romney. The former Massachusetts governor told reporters that such a comment "shows that bigotry still exists in some corners." Sharpton angrily denied Romney's charge in a telephone interview yesterday, and he accused Romney of stoking a verbal war with him to gain support among conservatives.
RELATED: Romney sharply responds to Sharpton comments on his belief in God
RELATED: Romney's wife made contribution to Planned Parenthood
Fred Thompson sharpens strategy
http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/2007-05-09-thompson-speech_N.htm
Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson acknowledges his coming-out speech in California last weekend didn't live up to expectations, advisers say, and he is planning a tighter and sharper message dubbed "Stump Speech 2.0" for a Saturday night event to be attended by key conservative leaders. Friends working on the speech say it will include more of a call to arms than the entertaining but unfocused after-dinner address Thompson gave to an eagerly expectant audience Friday night at the Balboa Bay Club and Resort in Newport Beach, Calif. Saturday's event will be a crucial audition in Northern Virginia, where Thompson will be the keynote speaker at a dinner of the Council for National Policy, an organization of conservative leaders. Organizers say he will be introduced by Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention, who is among the most important voices of evangelical Christians.
Second-tier candidates on both sides inspire passion among their few supporters
Not everybody loves a winner. Some save their passion for the underdog. The presidential candidate whose last name isn't Clinton or Giuliani treks through early voting states like New Hampshire promoting ideas despite crushing poll numbers and sluggish fundraising. These contenders, nearly a dozen, soldier on with encouragement from small knots of supporters for whom their message generates a special resonance. Strong backers of the more improbable candidates readily acknowledge their favorite stands zero chance of winning New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary or anything beyond. "No, he doesn't have a shot," Democratic activist Ben Clifford said of Dennis Kucinich, the Ohio congressman who barely registers in polls in his second White House bid. "But every time he comes, it invigorates me. He talks about the issues that are most important."
As Mayor Says No to ’08 Bid, Revived Web Site Fuels Skeptics
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/politics/10mayor.html
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg began his day saying he was not interested in running for president, but he ended it with a signal, albeit virtual, that he is still considering it. Late yesterday afternoon, Mr. Bloomberg announced that he was dusting off his old campaign Web site, www.mikebloomberg.com, to promote his work, public and private, on the issues he cares about.
Ex-generals fault GOP lawmakers
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/05/10/ex_generals_fault_gop_lawmakers/
Three retired generals challenged a dozen members of Congress in a new ad campaign yesterday, saying the politicians can't expect to win reelection if they support President Bush's policies in Iraq. "I am outraged, as are the majority of Americans. I'm a lifelong Republican, but it's past time for change," retired Major General John Batiste told reporters. "Our strategy in Iraq today is more of the same, a slow grind to nowhere which totally ignores the reality of Iraq and the lessons of history," he said. Batiste and Paul Eaton, also a retired major general, are featured in the ads by VoteVets.org. They challenge the president's argument that he listens to his commanders on the ground in Iraq and say the president's Iraq policies endanger US security.
Effective and Ethical Government
GOP Leader Losing Patience With Iraqi Government
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902145.html
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) condemned the Iraqi government for its failure to resolve security and political problems more expeditiously and predicted that, unless the current troop surge succeeds, U.S. policy will be changed by year's end either by President Bush or congressional action. McConnell, in an interview for washingtonpost.com's PostTalk program today, offered a harsh assessment of the Iraqi government's performance and made clear that neither the American people nor elected officials have unlimited patience for the U.S. commitment there.
Number of Fired Prosecutors Grows
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902718.html
The former U.S. attorney in Kansas City, Mo., Todd P. Graves, said yesterday that he was asked to step down from his job by a senior Justice Department official in January 2006, months before eight other federal prosecutors would be fired by the Bush administration. Graves said he was told simply that he should resign to "give another person a chance." He said he did not oppose the department's request, because he had already been planning to return to private practice. He did appeal to Missouri's senior senator to try to persuade the White House to allow him to remain long enough to prosecute a final, important case -- involving the slaying of a pregnant woman and kidnapping of her 8-month fetus. Justice officials rejected the request.
RELATED: Justice probe has a new target
RELATED: Gonzales to House: Focus on crime, not firings
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-05-09-gonzales-prosecutors_N.htm
RELATED: Gonzales Is Said to Seem Confident He Will Stay
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/washington/10gonzales.html?ref=washington
Nancy Pelosi speaks about being a mom
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-05-09-pelosi-mothers-day_N.htm
In her office decorated with bowls of yellow roses this week, the role House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wanted to brag about wasn't the one she has been playing to hammer out terms of Iraq war funding. Instead, she was dwelling on an accomplishment she insists is even more crucial to the nation's future: "There is no more important responsibility than raising a family," Pelosi said. Mother's Day this Sunday is historic here because it's the first time a top congressional leader has been one of the honorees. As speaker of the House, Pelosi is also the first woman ever to come so close to the presidency, second in the constitutional line of succession. But Pelosi wants no one to forget that she started out in more traditional women's work.
Civil Liberties and Equality
CIA Cited for Not Disclosing Covert Action
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902396.html
The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence said yesterday that the CIA violated the law last year when it failed to inform the panel of "a significant covert action activity." "Despite agency explanations that the failure was inadvertent, the committee is deeply troubled over the fact that such an oversight could occur, whether intentionally or inadvertent," the panel said in its report on the fiscal 2008 intelligence authorization bill released late yesterday. An intelligence official said yesterday that he could not discuss the covert action. He said that after CIA Director Michael V. Hayden took his post in May 2006 and learned about the program and that Congress had not been fully briefed, "the agency itself took the issue to the Hill [and] corrected what was an inadvertent oversight." The committee gave no hint of what the covert activity involved. It disclosed the issue in support of provisions it placed in the bill that would require the CIA inspector general to conduct audits of each covert action program at least once every three years and to submit a report on the findings to both the House and Senate intelligence panels.
Katrina Hit Blacks Harder Than Whites, Study Finds
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902556.html
The catastrophe of Hurricane Katrina has cost countless people here their homes, their jobs or their health. But according to a survey being released Thursday regarding daily life in the flood-ravaged city, the burden has fallen far heavier on blacks than on whites. The proportion of black respondents who described their lives as "disrupted" more than a year after the storm (59 percent) was about double that of whites who said the same (29 percent).
DEA's mocking photo of suspect backfires
http://www.denverpost.com/nationworld/ci_5859251
A Raleigh- based Drug Enforcement Administration agent had a Latino suspect put on a sombrero and hold a Mexican flag and then took his picture, the suspect's attorney said. The defense attorney, Jeff Cutler, said a prosecutor and law enforcement officers confirmed the existence of the 2005 photograph of Jorge Hernandez-Villalvazo during a pretrial meeting last week. Within minutes, the prosecutor offered a plea deal, avoiding a trial and freeing Hernandez- Villalvazo. Cutler said the disclosure of the photo "was the driving force behind that plea deal." Hernandez-Villalvazo left the Wake County jail Friday two years after his initial arrest on a charge of conspiring to traffick cocaine.
Ex-cop indicted in civil rights era death
An Alabama grand jury indicted a former state trooper on Wednesday in the fatal 1965 shooting of a black civil rights activist, a death that was a catalyst for the historic march from Selma to Montgomery. Jimmie Lee Jackson, 26, a church deacon, died as a result of two gunshot wounds during a voter registration march in Marion, Ala. Witnesses have said he was protecting his mother and grandfather from state troopers with billy clubs. Former trooper James Bonard Fowler, now 73, said he fired his gun in self-defense after a struggle in which Jackson reached for Fowler's holster. The indictment of Fowler is the latest in a string of prosecutions of civil rights era crimes. It promises to be one of the most interesting: George Beck, the attorney who successfully prosecuted Klansman Robert Chambliss in 1977 for the 1963 Birmingham church bombings, will defend Fowler. The state's case is led by Michael Jackson, the first black district attorney from the five-county area.
RELATED: Indictment in ’65 Killing That Inspired March
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/us/10alabama.html?ref=us
Foreign Policy
Cheney Pushes Iraqis for Quick Action
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902460.html
Vice President Cheney flew to Baghdad on Wednesday to urge top Iraqi officials to move as quickly as possible toward a political reconciliation between Sunni and Shiite factions, whose bitter divisions underlie much of the country's violence. Cheney, in an unannounced visit to the well-guarded Green Zone, met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, President Jalal Talabani and other leading Iraqi government and military officials.
RELATED: Cheney visits Iraq to press for progress
Iraqi lawmakers' vacation plans rile Republicans
The holiday plans of foreign lawmakers are not normally a topic of intense political interest in Washington. But in a town where the president is known for extended stays at his Texas ranch and Congress shuns longer workweeks, the vacation schedule of lawmakers in Baghdad has suddenly and incongruously moved to the top of the agenda. At issue is whether the Iraqi parliament will take its regular summer break, a two-month vacation scheduled to begin July 1. If it does, Republican lawmakers have warned that the Iraqis' recess could cost President Bush support from within his own party at a crucial moment in the war.
Embassy staff to don safety gear in Green Zone
http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2007/05/10/embassy_staff_to_don_safety_gear_in_green_zone/
A sharp increase in mortar attacks on the Green Zone -- the onetime oasis of security in Iraq's turbulent capital -- has prompted the US Embassy to issue a strict new order telling all employees to wear flak vests and helmets while in unprotected buildings or when they are traveling substantial distances. The order has created a siege mentality among US staff inside the Green Zone following a recent suicide attack on parliament. It has also led to new fears about long-term safety in a place where the US government is building a massive and expensive embassy.
Afghans Say U.S. Airstrikes Kill 21 Civilians
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902604.html
Airstrikes called in by U.S. Special Forces soldiers fighting insurgents in southern Afghanistan killed at least 21 civilians, officials said Wednesday. One soldier with the U.S.-led coalition was also killed. Gov. Assadullah Wafa of Helmand province said Taliban fighters sought shelter in villagers' homes during the fighting in the Sangin district Tuesday evening. Subsequent airstrikes killed 21 civilians, including several women and children, he said.
U.S., Iran Forge Bonds in Small Steps
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902154.html
At a time of rising tensions between Tehran and Washington -- and after 27 years without diplomatic relations since the Iran hostage crisis -- the Bush administration has attempted to break the ice with a series of cultural and artistic exchanges. The $5 million program began with little fanfare last year with a series of visits by Iranian medical doctors and researchers and a trip to Iran by the U.S. wrestling team to compete in matches before 3,000 fans. State Department officials said they have received no reports that previous visitors had problems upon returning to Iran, making it easier to recruit Iranian citizens for future visits. All told, U.S. officials hope to bring about 100 Iranians to the United States by the fall.
U.S. Faults Detention By Iran of Dual Citizens
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050901677.html
The State Department yesterday sharply criticized Iran's detention of Washington scholar Haleh Esfandiari and journalist Parnaz Azima and acknowledged a growing problem with Tehran over its actions against U.S. and dual U.S.-Iranian citizens. "We want to see them returned back to their families," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack. "These two women are an academic on the one hand, a journalist on the other. These people don't pose any threat to the Iranian regime."
RELATED: Iranian-American being held in prison
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-05-09-iranian-american_N.htm
Somali Police Seizing Veils
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/world/africa/10somalia.html
Security forces here are seizing Muslim women’s veils to stop Islamist insurgents from disguising themselves for attacks, officials and witnesses said Wednesday. The forces are trying to secure the capital after a surge of fighting. “Every policeman and government soldier has orders to confiscate veils from veiled women,” said a senior police officer, Ali Nur. He said various recent attacks had been carried out by people in disguise.
Putin links U.S. policies to Nazis
Russian President Vladimir Putin obliquely compared the foreign policy of the United States to the Third Reich in a speech Wednesday commemorating the 62nd anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany, apparently in an escalation of anti-American talk within the Russian government. The comments were the latest in a series of sharply worded Russian criticisms of the foreign policy of the United States -- on Iraq, missile defense, NATO expansion and, more broadly, U.S. unilateralism in foreign affairs. Many Russians say the sharper edge reflects a frustration that Russia's views, in particular opposition to NATO expansion, have been ignored in the West. Outside Russia, however, many detected in the new tone a return to Cold War-style antagonism, emboldened by oil wealth. Putin's analogy was a small part of a larger speech, otherwise unambiguously congratulating Russian veterans of World War II, known here as the Great Patriotic War. Putin spoke from a podium in front of Lenin's mausoleum on Red Square before troops mustered for a military parade.
Sailing Isn't So Smooth For Sarkozy
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902622.html
Nicolas Sarkozy won the French presidency Sunday, told his countrymen to start working harder, then promptly took his family for a cruise on a billionaire buddy's 200-foot yacht off the coast of Malta in the Mediterranean Sea. Thus the first scandal of the Sarkozy presidency was born. Political opponents called the timing and the opulence of the vacation "indecent." Wednesday's newspapers carried grainy front-page photographs of President-elect Sarkozy in saffron shorts with his 10-year-old son, Louis, standing on the deck of what one headline dubbed "the floating palace." "I have no intention of apologizing," a defiant Sarkozy, 52, told a pool of French journalists Wednesday morning after jogging on a small island off the Malta coast. "I'll be president of the republic in eight days. In theory I could have rested for eight days, but I'll only take two and one-half. No one can argue with that."
For Blair, a Legacy Overshadowed
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902717.html
After a decade in office, longer than any British leader in a century except Margaret Thatcher, Blair is widely expected to announce Thursday that he will step down in early July. While he led his Labor Party to three national election victories, resuscitated the British economy and helped bring peace to Northern Ireland, Kosovo and Sierra Leone, many analysts here agree that the charismatic prime minister will be remembered mainly for his shoulder-to-shoulder stand with Bush on Iraq. "When he came in, it was 'education, education, education,' but his legacy is 'Iraq, Iraq, Iraq,' " said Christopher Meyer, British ambassador to the United States from 1997 to 2003.
RELATED: British Prime Minister Tony Blair announces resignation
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-05-09-britain-blair_N.htm
German raids target suspected G-8 protesters
Hundreds of German police used antiterrorism laws yesterday to raid the offices and apartments of activists they suspect may disrupt next month's Group of Eight summit with firebombings and other attacks. Security officials also announced tighter border controls ahead of the June 6-8 summit in the northern resort town of Heiligendamm. Some 900 federal and local police officers in Berlin and other cities searched about 40 offices and apartments used by left-wing activists and groups opposed to globalization , they said. Prosecutors said they are investigating more than 18 people suspected of organizing a group that plans to carry out firebombings and other violence to hinder the summit of world leaders.
Immigration
Reid Forces New Senate Debate on Immigration
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902492.html
With bipartisan talks on immigration near a standstill, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) moved yesterday to bring last year's broad overhaul of immigration laws back to the floor of the Senate next week, appealing to President Bush to save what could be his last hope for a major second-term domestic achievement. The legislation -- which couples a border security crackdown with a guest-worker program and new avenues for undocumented immigrants to work legally in the country -- passed the Senate a year ago this month with the support of 62 members, 23 of them Republican, only to die in the House. With Democrats now in control of Congress and with the president eager for an accomplishment, immigrant rights groups believe the prospects for a final deal are far better this year. But Senate Republicans, even those who helped craft last year's bill, say the political environment has shifted decisively against that measure and toward a tougher approach.
RELATED: Immigration deal likely in jeopardy
House Bill Would Admit More Iraqi Refugees
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902392.html
House Democrats plan to introduce a bill this morning that would increase by at least 20,000 the number of Iraqi refugees eligible for resettlement in the United States in 2007 and 2008. It would also admit 15,000 "special immigrant status" Iraqis and their families for each of the next four years. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) will hold a news conference with Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Iraq's ambassador to Washington, Samir Sumaidaie, to explain the legislation, the "Responsibility to Iraqi Refugees Act." They will be joined by a West Point graduate who served in Iraq and representatives of the International Rescue Committee, Amnesty International and the Church World Service.
Drop in illegal crossings tied to slow economy, not troops, experts say
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-05-09-illegal-crossings_N.htm
It seems like simple cause and effect: Six thousand National Guard soldiers descend on the U.S.-Mexico border and apprehensions of undocumented immigrants drop by 27% in a year. But economists say the main factor driving down illegal immigration is a slowing economy, especially in the construction industry, which employs many undocumented workers. Security plays a lesser role. Dawn McLaren, a research economist at Arizona State University, has tracked the correlation precisely. She has studied the relationship between the economy and Border Patrol apprehensions for years. When the U.S. economy is strong, she found, apprehensions tend to go up. When the economy takes a nosedive, so do Border Patrol apprehensions. Other economists agree.
Health Care and Public Safety
President Offers 'Prayers and Concerns' to Kansas Town
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050901054.html
President Bush turned the corner Wednesday afternoon at Lincoln and Bay streets in what until last week had been a tidy residential neighborhood of one-story Cape Cod-style houses. He headed toward what had been the home of Kaye and Dave Hardinger, now a gutted red-brick shell. In the front yard, a giant crane stood, an American flag flying atop it. The family's camper was wrapped around a tree in the back yard. A toolbox had settled upside down in another tree. Bush stopped for a few minutes to tell the Hardingers how sorry he was for their losses. Kaye Hardinger said she told the president she wanted to invite him in for coffee, "but I didn't have time to dust."
RELATED: Bush Tours Tornado-Ravaged Town in Kansas and Promises Governor Help in Rebuilding
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/washington/10bush.html?ref=washington
Senate Approves Bill On Drug Monitoring
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902383.html
The Food and Drug Administration would have to establish new systems to monitor the safety of medicines after they hit the market and for the first time could fine drugmakers for false or misleading advertising under a bill approved yesterday by the Senate. The provisions are part of a major bill to reauthorize the current system that charges drugmakers hundreds of millions of dollars in fees each year to pay for speeded-up reviews of prospective new drugs. The government's authority to levy those fees will expire Sept. 30 unless Congress acts before then. The House has not yet taken up similar legislation.
RELATED: Senate passes sweeping drug-safety bill
RELATED: Psychiatrists, Children and Drug Industry’s Role
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/health/10psyche.html
Food czar: Inspections flawed, lack resources
The federal government's new "food czar" conceded during a hearing Wednesday that the government lacks the resources to do comprehensive investigations and must repair its flawed food safety inspection. The recent contamination of pet food that led to the deaths of cats and dogs was seen by some skeptical members of Congress as sounding a broader alarm for food consumed by humans. David Acheson, the assistant Food and Drug Administration Commissioner for food protection, tried to assure lawmakers that the food supply was safe, yet he acknowledged that the FDA has not collected all the evidence of possible food contamination in recent cases and called for more resources to police the rising amounts of imported food. Currently, the FDA inspects only about 1 percent of the $60 billion in food imported annually to the U.S.
RELATED: Pet food probe: Who was watching suppliers?
http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/2007-05-10-pet-food-cover-usat_N.htm
Bush Changes Continuity Plan
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902719.html
President Bush issued a formal national security directive yesterday ordering agencies to prepare contingency plans for a surprise, "decapitating" attack on the federal government, and assigned responsibility for coordinating such plans to the White House. The prospect of a nuclear bomb being detonated in Washington without warning, whether smuggled in by terrorists or a foreign government, has been cited by many security analysts as a rising concern since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The order makes explicit that the focus of federal worst-case planning involves a covert nuclear attack against the nation's capital, in contrast with Cold War assumptions that a long-range strike would be preceded by a notice of minutes or hours as missiles were fueled and launched.
Medicare's $869 Air Mattress Bill
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902355.html
The schemes center on what prosecutors call the nation's largest hot spot for health-care malfeasance: the southern district of Florida. Over the past several weeks, federal agents visited dozens of companies there that charged Medicare for prosthetic limbs, costly AIDS drugs, air mattresses and urinary collection bags. Few if any of the products were purchased or delivered to patients in need. Instead, the cash went into the pockets of company operators -- one purchased a Rolls Royce Phantom valued at more than $200,000, law enforcement officials said. Many of the office headquarters are little more than barren storage closets.
Virus Spread by Oral Sex Is Linked to Throat Cancer
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902322.html
The sexually transmitted virus that causes cervical cancer also sharply increases the risk of certain types of throat cancer among people infected through oral sex, according to a study being published today. The study, involving 100 people with throat cancer and 200 without it, found that those infected with the human papillomavirus were 32 times as likely to develop one form of oral cancer than those free of the virus. Although previous research had indicated HPV caused oral cancer, the new study is the first to definitively establish the link, researchers said.
RELATED: Study casts new doubts on HPV vaccine
http://www.latimes.com/news/science/la-sci-hpv10may10,0,1095666.story?coll=la-home-center
Hospital says it broke law in sterilizing disabled girl
A hospital acknowledged breaking state law when doctors performed a hysterectomy on a severely developmentally disabled girl whose growth was medically stunted to make caring for her easier for her parents. Sterilization surgeries must not be performed on children without a court order, Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center acknowledged this week after an investigation by Washington Protection and Advocacy System. The hospital agreed to appoint "someone with a disability rights perspective" to its ethics committee.
Crime and Penal Reform
Convicted cop-killer is executed
A man convicted of killing a Memphis police officer in 1981 was executed early Wednesday after a court rejected defense pleas for more time to examine newly revised execution protocols. Philip Workman, 53, whose execution had been delayed five times, became Tennessee's third person executed by lethal injection since 2000.
Economy
Sides Get Closer to A Deal On Trade
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902487.html
The Bush administration and Democratic leaders have struck a compromise that would insert stricter labor rules into future trade treaties, potentially lending fresh momentum to the global effort to promote free trade, sources briefed on the talks said yesterday. The agreement would remove the primary obstacle to congressional approval of pending trade deals with Peru and Panama, while enhancing prospects for a more controversial agreement with Colombia, the sources said. It generates momentum for the possible revival of the long-stalled Doha round of trade talks, aimed at aiding poor countries by rolling back tariffs worldwide.
Finishing a Year of 5.25 Percent
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050900202.html
Federal Reserve policymakers held short-term interest rates steady yesterday, saying they remain more concerned about high inflation than tepid economic growth. The Fed's top policymaking committee, in a statement released after its meeting, noted that the economic expansion lost steam earlier this year and that the housing market is still in the dumps. However, the group said it believes the economy will be fine in coming months, continuing to grow at a moderate rate.
RELATED: Fed Gives No Signal of Rate Shift
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/business/10fed.html?ref=business
S&P 500 edges toward record of its own
http://www.usatoday.com/money/markets/2007-05-09-sandp-usat_N.htm
Seven years after hitting its all-time high, the S&P 500, the large-company stock index that has been overshadowed by the blue-chip Dow's 21 record closes this year, is just 15 points away from posting a record of its own. While S&P 1527.46 doesn't carry the cachet of Dow 13,000, it is an important milestone that Wall Street is eyeing closely. The reason: 1527.46 is the record close the Standard & Poor's 500 set back on March 24, 2000, before succumbing to a multiyear bear market that wiped out nearly 50% of its value. After rising 4.86 points to 1512.58 Wednesday, the benchmark index that accounts for 75% of the total value of the U.S. stock market, is 1% away from rewriting the record books.
Morgan Stanley Will Pay $8 Million to Settle Fraud Case
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/business/10morgan.html
Morgan Stanley agreed Wednesday to pay nearly $8 million to settle federal fraud charges stemming from its reported failure to get retail stock investors the best prices possible on more than a million over-the-counter transactions. Over roughly three years, the Securities and Exchange Commission said Wednesday in announcing the settlement, Morgan Stanley’s automated trading system delayed the execution of orders and altered transaction prices to the company’s financial benefit without telling investors.
SEC Is Urged To Pursue Banks In Enron Fraud
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902306.html
A coalition of consumer groups and union leaders yesterday urged securities regulators to throw their weight behind investors suing major banks for their role in the devastating Enron fraud. Activists and former shareholders in the Houston energy trading company implored the Securities and Exchange Commission to file court briefs supporting their legal position in an effort to revive a case against such banks as Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse First Boston and Barclays. "They conspired together to steal the money just like a thief breaking into my house," said Buddy Schwartz, a retired maintenance worker who said he lost thousands of dollars when Enron plummeted into bankruptcy 5 1/2 years ago.
Europeans Wince, Wait For Wolfowitz Saga to End
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902393.html
As the world watches the Washington drama of World Bank chief Paul D. Wolfowitz fighting for his job, the audience in Europe has a plea: Can someone lower the curtain? "This is a story that has gone on for too long," said a senior European Union diplomat in Brussels, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the political sensitivity of the issue. "The European Union, with its member states and institutions, is the biggest donor of humanitarian aid in the world, and we work very closely with the World Bank, and we don't think this crisis at the top can be of any help. On the contrary, it is undermining the bank." But while European governments would prefer that Wolfowitz leave, they are intent on avoiding a public collision with the Bush administration over the issue, which means they are unlikely to authorize their World Bank representatives to vote to oust him, diplomats said in recent interviews.
RELATED: Some Leeway for Wolfowitz, Who Gets a Good Word From Rice
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/washington/10wolfowitz.html
Housing and Homelessness
Mortgage applications rise for third straight week
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2007-05-09-mortgage-apps_N.htm
Mortgage applications rose for the third straight week, driven by demand for both purchases and refinancings, an industry trade group said Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted applications index increased 3.6% in the week ended May 4 to 680.7, its highest level since 690.5 in the week ended March 9. Average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage rates, excluding fees, fell 0.04 percentage points to 6.10%, the lowest since they hit 6.04% in the March 23 week. Long-term borrowing costs have fallen about half a percentage point from a year ago, according to the trade group.
Housing pain still not easing up on builder Toll Brothers
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/housing/2007-05-09-toll-warns_N.htm
Luxury home builder Toll Brothers (TOL) said Wednesday that it expects to report lower quarterly revenue and warned that its profit would fall short of its own forecasts, as the protracted downturn in the housing market worsened. Fiscal second-quarter homebuilding revenue fell 19% to about $1.17 billion for the period ended April 30, according to preliminary results. The company is slated to release its official results on May 24.
Media
For Clues to a Murdoch-Owned Journal, Look to London
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902394.html
Which Rupert Murdoch wants to buy the Wall Street Journal? Is it the Murdoch who promised journalistic independence to a former editor of the Times of London, only to tell him later -- the editor wrote -- that such assurances "aren't worth the paper they're written on"? Or is it the Murdoch who has spent freely to expand the money-losing Times and loves to mix it up with the newshounds there, peppering them with questions as he "exercises his curiosity" about geopolitics, says the paper's current editor? The question is urgent among reporters and editors at the Journal -- who are at a "high level of alarm," says one -- and probably among some American news consumers as well. They fear that Murdoch's News Corp. will acquire the Journal with its unsolicited, maybe-too-high-to-turn-down $5 billion bid and then destroy it. They fear he will extend the Journal's conservative editorial-page ideology into the paper's news stories, turning the Journal into a mouthpiece for Murdoch's politics and a cudgel with which to beat his enemies.
RELATED: SEC regulator to look into unusual Dow trades
http://www.usatoday.com/money/markets/2007-05-09-dow-jones-usat_N.htm
RELATED: Prominent in Hong Kong and, Perhaps, in the Dow Jones Inquiry
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/business/media/10dow.html?ref=business
BBC reporter's purported captors issue demands
An obscure Palestinian group claimed in a tape released Wednesday that it was holding BBC correspondent Alan Johnston and demanded as a condition of his release that the British government free a jailed Muslim cleric. If confirmed, the statement would be the first public demand made by kidnappers since Johnston was seized March 12 at gunpoint in Gaza City. The BBC said the tape includes a picture of his identification card but not one of Johnston himself. The recorded statement, by a group called Army of Islam, was provided to the Arabic-language television channel Al Jazeera, which passed it on to the BBC.
Chief Agrees to Resign From HBO After Arrest
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/arts/television/10hbo.html?ref=business
Time Warner announced last night that the chairman and chief executive of its Home Box Office unit, Chris Albrecht, had agreed to resign at the company’s request, three days after he was arrested and charged with assaulting a girlfriend in a Las Vegas parking lot.
Education
House Backs New Reins On Student Lenders
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050901871.html
The House voted overwhelmingly yesterday to bar student loan companies from offering perks and financial incentives to universities to drum up business, the first federal legislative response this year to mounting criticism of the $85 billion-a-year industry. The bipartisan bill, approved by a 413 to 3 vote, would increase federal regulation of student loan companies. The industry has come under scrutiny from federal and state investigators over its financial ties with schools and government officials. The measure drew support from advocates of students and from some key players in the loan industry -- a rare overlap of views for the interest groups.
RELATED: House Passes Ban on Gifts From Student Lenders
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/washington/10loans.html?ref=washington
Four Officials Profited From Publishers, Report Finds
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902384.html
Four officials who helped oversee a federal reading program for young students have pocketed significant sums of money from textbook publishers that profited from the $1 billion-a-year initiative, a Democratic congressional report disclosed yesterday. The report from the office of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.) offers fresh details on the extensive financial ties between publishers and officials who helped implement the Reading First program. Over the past several months, the program has faced numerous allegations of conflicts of interest and cronyism. Education Secretary Margaret Spellings is expected to face questions about the program, a key provision of the No Child Left Behind law, from a House oversight committee today. David Dunn, her chief of staff, said the department is reviewing the report's findings.
Military
Marine tells of civilians shot to death
A Marine squad leader who led an attack in Haditha, Iraq, that killed 24 civilians shot five men as they stood with their hands up and told comrades to lie about it, a Marine sergeant testified Wednesday. Sgt. Sanick P. Dela Cruz said that in the moments after a roadside bomb hit a Humvee in his convoy Nov. 19, 2005, killing a comrade, he saw five men standing by a white car with their hands interlocked behind their heads. The squad leader, Staff Sgt. Frank D. Wuterich, then fired about six to eight rounds at the men, Dela Cruz testified. "They were just standing, looking around, had hands up," Dela Cruz said. "Then I saw one of them drop in the middle. I didn't know what was going on, sir. Looked to my left, saw Staff Sgt. Wuterich shooting." Dela Cruz spoke at a preliminary hearing for Capt. Randy W. Stone, a Marine lawyer from Dunkirk, Md. Stone is accused along with three other officers of dereliction of duty for failing to investigate the deaths. Three enlisted Marines are charged with murder, including Wuterich. It is the biggest U.S. criminal case involving civilian deaths in the Iraq war.
RELATED: Marine Testifies to Urinating on Body
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/world/middleeast/10haditha.html
Gates sees a fall scenario for fewer troops
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Wednesday that if the current U.S. military strategy showed signs of success by autumn, the Pentagon may be able to reduce the number of U.S. forces in Iraq. In Senate testimony, Gates acknowledged that his position apparently contradicted comments by the No. 2 military commander in Iraq, Army Lt. Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, who has recommended that the troop buildup continue into 2008. "I think if we see some very positive progress and it looks like things are headed in the right direction, then that's the point at which I think we can begin to consider reducing some of these forces," Gates said. Gates said he opposed a new Democratic proposal to fund the war through July, and a White House spokesman said President Bush would veto such a measure.
Pentagon restricting testimony in Congress
The Pentagon has placed unprecedented restrictions on who can testify before Congress, reserving the right to bar lower-ranking officers, enlisted soldiers, and career bureaucrats from appearing before oversight committees or having their remarks transcribed, according to Defense Department documents.
Troops in Iraq get safer vehicle
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-05-09-gates-mrap_N.htm
The Pentagon will phase out its armored Humvees in Iraq and Afghanistan and send in vehicles that better withstand roadside bomb blasts, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday. Replacing the Humvee, the military's main troop-transport vehicle, will be the Mine Resistant Ambush Protected Vehicle, known as an MRAP. Military officials say the new vehicles provide twice as much protection against improvised explosive devices (IEDs), which cause 70% of all U.S. casualties in Iraq. Armored Humvees were "the best we had," Gates said. "Now we have something better, and we're going to get that to the field as best we can." No Marines had been killed in the 300 attacks on Marine MRAPs in Anbar province, USA TODAY reported on April 19. Last week, two Army soldiers were killed when a bomb struck their MRAP in Iraq.
House Panel Considers Cuts for Missile Defense
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/washington/10missile.html?ref=washington
The Bush administration’s proposal to construct two American missile defense bases in Europe has roiled relations with Russia and provoked sharp questioning even in NATO capitals, where critics ask: With the system still unproven and, under the best of circumstances, years from completion, why rush construction now?
Authorities: Ft. Dix plan 'in last stage'
Federal authorities said Wednesday that six Muslim men suspected of plotting to massacre U.S. soldiers at Ft. Dix were on the verge of carrying out the attack when they were arrested this week. "I think they were in the last stage of planning," U.S. Atty. Christopher Christie said. "They had training, they had maps and I think they were very close to moving on this.
Religion
Tough talk opens papal visit
Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Brazil on Wednesday, starting his first papal trip to Latin America with strong words against abortion, roiling a Catholic continent increasingly divided by the issue. On the plane from Rome, Benedict appeared to go further than the Vatican has before on the contentious issue of Roman Catholic politicians who favor abortion laws. He seemed to suggest that legislators in Mexico City who recently voted to approve abortion in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy had excommunicated themselves. "Yes, the excommunication isn't something arbitrary -- it's part of the code" of church law, the 80-year-old pope said in Italian, responding to a question in the first full-fledged news conference of his two-year pontificate. "The killing of an innocent human child is incompatible with going into communion in the body of Christ."
Lawmakers look at coal to break oil dependence
For years, coal-country lawmakers have talked about turning the abundant natural resource into a fuel for motor vehicles. The idea went nowhere. But now it has taken on momentum, oddly enough, just as Congress appears ready to pass legislation to fight global warming. Even though coal has been attacked as a major culprit in climate change, lawmakers say a coal-derived fuel could solve another problem: U.S. dependence on foreign oil. A bipartisan group of lawmakers, including one presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), is pushing to provide federal loan guarantees, tax breaks and other subsidies to spur the production of fuel from coal. But the process of turning coal into a liquid emits carbon dioxide, so much that each gallon of the fuel would create more greenhouse gases than gasoline — unless the carbon dioxide released in production could be captured and stored.
Work to begin on world's biggest solar power plant
South Korea plans to break ground for the world's biggest solar power plant today as it tries to diversify its power sources and use cleaner energy. The $170 million plant, along with the world's largest tidal power plant already under construction off the country's west coast, is part of an aggressive effort to seek new and renewable energy sources amid rising global concern about reducing the emission of heat-trapping greenhouse gases.
I.B.M. Effort to Focus on Saving Energy
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/technology/10blue.html?ref=business
I.B.M. is beginning a $1-billion-a-year investment program intended to double the energy efficiency of its computer data centers and those of its corporate customers. Many technology companies are trying to curb the runaway energy consumption of data centers, the modern engine rooms that power the Internet and corporate computing.
U.S. points to lightning in deadly mine blast
Two simultaneous lightning bolts likely caused an electrical current in a cable left deep inside the Sago Mine and touched off the methane blast blamed for the deaths of 12 coal miners last year, the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration said Wednesday. Lightning is one of three "root causes" the agency cites in its long-awaited investigation into the Jan. 2, 2006, explosion. Lightning had been suspected from the start, but the report for the first time describes its likely path, saying an electrical current traveled through the ground to the buried cable. Previous reports by the state and the mine's owner, International Coal Group, Inc., mentioned lightning but not its route.
1st named storm of year forms early
The first named storm of the year formed Wednesday off the southeastern U.S. coast, more than three weeks before the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season, forecasters said. Subtropical Storm Andrea had top sustained winds around 45 m.p.h. and didn't appear to be much of a threat, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. Still, a tropical storm watch was issued for parts of Georgia and Florida, meaning tropical storm conditions are possible within 36 hours.
Editor’s note: the New York Times has converted to a subscription-based editorial section. We are no longer clipping their op-ed columnists.
Chapman: Where is GOP realism?
We all know that when it comes to war, Republicans are strong and resolute, while Democrats are weak and craven. We know because Republicans tell us so. Those have been the constant GOP themes in the congressional debate over the Iraq war. House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio accused Democrats who want to mandate withdrawal by a certain date of proposing "a timetable for American surrender." They were cheering for "defeat," charged Arizona Sen. John McCain. President Bush vowed that unlike his partisan opponents, he would not "cut and run." During last week's Republican presidential debate at the Reagan Library, Rudy Giuliani cited the 40th president as a model of fortitude in dealing with enemies. Among "the things that Ronald Reagan taught us," he declared, is that "we should never retreat in the face of terrorism."
An erosion of battlefield ethics
US TROOPS will never succeed in stabilizing Iraq if they don't take seriously the need to win the hearts and minds of Iraqis. The US commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, is right to be concerned about a report released last week showing that many troops would not report a member of their unit for killing or wounding an innocent civilian. Petraeus said the results of the survey would require "a redoubling of our education efforts" to avoid abuses by troops in Iraq. In following up on the report, Petraeus and his superiors should also examine the role that the Bush administration's dismissive talk about the Geneva Conventions might have played in causing troops to turn a blind eye to misconduct by their comrades.
Al-Rahim: A Dayton Process For Iraq
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902447.html
On March 10 the Iraqi government hosted a meeting in Baghdad that brought together Iraq's neighbors, members of the U.N. Security Council and other regional and international participants. A follow-up meeting of foreign ministers took place last week in Egypt. But as useful as regional and international agreements may be, they cannot provide a solution. Countries in the region can exploit opportunities for mischief provided by the fissures within Iraq, but they cannot mend these fissures. The paramount problem in Iraq is the disagreement among Iraqis themselves and their reluctance to compromise, and what is needed first and foremost is an agreement among Iraqi social and political groups. Only then will regional and international agreements be relevant. Similarly, the attention the United States pays to the legal aspects of national reconciliation puts the cart before the horse: Laws and constitutional revision must be outcomes of a national agreement, not conditions for one.
Iran's 'soft hostage' mistake
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-iran10may10,0,7377928.story?coll=la-opinion-leftrail
By holding three Iranian American dual nationals, President Ahmadinejad is playing into the hands of U.S. hard-liners.
U.S. Attorneys, Reloaded
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/opinion/10thu1.html
As the United States attorney scandal grows, so does the number of prosecutors who seem to have been pushed out for partisan political reasons. Another highly suspicious case has emerged in the appointment of Bradley Schlozman, a controversial elections lawyer, to replace a respected United States attorney in Missouri. From the facts available, it looks like a main reason for installing Mr. Schlozman was to help Republicans win a pivotal Missouri Senate race.
Jacoby: 'Temporary is temporary' won't work for all immigrants
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-oe-jacoby10may10,0,923297.story?coll=la-opinion-rightrail
We need workers. Some will want to stay. We'll need to find a way to evaluate them for citizenship.
Silence on Guns
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/opinion/10thu3.html
The tragedy of our runaway gun culture can only deepen now that it’s clear the new Democratic Congress operates in fear of the gun lobby’s well-practiced demagoguery and rich campaign treasury. A collective silence descended on the Capitol after the pro forma expressions of outrage over the Virginia Tech gun massacre. Truly responsible lawmakers would put political survival on hold and shut two of the most lethal loopholes in gun control created by the Republican-controlled Congress, with the Bush administration’s eager blessing. The first barred state and local police forces from getting access to information on illegal gun sales regularly collected by federal inspectors. Police forces in the past have used that data to help trace and stop gun trafficking. Now they have been blinded by lawmakers in service to the gun lobby.
Scientists: The Planet NASA Needs to Explore
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902451.html
Decades ago, a shift in NASA priorities sidelined progress in human space exploration. As momentum gathers to reinvigorate human space missions to the moon and Mars, we risk hurting ourselves, and Earth, in the long run. Our planet -- not the moon or Mars -- is under significant threat from the consequences of rapid climate change. Yet the changing NASA priorities will threaten exploration here at home. NASA not only launches shuttles and builds space stations, it also builds and operates our nation's satellites that observe and monitor the Earth. These satellites collect crucial global data on winds, ice and oceans. They help us forecast hurricanes, track the loss of Arctic sea ice and the rise of sea levels, and understand and prepare for climate changes.
Chefs Topped With Debt
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/opinion/10thu4.html
Educators, lenders and the government regulators have to stop thinking of students as revenue streams and start thinking of them as students again.
Shortchanging the Census
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/10/opinion/10thu2.html
The Bush presidency will be history in 2010, the year of the next nationwide census. But the administration’s influence on the count could nevertheless be profound — and not, it seems, for the better. Among other needs, the Census Bureau told the White House that it would require $18 million in the 2008 budget to begin its partnership program, which is central to the bureau’s strategy for ensuring that all Americans participate in the census. But in its budget proposal, the White House allocated nothing for the program — zero.
A Good Fight
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/09/AR2007050902311.html
MAYOR ADRIAN M. Fenty (D) faces a decision now that a federal appeals court has let stand a ruling overturning the District's strict gun-control law. The interests of District residents mandate an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The District's longtime ban on keeping handguns in homes was ruled unconstitutional in March by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. It was the first time an appeals court overturned a gun-control law on grounds that the Second Amendment gives an individual the right to own firearms. The prevailing interpretation of most courts had been that the Constitution provides only for a collective right to bear arms -- for state militias, in other words. The disappointing refusal by the full appeals court to grant a rehearing on this crucial question sets up a dilemma for advocates of gun control.
Keillor: The pleasures of the perfect cadence
That's the appealing thing about presidential contender Barack Obama, in addition to his smarts and his resume. He is an outsider who found the center. He is completely new, a break from the old rhetoric, a guy who doesn't pummel the old straw men or seem put together by pollsters. He has youth, skinniness, blackness, cool intelligence, an unabashed love of country, and it's exciting to imagine him in the White House. He is a rebel who got over himself and discovered the beauty of the American cadence. Not like the Current Occupant, who came from the privileged mainstream and is still flailing against it, the Iraq war his latest attempt to prove that he knows better than Father. People who are dubious about a Clinton Restoration are mighty taken with Sen. Obama, who seems to hear the drummer the rest of us hear. The beautiful old tune about picking up our feet and redeeming our promise and bringing people back together. Eight years of corruption and deliberate ignorance. Time for the big dogs to move over and let the skinny dog run.
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