T O D A Y ' S H E A D L I N E S
GOP Senator Lugar says surge isn't working, urges downsizing
Sen. Richard Lugar, a powerful senior Republican and a reliable vote for President Bush on the war, said Bush's Iraq strategy was not working and that the United States should downsize the military's role. The unusually blunt assessment deals a political blow to Bush, who has relied heavily on GOP support to stave off anti-war legislation.
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Young people join military
because of financial need
George Bush likes to say it's because they're patriots, but the truth may have more to do with financial need and recruiters targeting those with limited economic options.
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Study: 'BRICs' overtake
US in energy
The main challengers to U.S. economic power — Brazil, Russia, India and China — have overtaken the United States in dominating the global energy industry, according to a new study by Goldman Sachs.
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McCain dismisses
drop in polls
 Republican presidential candidate John McCain on Monday dismissed polls that show him slipping into single digits, arguing that his campaign is going through the typical ups and downs and will be fine this fall.
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Obama to air first
campaign ads in Iowa
Democratic Sen. Barack Obama is launching two biographical television ads this week, focusing on early voting Iowa in the first commercials of his presidential campaign.
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US Muslims face isolation,
radical threat: study
Muslim Americans must meld into U.S. society before suspicion and mistrust lingering since the attacks on New York and Washington isolates them and sparks radicalism in their ranks, a study said on Tuesday.
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Whitman on hot seat
over 9/11 aftermath
Ex-EPA chief Christie Whitman was bombarded by boos and a host of accusations Monday at a hearing into her assurances that it had been safe to breathe the air around the fallen World Trade Center.
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Pivotal vote looms
on immigration
Senators urging the passage of a bill that would legalize millions of illegal immigrants hope to revive bipartisan support for the embattled measure and push it to passage by week's end.
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New Sen. Barrasso
of Wyoming sworn in
Dr. John Barrasso began his rounds on Capitol Hill on Monday, learning how to be a senator. Barrasso, a conservative Republican surgeon who was until now a Wyoming state senator, was sworn in by Vice President Dick Cheney Monday afternoon.
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AMA to seek probe of
US retail health clinics
 The American Medical Association said on Monday it will ask state and federal authorities to investigate retail health clinics such as those offered in CVS/Caremark stores, Wal-Mart Stores and Walgreen Co. for possible conflicts of interest.
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DC judge loses $54 mln
lawsuit over trousers
A judge in the U.S. capital lost his $54 million lawsuit on Monday against a dry cleaner over a pair of misplaced trousers in a case that became a symbol of the United States' lawsuit-happy legal system.
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NJ schools apologize for
blacking out gay photo
Administrators of a U.S. state school system apologized to a graduating student on Monday for blacking out a picture of him kissing his boyfriend in a high school year book.
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AOL takes page from
blogs, relaunches news
Time Warner plans to launch a test of its overhauled news portal on Tuesday, drawing influences from the uncluttered design of popular Internet blogs.
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Accused Ohio cop
had 3 kids by 3 women
Any look at the life of Bobby Cutts Jr. has to include the women and children in it.
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Record travel expected
for July 4 holiday: AAA
A record number of Americans will hit the road for the July 4 holiday despite high gasoline prices and the fact it lands in the middle of the week, automobile and travel group AAA said in a press release Monday.
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Some waiting on iPhone
improvements before buying
 Apple Inc.'s upcoming iPhone is shaping up as this year's must-have gadget, but several perceived shortcomings are pushing some potential buyers to wait for an updated version.
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Paris Hilton leaves jail
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Apple now third-largest
US music retailer
Apple Inc.'s digital music store iTunes is now the third-largest music retailer in the United States with 10 percent market share, overtaking Amazon.com in the first quarter, according to a survey released on Friday.
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Warner unlikely
to run again
Virginia Sen. John W. Warner has said little about whether he will run for re-election, but the 80-year-old Republican is giving clear indications that he will not return for another term.
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Court loosens limits
on campaign ads
The Supreme Court loosened political advertising restrictions aimed at corporate- and union-funded television ads Monday, weakening a key provision of a landmark campaign finance law.
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Attorney general wins
'sitting duck award'
U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales won American newspaper columnists' annual "Sitting Duck Award" for being an easy target.
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Court: Taxpayers can't sue
on faith-based plan
A closely divided Supreme Court ruled on Monday that taxpayers cannot challenge President George W. Bush's use of government funds to finance social programs operated by religious groups.
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Castro charges Bush ordered him killed before he took office
Cuba's communist leader Fidel Castro accused US President George W. Bush of ordering him killed even before moving into the White House.
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Romney gives money
to his campaign
Republican Mitt Romney, who has a net worth estimated at up to $350 million, said Monday he has given money to his presidential campaign for a second time and may do so again before this weekend's fundraising deadline.
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Mormon church obtained
Vietnam draft deferrals for Romney
As the Vietnam War raged in the 1960s, Mitt Romney received a deferment from the draft as a Mormon "minister of religion" for the duration of his missionary work in France, which lasted two and a half years.
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Tonight, tonight, tonight!
Brian Williams' ratings nosediving
Maybe if Brian Williams stop manipulating the timeline of daily events --"tonight, tonight, tonight" -- when they actually occurred earlier in the day, his ratings and credibility wouldn't be nosediving.
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Bush's annual holiday
show taped in June
Another mislead from George
Bush: It might have been 80 degrees outside but it was snowing inside Ford's Theatre on Sunday, where President Bush attended a taping of an ABC holiday program.
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Pushing the envelope on
presidential power
Cheney and his allies, according to more than two dozen current and former officials, pioneered a novel distinction between forbidden “torture” and permitted use of “cruel, inhuman or degrading” methods of questioning.
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Despite large majorities, Democrats
are chicken on gun control
When it comes to gun control, Democrats fall silent. As with many hot-button social issues, they can't figure out how to reach people's emotions. Here's how they can regain their moral compass -- and their power of speech.
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Surge of suicide
blasts in Iraq
A suicide bomber who penetrated layers of security blew himself up in the busy lobby of a leading Baghdad hotel on Monday, killing at least nine people, including a U.S.-allied tribal sheik, police reported.
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Americans set record for
donations in 2006
Americans gave nearly $300 billion to charitable causes last year, setting a new record and besting the 2005 total that had been boosted by a surge in aid to victims of hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma and the Asian tsunami.
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Author says South isn't as
religious as it pretends to be
The biggest surprise this summer is a blazing attack on God and religion that is flying off bookshelves, even in the Bible Belt. "God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything," by Christopher Hitchens, wasn't expected to be a blockbuster.
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Senators push for
support on immigration
 Senators pushing a new immigration policy appealed Sunday to wavering supporters ahead of renewed debate on securing the borders and dealing with 12 million undocumented immigrants.
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New Yorkers crowd
White House field
 New Yorkers: They're smug, egotistical, and already think they run the country (if not the world). So what's the rest of the nation to do now that three of 'em are mentioned as White House hopefuls, ready to swap Penn Station for Pennsylvania Avenue?
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Mrs. Edwards comfortable
with gay unions
Elizabeth Edwards, wife of Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards, kicked off San Francisco's annual gay pride parade Sunday by splitting with her husband over support for legalized gay marriage.
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Group wants Giuliani
priest pal fired
Advocates for victims of abuse by Catholic clergy on Friday urged presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani to fire a priest who was suspended from the church and then hired by the ex-mayor's security consulting business. A spokeswoman for Giuliani said the firm had no plans to fire Monsignor Alan Placa.
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Republican Fred Thompson
aims for blogger-in-chief
If Republican Fred Thompson enters the presidential race next month as expected, the actor and former senator will be aiming to add another title to a crowded resume -- blogger-in-chief.
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Customer service a casualty
of U.S. airline recovery
 As frustrated as travelers may be with crowded planes and delayed flights, these are the realities of the leaner U.S. airline industry as it claws its way back to profitability after a brutal years-long slump.
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Ohio city tries
shrinking back to health
The panoramic view from the front steps of Loretta Bares' modest hillside home says a lot about this old,
industrial city.
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Summer of Love,
40 years later
If the Summer of Love established San Francisco as the hub of hippiedom, the summer of 2007 may be remembered as a time the country commemorated 1960s counterculture by taking the "counter" out of it.
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Defrocked pastor
becomes unlikely hero
"God is with you. Make fire in Atlanta," reads one of the hundreds of prayer cloths. "All love is holy," says another.
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500 TV channels by year-end
with nothing good showing
Cablevision Systems said on Thursday it will have the capability to carry more than 500 channels of high definition television programming by year-end as competition mounts from satellite TV and telephone operators.
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Military sees plunge
in black recruits
 The number of blacks joining the military has plunged by more than one-third since the Afghanistan and Iraq wars began, as other job prospects soar and relatives of potential recruits increasingly discourage them from signing up.
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Obama: Some conservative religious leaders have 'hijacked' faith
"Somehow, somewhere along the way, faith stopped being used to bring us together and started being used to drive us apart. It got hijacked," the Democratic presidential candidate said in remarks prepared for delivery before the national meeting of the United Church of Christ.
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Insurgents in Iraq have been
morphed into being called 'al-Qaeda'
The U.S. military has increasingly referred to insurgents in Iraq as "al-Qaeda fighters" or "Qaeda militants." When and why this is happening is not certain, although linking the insurgents to those who attacked us on 9/11 would appear to have certain benefits in the court of public opinion.
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Media obediently starts using
'al-Qaeda' instead of insurgents
What is so amazing about this new rhetorical development -- not only from our military, but also from our "journalists" -- is that, for years, it was too shameless and false even for the Bush administration to use.
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Brown succeeds
Blair as Labour head
Treasury chief Gordon Brown replaced Tony Blair as leader of the governing Labour Party on Sunday, days before he takes over as British prime minister after a decade in waiting.
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Top papers report new US offensives in Iraq faltering
Front-page reports in the Saturday editions of The New York Times and The Washington Post by two of the leading writers on the war cast grave doubts on the likely success of the two major U.S. military operations in Iraq.
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Many in US don't
have bank accounts
As many as 28 million people in the United States are forgoing traditional financial institutions.
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30 US soldiers
killed in Iraq
Eight American servicemen and one British soldier were reported today to have been killed in Iraq, bringing the four-day death toll to at least 30 as insurgents continue to use huge roadside bombs to rip through combat vehicles.
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Edwards defends
his poverty center's efforts
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards said his nonprofit anti-poverty center's activities have been "completely legal" and he does not plan to go beyond the legal requirements to disclose its donors.
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Edwards, McCain
seem to be sinking
Republican John McCain and Democrat John Edwards are in danger of losing their place among the leading presidential contenders if their spring fundraising falls too short of earlier totals.
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Romney aide takes
leave amid probes
An ever-present aide to Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney took a leave of absence Friday after he became the subject of investigations in two states for allegedly impersonating a law enforcement officer. His attorney denied the charges.
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E A R L I E R H E A D L I N E S
Dodd urges mandatory
community service
Democratic presidential hopeful Chris Dodd is issuing a call for community service that aims to create the first generation in which everyone serves their country.
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General laments
Google Earth capability
The head of U.S. Air Force intelligence and surveillance on Thursday said data available commercially through online mapping software such as Google Earth posed a danger to security but could not be rolled back.
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AT&T hires 2,000 extra
workers for iPhone launch
 AT&T said it has hired 2,000 temporary store workers to handle its much-hyped introduction of the iPhone, the first cell phone from iPod music player maker Apple .
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New book tells
people to just quit job
At some stage in everyone's career comes a desire to throw down tools and walk away, and plenty of motivational books say you should resist that temptation. Now, a new book says quitting can be a good strategy.
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Life undercover as one
of DC's sleaziest lobbyists
Would you lobby on behalf of a bloodthirsty dictatorship? Some of DC's most prominent lobby firms wouldn't blink. Prepare to be appalled at the utterly amoral practises of DC's lobbying world as the author exposes Washington's underbelly.
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'Sicko' leaves top
Democrats ill at ease
With the release of Michael Moore's "Sicko," a movie once again is adding sizzle to an issue that's a high priority for liberal politicians — this time comprehensive health insurance for all.
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US general denies arming
Iraqi anti-Qaeda insurgents
The number two US military commander in Iraq on Friday denied that US forces were arming insurgents willing to fight forces of the Al-Qaeda network, but said the military was "reaching out."
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White House defends
Cheney over security secrets
The White House on Friday defended Vice President Dick Cheney's four-year-long refusal to divulge information about the handling of classified material, saying an executive order did not apply to him.
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Bush aides quit amid
little sense of purpose
When asked whether he was quitting the Bush administration because it would be good for his political future, Rob Portman, the outgoing budget director, replied: “It would be good for my mental health.” Although Mr Portman was joking, a growing list of officials have already acted on that impulse.
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Only 29% say US winning
War on Terrorism
A new Gallup Poll reveals that fewer than 3 in 10 Americans saying the United States is winning the war on terror -- the lowest figure since the 9/11 attacks.
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Paris sizzles, Mediterranean
wilts from global warming
Paris will sizzle and much of the Mediterranean will wilt according to a new study which raises alarm bells about the heat the region will take from global warming.
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Panel to probe
military death notices
Spurred in part by mistakes made in reporting former NFL player Pat Tillman's death to his family, a congressional panel will hear testimony next week about what the military has done to improve how families are notified about service members killed in action.
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Anti-smoking efforts
have big impact: report
 "These findings confirm the importance of comprehensive tobacco-control programs and suggest that this intensive, broad-based media campaign has reduced smoking prevalence among certain groups," the CDC said in its weekly report on death and disease.
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Cheney: Having
it both ways
Dick Cheney is usually the first to claim that the Bush administration should get away with something or other under the guise of "executive privilege."
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Mushrooms become source
for eco-building
Eben Bayer grew up on a farm in Vermont learning the intricacies of mushroom harvesting with his father.
Global property investment
at a turning point
Global real estate investment is still buoyant but a few cracks are starting to show as higher borrowing costs begin to bite.
Chavez warns of resistance
war with U.S.
President Hugo Chavez urged soldiers on Sunday to prepare for a guerrilla-style war against the United States, saying that Washington is using psychological and economic warfare as part of an unconventional campaign aimed at derailing his government.
Extra police, military for
Australian Aboriginal towns
Police backed by military support will arrive in Australian Aboriginal communities within days as part of a controversial plan to end child sex abuse, Prime Minister John Howard said Sunday.
China's west swelters
under record temperatures
Westernmost China's Xinjiang region was under a blistering heatwave Sunday, with the mercury hitting as high as 44.8 degrees Celsius (112.6 degrees Fahrenheit) in Turpan city, a local official said.
Study: Older Siblings
Have Higher IQs
Being the oldest child in the family has its perks: later bedtimes, no hand-me-downs, and, according to a new study, a higher IQ.
Hacker claims Harry Potter's
alleged ending on Web
The mystery surrounding the end to fictional British boy wizard Harry Potter's saga deepened on Wednesday with a computer hacker posting what he said were key plot details and a publisher warned the details could be fake.
Sprinklers douse hundreds
at LA airport
Fire sprinklers at a Los Angeles International Airport terminal turned on Sunday after a water pipe broke, dousing passengers waiting for flights or picking up their bags.
Peru celebrates
potato diversity
The humble potato puts on a dazzling display at 13,000 feet above sea level. Along the frigid spine of the Andes, men and women in bare feet uproot tubers of multiple shapes and colors — yellow, red, blue, purple, violet, pink with yellow spots, yellow with pink spots; round, oblong, twisted, hooked at the end like walking canes or spiraled like spinning tops.
Spoonful of cinnamon helps
blood sugar stay down
Adding some cinnamon to your dessert may temper the blood sugar surge that follows a sweet treat, a new study suggests.
Ex-SoCal councilwoman
could be deported
All of her life, Zoila Meyer believed she was an American. She even won election to the City Council of Adelanto.
California wildfire
destroys 165 homes
A wind-driven wildfire destroyed at least 165 homes and other structures and scorched 2,000 acres acres just southwest of Lake Tahoe, a spokesman for the El Dorado County Sheriff's Department said Sunday.
Cameron Diaz apologizes
for Maoist bag
LIMA, Peru - Cameron Diaz apologized Sunday for carrying a bag with a political slogan that evoked painful memories in Peru.
Race gives new
meaning to beer run
Only in Wisconsin do beer and exercise mix. Several hundred people laced up Sunday morning for a two-mile charity race in which suds were the refresher of choice. Competitors in the 19th annual Beer Belly Two might not be considered athletes, but they know how to have a good time.
Wounded GI endures
blindness, paralysis
He lies flat, unseeing eyes fixed on the ceiling, tubes and machines feeding him, breathing for him, keeping him alive. He cannot walk or talk, but he can grimace and cry. And he is fully aware of what has happened to him.
Winner of buried
Belvedere died in 1979
The winner of a rusted 1957 Plymouth Belvedere that was unearthed last week from a leaky vault in Tulsa died in 1979, and the ownership of the car will pass to his closest living relatives.
N.J. dog crowned
world's ugliest
Elwood, a 2-year-old Chinese Crested and Chihuahua mix, was crowned the world's ugliest dog Friday, a distinction that delighted the New Jersey mutt's owners.
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A drive to recruit thousands more Border Patrol agents may flood the service with inexperienced officers and lead to increased corruption, officials said on Monday.
A drive to recruit thousands more Border Patrol agents may flood the service with inexperienced officers and lead to increased corruption, officials said on Monday.
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