Thursday, December 30, 2010

Yahoo! News: Politics News

Yahoo! News: Politics News

What you pay for Medicare won't cover your costs (AP)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 02:17 PM PST

Fred Wemer stands outside his home in Seattle, in this photo taken Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2010. Wermer is a retired dentist and says Medicare pays his medical bills well enough, but he thinks there's a lot of waste in the program and doubts it will be there for his grandchildren. He opposes turning Medicare into a voucher plan for the purchase of private insurance because he doesn't trust the insurance companies. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)AP - You paid your Medicare taxes all those years and want your money's worth: full benefits after you retire. Nearly three out of five people say in a recent Associated Press-GfK poll that they paid into the system so they deserve their full benefits — no cuts.

Obama craves familiarity on Hawaiian vacation (AP)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 01:01 PM PST

FILE - In this Dec. 27, 2010 file photo, President Barack Obama, right, his daughter Malia, second from right, and family and friends eat Shave Ice at Island Snow at Kailua Beach Center while on vacation with the first family in Kailua, Hawaii. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)AP - More than a week into his Hawaiian holiday, President Barack Obama is proving to be a creature of habit.

Murkowski certified winner of Alaska Senate race (AP)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 02:12 PM PST

Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell, center, signs the certificate of election for U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski,R-Alaska, as the Director of the Division of Elections Gail Fenumiai, left, and Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell watch, in Juneau, Alaska, Thursday, Dec. 30, 2010. The certificate will be hand delivered by Mrs. Fenumiai to the President of the Senate. (AP Photo/Chris Miller)AP - Sen. Lisa Murkowski was officially named the winner of Alaska's U.S. Senate race Thursday, following a period of legal fights and limbo that lasted longer than the write-in campaign she waged to keep her job. Gov. Sean Parnell and Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell, who oversees elections, signed the paperwork certifying her win in the hotly contested race.

AP-GfK Poll: Baby boomers worried about Medicare (AP)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 12:03 AM PST

Realtor Lynn Barlow poses for a portrait in her home in Canton, Ga., in this photo taken Thursday, Dec. 9, 2010. Barlow believes she and her husband, who have paid into the Medicare program their whole working lives, and are entitled to collect benefits. At the same time, she's willing to make some sacrifices to preserve the level of services. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)AP - Anxious to receive their Medicare benefits after years of paying taxes into the system, baby boomers say they're willing to sacrifice to preserve the scope and level of coverage.

US, Venezuela evict ambassadors in diplomatic spat (AP)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 01:10 PM PST

FILE - In this Oct. 9, 2002 file photo, U.S. Ambassador Larry Palmer speaks with the press after meeting Honduran President Ricardo Maduro at the presidential house in Teguciugalpa, Honduras. The Obama administration revoked the visa of the Venezuelan ambassador to the United States on Wednesday Dec. 29, 2010, in a tit-for-tat diplomatic response to Venezuela's rejection of Larry Palmer as the U.S. choice to be the next envoy to the South American country. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix, File)AP - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez dared the U.S. to expel his ambassador in retaliation for his move to reject the U.S. envoy to the South American country. On Wednesday, that's just what the Obama administration did.

Obama bypasses Senate to name new envoys (AP)

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 07:10 PM PST

President Barack Obama listens to a question during his news conference in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House in Washington December 22, 2010. REUTERS/Yuri GripasAP - President Barack Obama has bypassed the Senate and directly appointed four new U.S. ambassadors whose nominations had been stalled or blocked by lawmakers for months.

Audit finds CDC misplaced $8 million in equipment (AP)

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 11:09 PM PST

FILE - Dr. Thomas R. Frieden, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is shown at the agency's headquarters on in this Sept. 3, 2009 file photo taken in Atlanta. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lost or misplaced more than $8 million in property in 2007, losing track of items including computer and video equipment, government auditors say. Frieden wrote the inspector general that the CDC agrees with the report's conclusions and has now instituted better controls. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser, File)AP - The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lost or misplaced more than $8 million in property in 2007, losing track of items including computer and video equipment, government auditors say.

Obama announces 6 recess appointments (AP)

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 03:50 PM PST

FILE - In this Dec. 29, 2010 file photo, President Barack Obama waves as he leaves Alan Wong's Restaurant in Honolulu, Hawaii, after dining with family and friends. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster, File)AP - President Barack Obama bypassed the Senate Wednesday to make six recess appointments, including a deputy attorney general whose links to the insurance giant American International Group had stalled his confirmation.

The book that defined modern campaign reporting (Politico)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 12:11 PM PST

Politico - “What It Takes” is now widely considered the greatest modern presidential campaign book.

10 to watch: Senators on energy (Politico)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 06:15 AM PST

Politico - These upper-chamber lawmakers are poised to be major players on the issue in the new year.

O'Donnell: Spending accusations are 'thug' tactics (AP)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 02:13 PM PST

Christine O'Donnell waves as she walks onstage during a Tea Party Express rally in Wilmington, Delaware, October 31, 2010. REUTERS/Tim ShafferAP - Failed U.S. Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell said Thursday that accusations she misspent campaign funds are politically motivated and stoked by disgruntled former campaign workers.

Chinese leader makes state visit to US on Jan. 19 (AP)

Posted: 22 Dec 2010 04:51 PM PST

AP - Chinese President Hu Jintao's (hoo jin-tow) official state visit to the US will take place Jan. 19.

China defends rare earth quotas as in line with WTO (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 08:21 AM PST

A worker drives a skip loader while working at the site of a rare earth metals mine at Nancheng county, Jiangxi province in this October 31, 2010 file photo. China's Commerce Ministry said on December 29, 2010 it would not issue more export quotas for foreign companies as it did last year and the first set of volume totalling 14,446 included those for foreign firms. REUTERS/Stringer/FilesReuters - China defended its export controls on rare earth minerals on Thursday, saying that they were in line with World Trade Organization rules, after a government move to slash export quotas on rare earths sparked trade concerns.

Rattner settles with Cuomo for $10 million (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 12:37 PM PST

Reuters - Former Obama administration auto industry czar Steven Rattner agreed to pay $10 million to resolve lawsuits by New York's attorney general over kickbacks allegedly paid to do business with the state's pension fund.

Obama Ex-Car Czar Will Pay $10M for Pay-to-Play Scandal (The Atlantic Wire)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 01:55 PM PST

The Atlantic Wire - Just ahead of New Years Eve (and before he's headed to the governor's mansion), New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo settled his pay-to-play suit with former "car czar" Steven Rattner. Rattner was accused of bribing a member of New York's state comptroller in exchange for the state pension fund doing business with Rattner's private equity firm, Quadrangle Group. One of those kickbacks allegedly won Quadrangle a $150 million pension fund investment. Under the terms of the announced settlement, Cuomo will pay $10 million to the state of New York, quite a bit less than the $26 million Cuomo sought. "I am gratified that we have been able to reach an agreement in this case, as it resolves the last major action of our multi-year investigation," Cuomo said. Rattner did not admit to any wrongdoing. He said, merely, "I apologize if during the course of this process there is anything I did that may have made reaching this agreement more difficult."

O’Donnell calls rumors of FBI investigation of campaign ‘an attempt to discredit this whole Tea Party movement’ (Daily Caller)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 06:22 AM PST

Daily Caller - Christine O’Donnell denied charges that she had used campaign funds for personal use on Thursday, calling the accusations “thug tactics,” and casting doubt on the political motivations of her accusers.

Maria Cino vies to be chair of RNC (Daily Caller)

Posted: 29 Dec 2010 10:16 PM PST

Daily Caller - Maria Cino “should have been a nun.”

Alaska certifies Murkowski's write-in Senate victory (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 03:04 PM PST

U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R), U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (2nd R), and U.S. Sen. Judd Gregg (3rd R) talk after meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama and a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators to discuss passing comprehensive energy and climate legislation in Washington in this June 29, 2010 file photo. REUTERS/Larry DowningReuters - The state of Alaska certified Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski's victory over Tea Party favorite Joe Miller on Thursday, nearly three months after the incumbent won the race with an unconventional write-in campaign.

Afternoon Vid: Cenk Uygur Compares Sarah Palin to Michael Vick (The Atlantic Wire)

Posted: 30 Dec 2010 01:11 PM PST

The Atlantic Wire - By now, you may have heard that Tucker Carlson hosted a Fox News panel where he remarked that Michael Vick "should've been executed" for his involvement in a dogfighting ring. While the comment generated a significant amount of debate, no one weighed in on the statement in quite the same way MSNBC host Cenk Uygur did. In his "Psycho Talk" segment, Uygur had no problem comparing Vick's systematic and repeated torture of dogs with Sarah Palin's shooting of a caribou while hunting on her reality TV show."I know there's a difference, but is it really that large?" Uygur asks, after showing the entire clip of Palin gunning down the animal. "Sarah Palin is folksy for killing a caribou who was clearly trapped and defenseless if you watch that show, and Michael Vick should be executed? I don't think so," he confirms. There's some pretty forceful rhetoric about Christians and retribution in there, too. Have a look:[H/T: Glynnis MacNichol at Business Insider]
Posted by Harshad at 3:12 PM

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