Yahoo! News: Politics News

---

• Rice concession on Libya fails to mollify 3 in GOP
• Senate takes up UN disability treaty
• House, DOJ will try to resolve records lawsuit
• Bob Dole Hospitalized
• Motorcycle deaths, injuries cost $16 billion
• Obama shields U.S. airlines from EU carbon fees
• Rice meeting with U.S. senators fails to dampen criticism
• President signs whistle-blower bill for US workers
• US seeks expanded military ties with Indonesia
• U.S. declines to name China currency manipulator
• Judge orders tobacco companies to say they lied
• With Egypt's Morsi, US facing a familiar dilemma
• Palestinians say no rush to join international court after U.N. vote
• U.S. investigating use of force by Albuquerque police
• Outrage at "Jewish list" call in Hungary parliament
• U.N. committee condemns Syria, Iran for rampant rights abuses
• Greek PM hails debt compromise, public skeptical
• Greece, markets satisfied by EU-IMF Greek debt deal
• Rhode Island to leave "Christmas" out of tree ceremony
• ACLU sues over policy barring women from combat
• Seven killed as Nigeria gunmen rob banks and attack police
• Bangladesh mourns, calls factory fire 'act of sabotage'
• Nude AIDS activists arrested in Boehner's office
• Buildings in 29 Tennessee counties receive bomb threats
• Judge orders tobacco companies to admit deception publicly
• Business spending plans improve despite fiscal cloud
• U.N. atom agency says stolen information on hacker site
• Land lease rule changes could speed development
• Senior Democrat Durbin urges talks on Medicare
• Philippine tax sheriff takes aim at cheats to hit target
• With Egypt's Morsi, US faces a familiar dilemma
• Republicans propose plan for undocumented young
• U.S. to raise passport map issue with China
• Canada says still examining options on CNOOC bid
• EU agrees new controls for credit rating agencies
• Durbin Wants No Entitlements in 'Fiscal Cliff' Deal
• Sarkozy returns to French politics as party peace broker

Rice concession on Libya fails to mollify 3 in GOP Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:29 PM PST U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice told lawmakers Tuesday that her initial explanation of the deadly Sept. 11 raid in Libya was wrong, but her concession failed to mollify three Republican senators who signaled they would oppose her possible nomination to be secretary of state.

Senate takes up UN disability treaty Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:30 PM PST A U.N. treaty promoting equal rights for the disabled faced an uncertain future in the Senate Tuesday as Republicans objected to taking up an international treaty during a lame-duck session of Congress and expressed concerns about ceding authority to the United Nations.

House, DOJ will try to resolve records lawsuit Posted: 27 Nov 2012 03:02 PM PST Lawyers for the House and the Justice Department will meet to try to resolve a lawsuit over congressional efforts to get records related to Operation Fast and Furious, a bungled gun-tracking operation in Arizona.

Bob Dole Hospitalized Posted: 27 Nov 2012 03:01 PM PST Former Senate Republican Leader and presidential nominee Bob Dole has been hospitalized at Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital, according to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Reid, D-Nev., told colleagues on the floor of the U.S. Senate Tuesday evening that Dole, 89 years old, called him...

Motorcycle deaths, injuries cost $16 billion Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:58 PM PST Direct costs from deaths and injuries due to motorcycle crashes were $16 billion in 2010, but the full cost is likely higher because long-term medical expenses are difficult to measure, a government report said.

Obama shields U.S. airlines from EU carbon fees Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:57 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama signed a bill on Tuesday shielding U.S. airlines from paying for each ton of carbon their planes emit flying into and out of Europe, despite a recent move by Europe to suspend its proposed measure for one year. The carbon fee bill was the first piece of legislation debated on the House floor after Congress returned from recess on November 13, and had been cleared by the Senate in September in a rare unanimous vote. It directs the U.S. transportation secretary to shield U.S. ...

Rice meeting with U.S. senators fails to dampen criticism Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:50 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice on Tuesday conceded that an early account she gave about the attack on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya, was partly inaccurate, but she failed to win over Republican senators who accused her of misleading the public. Rice met for about an hour behind closed doors at the U.S. Capitol with Republican Senators John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Kelly Ayotte, who have threatened to block her nomination if President Barack Obama chooses her for Secretary of State or another top post in his second-term Cabinet. ...

President signs whistle-blower bill for US workers Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:50 PM PST President Barack Obama signed legislation Tuesday that affords greater protection to federal employees who expose fraud, waste and abuse in government operations.

US seeks expanded military ties with Indonesia Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:46 PM PST A senior U.S. official says Washington should expand its military ties with Indonesia, befitting a relationship between two robust democracies.

U.S. declines to name China currency manipulator Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:42 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration on Tuesday said China's currency remained "significantly undervalued" but stopped short of labeling the world's second-biggest economy a currency manipulator. In a congressionally mandated semi-annual report, the U.S. Treasury noted that yuan had risen 12.6 percent against the U.S. dollar in inflation-adjusted terms since June 2010. An official said it was up 9.7 percent on a nominal basis through Tuesday, when it closed at a record high. ...

Judge orders tobacco companies to say they lied Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:38 PM PST A federal judge on Tuesday ordered tobacco companies to publish corrective statements that say they lied about the dangers of smoking and that disclose smoking's health effects, including the death on average of 1,200 people a day.

With Egypt's Morsi, US facing a familiar dilemma Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:26 PM PST The United States has been here before, praising an Egyptian leader for championing Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts while expressing concern over his commitment to democracy at home. But with options limited, the Obama administration is keeping its faith in President Mohammed Morsi.

Palestinians say no rush to join international court after U.N. vote Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:21 PM PST UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The Palestinians will not rush to sign up to the International Criminal Court if they win a U.N. status upgrade on Thursday, but warned that seeking action against Israel in the court would remain an option, said the Palestinian U.N. observer. The Palestinians appear certain to earn approval in the 193-member U.N. General Assembly for a status upgrade to "observer state" - similar to the Vatican's rank - from observer "entity." The move would implicitly recognize Palestinian statehood. ...

U.S. investigating use of force by Albuquerque police Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:10 PM PST (Reuters) - The Justice Department said on Tuesday it launched a civil rights probe into whether the police department in Albuquerque, New Mexico, has shown a pattern of using excessive force on civilians. The investigation - which is civil, not criminal - is one of 14 active police reform investigations across the country, according to the Justice Department. There have been 25 shootings involving Albuquerque police officers since 2010, 17 of which were fatal, according to KOB, a news station in the city. ...

Outrage at "Jewish list" call in Hungary parliament Posted: 27 Nov 2012 02:08 PM PST BUDAPEST (Reuters) - A call in the Hungarian parliament for Jews to be registered on lists as threats to national security sparked international condemnation of Nazi-style policies and a protest outside the legislature in Budapest on Tuesday. The lawmaker, from the far-right Jobbik party, dismissed demands he resign, however, and said his remarks during a debate on Monday had been misunderstood - he was, Marton Gyongyosi said, referring only to Hungarians with Israeli passports. ...

U.N. committee condemns Syria, Iran for rampant rights abuses Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:59 PM PST UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A U.N. General Assembly committee on Tuesday condemned Syria and Iran for widespread human rights abuses, but both Damascus and Tehran dismissed the separate votes as politically motivated. The draft resolution on Syria, which was co-sponsored by Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United States, Britain, France and other Arab and Western states, received 132 votes in favor - 10 more than a similar resolution last year received - along with 12 against and 35 abstentions. ...

Greek PM hails debt compromise, public skeptical Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:58 PM PST ATHENS (Reuters) - Prime Minister Antonis Samaras welcomed a debt deal agreed by lenders to unlock aid, promising skeptical Greeks a new dawn after months of haggling under the threat of bankruptcy. Worn down by political squabbling and repeated austerity cuts, many Greeks reacted to the deal with disdain while the Syriza opposition party called it a "half-baked compromise" that would not solve the country's problems. "A very grey, a very dark period for Greece officially ended yesterday and it has ended for good," Samaras said in a televised statement. ...

Greece, markets satisfied by EU-IMF Greek debt deal Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:58 PM PST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Greek government and financial markets were cheered on Tuesday by an agreement between euro zone finance ministers and the International Monetary Fund to reduce Greece's debt, paving the way for the release of urgently needed aid loans. The deal, clinched at the third attempt after weeks of wrangling, removes the biggest risk of a sovereign default in the euro zone for now, ensuring the near-bankrupt country will stay afloat at least until after a 2013 German general election. ...

Rhode Island to leave "Christmas" out of tree ceremony Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:57 PM PST (Reuters) - Rhode Island will go ahead with plans to hold a "holiday tree" lighting ceremony in the state capital despite controversy last year over Governor Lincoln Chafee's decision to avoid using the word "Christmas" in reference the tree. The announcement on Tuesday that the state would hold a tree-lighting ceremony in Providence came just 24 hours after the governor's spokeswoman said the annual event had been scrubbed. Last year, protesters interrupted the ceremony with demands the conifer be officially referred to as a "Christmas tree. ...

ACLU sues over policy barring women from combat Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:50 PM PST SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The American Civil Liberties Union and four servicewomen sued the U.S. Defense Department on Tuesday to end a ban on women in combat, calling the military the last bastion of discrimination by the federal government and saying modern warfare has already put women in the line of fire. The civil rights group argued in a legal complaint filed in federal court in Northern California that the military policy barring women from roles primarily focused on combat solely because of their gender was unconstitutional. ...

Seven killed as Nigeria gunmen rob banks and attack police Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:46 PM PST ONITSHA, Nigeria (Reuters) - - Bank robbers armed with assault rifles and high explosives attacked four banks and two police stations in southern Nigeria, in a coordinated strike that left seven people dead, police said on Tuesday. It was the latest in a spate of security lapses in Nigeria in the past two days, after a suicide bombing by suspected Islamists inside a military barracks on Sunday and a jail break in the capital Abuja in the early hours of Monday. The attack took place late on Monday night in the remote town of Auchi, in Edo state. ...

Bangladesh mourns, calls factory fire 'act of sabotage' Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:45 PM PST DHAKA/CHICAGO (Reuters) - Bangladesh said a fire that killed 111 textile workers was sabotage, as protesters took to the streets for a second day on Tuesday and garment factories across the world's second-biggest clothes exporter stopped work to mourn. Meanwhile two other incidents this week, neither of which caused injuries, had local manufacturing leaders scrambling to assess whether their industry was under attack. ...

Nude AIDS activists arrested in Boehner's office Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:44 PM PST Three women AIDS activists saying they wanted to highlight the "naked truth" about potential spending cuts in HIV programs were arrested Tuesday after taking their clothes off in the lobby of House Speaker John Boehner's office.

Buildings in 29 Tennessee counties receive bomb threats Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:39 PM PST NASHVILLE (Reuters) - Courthouses and public facilities in 29 Tennessee counties were temporarily evacuated on Tuesday following a rash of telephone bomb threats, similar to recent incidents in several other U.S. states, authorities said. Threats closed more than a dozen courthouses in Oregon last week and bomb threats were also made in Washington state and Nebraska. By mid-afternoon, 19 of the Tennessee courthouses had been cleared. "No devices have been found," said Jeremy Heidt, Tennessee Emergency Management spokesman. No bombs were found in any of the other states. ...

Judge orders tobacco companies to admit deception publicly Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:32 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Major tobacco companies must take out advertisements saying they deliberately deceived the U.S. public about the danger and addictiveness of cigarettes, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday. The ruling in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia aims to finalize the wording of the advertisements that the judge first ordered in 2006 after finding the companies violated federal racketeering law. Tobacco companies fought a public admission of deception, calling it a violation of their free speech rights. U.S. ...

Business spending plans improve despite fiscal cloud Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:32 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A gauge of planned U.S. business spending increased in October by the most in five months, raising cautious optimism that the sharp cutbacks in capital investment during the summer are abating. Fears of deep reductions in government spending and big tax hikes early next year, a combination known as the fiscal cliff, had caused firms to hunker down. But orders for non-defense capital goods excluding aircraft, a closely watched proxy for business spending plans, rose 1.7 percent last month, the Commerce Department said on Tuesday. ...

U.N. atom agency says stolen information on hacker site Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:31 PM PST VIENNA (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday information stolen from one of its former servers had been posted on a hacker website and it was taking "all possible steps" to ensure its computer systems and data were protected. The stolen information was contained in a statement by a group with an Iranian-sounding name calling for an inquiry into Israel's nuclear activities. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is investigating Iran's nuclear program. ...

Land lease rule changes could speed development Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:29 PM PST The Interior Department says it is close to finalizing land lease regulations that will speed up economic development on tribal lands.

Senior Democrat Durbin urges talks on Medicare Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:28 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Dick Durbin, a senior Senate Democrat and close ally of President Barack Obama, urged fellow liberals on Tuesday to consider reforming Medicare and Medicaid, the U.S. healthcare programs they have long fought to shield from spending cuts. The timing of his message - just as Democrats and Republicans struggling to avoid the "fiscal cliff," looming early next year - and its prominence may signal that Democratic leaders and the White House will discuss social programs at the fiscal policy negotiating table. ...

Philippine tax sheriff takes aim at cheats to hit target Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:26 PM PST MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines' chief tax collector is constantly thinking about targets. Sometimes she picks up an assault rifle and hits them. In July 2010, newly-elected President Benigno Aquino made Kim Henares commissioner of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) because he wanted a tough tax sheriff - and he got one who's taking aim at the country's legion of tax cheats. Aquino gave Henares presidential guards, but the tax lawyer and accountant said "I should know how to shoot their guns, just in case". The president, a gun enthusiast, gave her lessons at shooting ranges. ...

With Egypt's Morsi, US faces a familiar dilemma Posted: 27 Nov 2012 01:15 PM PST The United States has been this route before with Egypt. The US is praising Egypt's leader for championing Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts but is also expressing concern over his commitment to democracy at home.

Republicans propose plan for undocumented young Posted: 27 Nov 2012 12:54 PM PST Two Senate Republicans on Tuesday unveiled their version of the Dream Act, stalled legislation that would provide a path to legal status for hundreds of thousands of young immigrants, many who have spent most of their lives in the United States.

U.S. to raise passport map issue with China Posted: 27 Nov 2012 12:50 PM PST WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will raise concerns with China over a new map in Chinese passports which details claims to disputed maritime territory, alarming some of its Southeast Asian neighbors, the State Department said on Tuesday. "We do have concerns about this map which is causing tension and anxiety between and among the states in the South China Sea," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told a news briefing. "We do intend to raise this with the Chinese in terms of it not being helpful to the environment we all seek to resolve these issues. ...

Canada says still examining options on CNOOC bid Posted: 27 Nov 2012 12:48 PM PST OTTAWA (Reuters) - The Canadian government is still mulling its options as deadlines near on two proposed foreign takeovers of domestic energy companies, but an official offered no clues on when or how Ottawa would announce the hotly debated decisions. Andrew MacDougall, spokesman for Prime Minister Stephen Harper, did not comment on a report that the federal government might want China's CNOOC to sell the 7 percent stake that takeover target Nexen Inc holds in the large Syncrude oil sands joint venture, because fellow Chinese company Sinopec has a 9 percent stake in it. ...

EU agrees new controls for credit rating agencies Posted: 27 Nov 2012 12:47 PM PST BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union countries and the bloc's parliament agreed on Tuesday to introduce limited controls on credit ratings agencies after their judgment was called into question in the debt crisis. Michel Barnier, the European commissioner in charge of regulation who helped broker a deal on the new law, said it aimed to reduce the over-reliance on ratings and establish a civil liability regime. The new rules should make it easier to sue the agencies if they are judged to have made errors when, for example, ranking the creditworthiness of debt. ...

Durbin Wants No Entitlements in 'Fiscal Cliff' Deal Posted: 27 Nov 2012 12:39 PM PST Medicare and Medicaid savings should be part of future debt-reduction efforts, but not on the table in talks regarding the impending "fiscal cliff," the second-highest ranking Democrat in the Senate said. In the prepared remarks of Sen. Richard Durbin's speech today to the liberal Center...

Sarkozy returns to French politics as party peace broker Posted: 27 Nov 2012 12:35 PM PST PARIS (Reuters) - Ex-president Nicolas Sarkozy sought on Tuesday to broker a truce between the two men locked in a leadership dispute that could break up France's right-wing opposition party just months after it lost power. Nine days after a disputed internal leadership election that plunged his UMP party into crisis, the two politicians fighting to become leader agreed to hold a new election, but only if the re-run was endorsed first in a referendum among UMP members. ...

You are subscribed to email updates from Politics News Headlines - Yahoo! News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610