Thursday, June 30, 2011

Senate to work next week on debt limit impasse (AP)

Senate to work next week on debt limit impasse (AP)


Senate to work next week on debt limit impasse (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:48 PM PDT

President Barack Obama gestures during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, June 29, 2011. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)AP - The Senate abandoned plans for a July 4 break as time dwindled for lawmakers to strike a compromise on avoiding a government default and reducing mammoth federal deficits. In a challenge to President Barack Obama, the chamber's top Republican invited him to the Capitol to discuss the impasse with GOP lawmakers.


Minnesota braces for shutdown over budget impasse (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:48 PM PDT

Attorney David Lillehaug, representing Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton talks to the media outside the Governor's office on Wednesday, June 29, 2011 in St. Paul.  The operation of Minnesota state government would be restricted to critical functions in a shutdown that's less than two days away, a judge ruled Wednesday, raising the stakes as  Dayton and Republican legislative leaders try to strike a budget deal that has eluded them for months  (AP Photo/The Star Tribune, Jim Gehrz)AP - A bitter budget standoff sent Minnesota spiraling Thursday toward a wide-ranging government shutdown, threatening to shutter state parks on the brink of the Fourth of July weekend and lay off tens of thousands of workers if a deal isn't struck by midnight between the state's Democratic governor and GOP lawmakers.


NATO blames Haqqani for attack on Afghan hotel (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 01:05 PM PDT

ALTERNATE CROP OF XGA101 -Western-style Inter Continental hotel is on fire during an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 29, 2011. A more than four-hour standoff between militants and Afghan police at the Inter-Continental hotel ended early Wednesday when NATO helicopters fired rockets at gunmen on the rooftop of the besieged hotel and Afghan security forces stormed the top of the building. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe)AP - The U.S.-led coalition on Thursday blamed an al-Qaida affiliated network working jointly with Taliban fighters for a deadly attack on a luxury hotel in Kabul — an assault that raised doubts about the ability of Afghan forces to handle security as foreign troops withdraw.


Greece clears final hurdle to get bailout funds (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:58 PM PDT

A protester shouts a slogan as she waves the Greek flag during a protest outside the Parliament in Athens, Thursday, June 30, 2011. Global stocks pushed higher once again on Thursday after Greece cleared the final hurdle required to get bailout cash needed to avert a potential debt default next month. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)AP - Greece has faced down street violence and strikes for the sake of financial aid it was promised and needs to avoid bankruptcy. Now its fellow European countries will be expected to come up with a second rescue package to convince investors that the 17-nation euro will survive the debt crisis.


Bachmann says miscarriage shaped family priorities (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:48 PM PDT

Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., waves to supporters before making her formal announcement to seek the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, Monday, June 27, 2011, in Waterloo, Iowa.  Bachmann, who was born in Waterloo, will continue her announcement tour this week with stops in New Hampshire and South Carolina. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)AP - Michele Bachmann, the Minnesota congresswoman seeking the Republican presidential nomination, said Wednesday that a "devastating" miscarriage led her to become a foster parent to 23 children.


Crack offenders eligible for early release (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:46 PM PDT

FILE - In this Oct. 10, 2006 file photo, a Los Angeles police officer counts the number of doses of crack cocaine, as he files an evidence police report after a drug related arrest in the Skid Row area of downtown Los Angeles. One in every 20 federal prisoners could be eligible for early release under a potential sentencing change for inmates convicted of crack cocaine offenses that will be voted on Thursday, June 30, 2011 by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)AP - As many as 12,000 federal prisoners can get their sentences reduced under a new law that brought the penalties for crack cocaine more in line with those for the powdered form of the drug, a government commission decided Thursday.


APNewsBreak: Dad charged with attempted murder (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 11:57 AM PDT

This booking photo provided by the Saginaw Police Department shows 22-year-old Carlos Rico. Police say Rico abandoned his 4-year-old son along a West Texas highway, and the injured boy spent several hours alone in the dark before a passing motorist picked him up. (AP Photo/Saginaw Police Dept.)AP - A father accused of abandoning his 4-year-old son along a rural West Texas highway in the middle of the night was charged Thursday with attempted capital murder, prosecutors said.


Anthony doesn't take the stand as defense rests (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:44 PM PDT

Casey Anthony, left,  talks with her attorney Dorothy Clay Sims during Casey's murder trial at the Orange County Courthouse Thursday, June 30, 2011 in Orlando, Fla. Casey Anthony, 25, has plead not guilty in the death of her daughter, Caylee, and could face the death penalty if convicted of that charge. (AP Photo/Red Huber, Pool)AP - Casey Anthony did not take the stand in her murder trial as defense attorneys wrapped up their case Thursday without presenting concrete evidence that Anthony's 2-year-old daughter Caylee wasn't killed but accidentally drowned.


MSNBC suspends analyst for remark on Obama (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:13 PM PDT

FILE - In this April 19, 2010 file photo, Mark Halperin, center, political analyst and Editor-at-Large for 'Time' magazine, is shown during at National Media Symposium in the Oklahoma City National Memorial Center for Education & Outreach,  in Oklahoma City. MSNBC suspended political analyst Halperin for an off-color remark about President Barack Obama on 'Morning Joe' Thursday, June 30, 2011. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, file)AP - MSNBC suspended political analyst Mark Halperin for an off-color remark about President Barack Obama on "Morning Joe" Thursday.


NBA lockout looms as sides fail to reach deal (AP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 01:07 PM PDT

AP - Union chief Billy Hunter said Thursday "it's obvious the lockout will happen tonight" after players and owners failed to reach a new collective bargaining agreement, potentially putting the 2011-12 season in jeopardy.

Greece passes austerity bill after trouble-free vote (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 08:39 AM PDT

General view of the Greek parliament as Prime Minister George Papandreou speaks (C) in Athens June 29, 2011. REUTERS/Giannis Liakos/ICONReuters - The Greek parliament passed a second austerity bill Thursday, opening the way for the EU and IMF to release a 12 billion euro ($17 billion) loan installment which Athens urgently needs to stave off bankruptcy.


Geithner mulling departing post: report (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 01:09 PM PDT

Reuters - Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner has signaled to White House officials that he is considering leaving the administration after a deal to raise the debt limit is reached, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing three anonymous sources.

U.S. caught China buying more debt than disclosed (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 05:44 AM PDT

Reuters - The rules of Treasury auctions may not sound like the stuff of high-stakes diplomacy. But a little-noticed 2009 change in how Washington sells its debt sheds new light on America's delicate balancing act with its biggest creditor, China.

Midwest factories roar, but labor market weak (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 01:06 PM PDT

Job seekers prepare for career fair to open at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey, January 6, 2011. REUTERS/Mike SegarReuters - Factory activity in the U.S. Midwest accelerated in June, fostering hopes for a pick-up in economic growth in the third quarter, despite signs of lingering weakness in the labor market.


Ex-Taylor, Bean chairman gets 30 years in prison (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 10:51 AM PDT

Reuters - Taylor, Bean & Whitaker Mortgage Corp's former chairman, convicted of masterminding a $2.9 billion fraud scheme before the company collapsed, was sentenced on Thursday to 30 years in prison.

Democrats weigh short-term debt limit increase (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:07 PM PDT

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) speaks to the media on U.S. budget talks next to Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) on Capitol Hill in Washington June 23, 2011.  REUTERS/Yuri GripasReuters - President Barack Obama and Senate Democrats are weighing a scaled-back budget deal that would avert a looming default but force Congress to tackle the politically toxic issue again before the 2012 elections, a Senate Democratic aide told Reuters on Thursday.


Investors stay cautious as H2 starts: Reuters poll (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 06:10 AM PDT

Reuters - LONDON (Reuters)- Investors have become a little more upbeat heading into the second half of the year, lifting stock allocations from 2011 lows but remaining cautious with plenty of safe-haven cash and bonds.

NATO air strike kills fighter linked to Afghan hotel attack (Reuters)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 06:40 AM PDT

Smoke and flames rise from the Intercontinental hotel during a battle between NATO-led forces and suicide bombers and Taliban insurgents in Kabul June 29, 2011. REUTERS/StringerReuters - NATO aircraft killed an insurgent leader linked to a deadly hotel attack in the Afghan capital this week, the coalition said on Thursday, a raid that raised questions about whether Afghan forces are ready for the looming security transition.


Greek premier hails tight austerity victory (AFP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 09:53 AM PDT

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou holds up his hand to vote at the Greek parliament on June 30, 2011 on the bill determining the implementation of draconian austerity plan ordered by creditors to pave the way for new emergency funding from Europe and the IMF. Greek lawmakers voted through the details of the fresh austerity measures Thursday.(AFP/Louisa Gouliamaki)AFP - Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou hailed Thursday a parliamentary vote to introduce fresh austerity measures, despite riots in the streets, in a bid to avoid national bankruptcy.


UN-backed court issues Hariri indictment, warrants (AFP)

Posted: 30 Jun 2011 12:34 PM PDT

A UN-backed court issued a long-awaited indictment and arrest warrants for the 2005 murder of Lebanon's ex-premier Rafiq Hariri, seen here, with members of the powerful Hezbollah reportedly among those named.(AFP/File/Ramzi Haidar)AFP - A UN-backed court on Thursday issued a long-awaited indictment and arrest warrants for the 2005 murder of Lebanon's ex-premier Rafiq Hariri, with members of the powerful Hezbollah reportedly among those named.


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