Yahoo! News: Politics News

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• Analysis: Burden on Biden to be better than boss
• Team Obama hopes veep debate halts GOP momentum
• Mitt Romney meets with Rev. Billy Graham
• AZ Senate hopefuls wage air war for women, Latinos
• Massachusetts AG probing firm at center of meningitis outbreak
• Mailing a letter to cost a penny more next year
• Ousted Gbagbo general jailed in Ivory Coast
• Meningitis outbreak widens as demands rise for criminal probe
• Turkish parliament extends mandate for incursions into northern Iraq
• Japan: US pact deters clash with China over isles
• Koran-burning U.S. pastor barred from entering Canada for debate
• Dems lead GOP in battleground voter registration
• Bomb risk to U.S. troops heightened by contractor fraud
• Polish premier to ask for vote of confidence to shore up backing
• Pakistani schoolgirl shot by Taliban moved to army HQ hospital
• U.S. picks retired diplomat to serve as envoy in Libya
• House committee seeks briefing from meningitis-linked pharmacy
• Billy Graham Offers Prayer for Romney
• Akin ad hits McCaskill for federal subsidies
• Is a Conservative or Liberal Born or Made?
• Republican groups turning focus to House races
• Britain arrests seven soldiers in Afghan murder probe
• Chicago mayor demands Illinois teacher pension reform
• Goldman CEO: I'll pay 5 percent more tax for budget deal
• Hezbollah confirms it sent drone downed over Israel
• Texas base shooter's lawyers argue against beard-shaving order
• Obama mocks Romney, says rival is hiding his views
• Team Obama hopes veep debate halts GOP momentum
• U.S. court clears Samsung phone, hands Apple setback
• Biden: Imperfect Messenger on Abortion Rights
• Mexico passes law to combat cartel money laundering
• Violent street gang: US targets finances of MS-13
• US envoy on NKorea to talk with Japan, SKorea

Analysis: Burden on Biden to be better than boss Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:02 PM PDT Vice President Joe Biden must be everything President Barack Obama was not: energetic, aggressive and concise. Rep. Paul Ryan must meet the moment and keep things going Mitt Romney's way. And voters must figure out whether an evening with the running mates even matters to them at all.

Team Obama hopes veep debate halts GOP momentum Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:45 PM PDT Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Paul Ryan were under pressure Thursday to help boost their tickets out of a closely fought battle for the White House as the nation's eyes turned to the pair of scrappy vice presidential nominees meeting for their only debate.

Mitt Romney meets with Rev. Billy Graham Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:29 PM PDT Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is visiting the Rev. Billy Graham at Graham's home in North Carolina.

AZ Senate hopefuls wage air war for women, Latinos Posted: 11 Oct 2012 03:00 PM PDT An old feud and the race for women voters escalated the tight Arizona Senate race Thursday, with Republican Rep. Jeff Flake citing the grudge in a new ad alleging that Democrat Richard Carmona lacks the temperament for the job. Senate Democrats fired back with their own spot accusing Flake of voting against bulletproof vests for local police.

Massachusetts AG probing firm at center of meningitis outbreak Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:58 PM PDT BOSTON (Reuters) - The pharmacy company at the center of a deadly U.S. meningitis outbreak is being investigated by Massachusetts Attorney General, the AG's Office said on Thursday. "We are absolutely engaged with federal and state authorities to determine what led to the distribution of these unsafe drugs," said Brad Puffer, spokesman for Attorney General Martha Coakley. "Once we have identified the conduct and circumstances that led to this tragedy, we will identify any potential legal action. ...

Mailing a letter to cost a penny more next year Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:56 PM PDT It'll cost another penny to mail a letter next year.

Ousted Gbagbo general jailed in Ivory Coast Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:53 PM PDT ABIDJAN (Reuters) - A top military commander under Ivory Coast's former president Laurent Gbagbo was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Thursday in the first trial involving an accused instigator of last year's post-election violence. General Bruno Dogbo Ble headed the elite Republican Guard during the brief conflict, which killed more than 3,000 people and erupted after Gbagbo refused to accept his defeat to rival Alassane Ouattara in an election held in late 2010. "Dogbo Ble is guilty of complicity in kidnapping, illegal detention and murder ... ...

Meningitis outbreak widens as demands rise for criminal probe Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:51 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - As many as 14,000 people - more than previously thought - received possibly tainted steroid injections tied to a deadly U.S. meningitis outbreak and patients should watch for symptoms for several months, health officials said on Thursday. The officials said the company at the center of the outbreak, the Massachusetts New England Compounding Center, appeared to have violated its license by producing large quantities of drugs rather than prescriptions for individual patients, as calls grew for a criminal probe. ...

Turkish parliament extends mandate for incursions into northern Iraq Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:49 PM PDT ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's parliament on Thursday renewed a mandate for another year allowing the government to send troops into northern Iraq in pursuit of Kurdish rebel fighters, despite objections from Baghdad. The parliamentary motion permits the government to "send members of the Turkish armed forces, with the aim of doing away with the threat of terrorism and attacks, in cross-border operations in Iraq's northern region where the PKK has built its nest", the CNNTurk news channel cited the mandate as saying on its website. ...

Japan: US pact deters clash with China over isles Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:49 PM PDT Japan said Thursday its security alliance with the U.S. is an important deterrent against conflict breaking out between China and Japan over disputed islands.

Koran-burning U.S. pastor barred from entering Canada for debate Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:46 PM PDT TORONTO (Reuters) - The U.S. pastor known for burning Korans and inciting unrest in the Middle East was barred on Thursday from entering Canada, where he was set to attend a potentially divisive debate with a imam, Canadian media reports said. Terry Jones was blocked at the U.S.-Canada border in Windsor, Ontario, because of a previous legal infraction in the United States and because the German government has issued a complaint against him, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp said. ...

Dems lead GOP in battleground voter registration Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:42 PM PDT A robust registration push by President Barack Obama's re-election campaign has resulted in more Democrats than Republicans on the voter rolls in most battleground states, including Florida and Nevada, according to data from state election boards.

Bomb risk to U.S. troops heightened by contractor fraud Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:41 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Investigators are warning U.S. commanders in Afghanistan about a heightened risk of attack because of shoddy work by an Afghan contractor paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to help strengthen defenses against Taliban bombings. The U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, said in a letter released Thursday that drains or pipes thought to have been sealed to prevent the Taliban from planting bombs were still accessible to the insurgents. It wrote in the October 10 letter to top U.S. ...

Polish premier to ask for vote of confidence to shore up backing Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:41 PM PDT WARSAW (Reuters) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, whose coalition has a majority in parliament, said on Thursday he would ask for a vote of confidence on Friday to show support for his policies. "I'm taking this risk intentionally because I think that only a government with an unambiguous majority can govern," Tusk said at a briefing, adding that he also would give a speech in tandem with requesting the confidence vote. The vote would be mostly symbolic since Tusk's coalition has a four-seat majority in the 460-seat lower chamber. ...

Pakistani schoolgirl shot by Taliban moved to army HQ hospital Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:37 PM PDT PESHAWAR, Pakistan (Reuters) - A Pakistani schoolgirl fighting for her life after being shot by the Taliban for campaigning for education rights was transferred on Thursday from a hospital in a province that is a militant haven to a specialist hospital in the army garrison town of Rawalpindi. Malala Yousufzai, 14, was unconscious in critical condition after gunmen shot her in the head and neck as she left school on Tuesday, but doctors said she had moved her arms and legs slightly the night before. ...

U.S. picks retired diplomat to serve as envoy in Libya Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:36 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has chosen a veteran diplomat who retired more than a decade ago to serve as its senior envoy in Libya following the death of Ambassador Christopher Stevens in a September 11 attack in Benghazi, the State Department said on Thursday. Laurence Pope, a former U.S. ambassador to Chad and senior State Department counter-terrorism official, has arrived in Tripoli to serve as "charge d'affairs," the title given to a diplomat who represents a country in the absence of an ambassador, State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in a statement. "Mr. ...

House committee seeks briefing from meningitis-linked pharmacy Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:31 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The pharmacy at the center of a deadly meningitis outbreak was asked on Thursday by a House of Representatives committee to brief lawmakers about the role that its products may have played in the crisis. Bipartisan lawmakers on the Republican-led House Energy and Commerce Committee called on the New England Compounding Center co-owner Barry Cadden to provide a documented picture of his company's operations at a meeting with panel staff to be held no later than October 18. Officials at the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based pharmacy were not immediately available for comment. ...

Billy Graham Offers Prayer for Romney Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:31 PM PDT ASHEVILLE, N.C., — Evangelist Billy Graham told Mitt Romney today that he would do anything he could to help his candidacy. The two met at Graham's North Carolina home. Near the end of thirty minute meeting, Graham led a prayer for the Romneys and said,...

Akin ad hits McCaskill for federal subsidies Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:23 PM PDT Republican Senate challenger Todd Akin launched a TV ad Thursday claiming the family of Democratic Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill "pocketed $40 million of federal subsidies" — an assertion that McCaskill says is not true.

Is a Conservative or Liberal Born or Made? Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:11 PM PDT Take a look at these two paintings:   Which do you prefer? Is your office neat or messy? Would you choose a documentary or a sci-fi flick down at the cineplex, or opt for something in the action or horror genre? And if you were...

Republican groups turning focus to House races Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:01 PM PDT A late spending splurge by outside political groups helped Republicans take over the House two years ago. The floodgates are opening again, but this time Democrats say they're better prepared.

Britain arrests seven soldiers in Afghan murder probe Posted: 11 Oct 2012 02:00 PM PDT LONDON (Reuters) - British military police have arrested seven soldiers on suspicion of murder, the defence ministry said on Thursday, following what it said was an "engagement" with an insurgent last year in Afghanistan. "The Royal Military Police have today arrested seven Royal Marines on suspicion of murder. The arrests relate to an incident in Afghanistan in 2011. The incident followed an engagement with an insurgent: there were no civilians involved," the ministry said in a statement. The defence ministry gave no further details. ...

Chicago mayor demands Illinois teacher pension reform Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:57 PM PDT CHICAGO (Reuters) - Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, fresh from a bruising 7-day strike by Chicago teachers, said on Thursday the state-wide retirement system for teachers in Illinois must be reformed to be fair and sustainable. With Chicago and its public school system facing ballooning pension payments, the Democratic mayor said it was unfair that the state was picking up most of the retirement costs for teachers outside Chicago, which funds teacher pensions largely on its own. ...

Goldman CEO: I'll pay 5 percent more tax for budget deal Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:52 PM PDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein on Thursday became the latest big-name business leader to pledge to pay a steeper tax rate - 5 percent more, he said - in exchange for a long-term bipartisan deal in Congress to keep the country from falling off the "fiscal cliff." Blankfein is part of a group of corporate executives who have raised nearly $30 million to support a deal to avoid the nearly $600 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts set to take effect at the end of the year. ...

Hezbollah confirms it sent drone downed over Israel Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:49 PM PDT BEIRUT (Reuters) - Lebanese Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah acknowledged on Thursday sending a drone aircraft that was shot down last weekend after flying some 25 miles into Israel. Nasrallah said in a televised speech that the drone's parts were manufactured in Iran and it was assembled by members of the Shi'ite Muslim militant movement in Lebanon. He confirmed a statement by Israel's prime minister earlier in the day saying that Hezbollah was behind the drone flight. "The resistance in Lebanon sent a sophisticated reconnaissance aircraft from Lebanon... ...

Texas base shooter's lawyers argue against beard-shaving order Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:48 PM PDT FORT BELVOIR, Virginia (Reuters) - Defense lawyers for Major Nidal Hasan, the Fort Hood massacre suspect, told an Army appeals court on Thursday that his court martial judge had overstepped his authority in ordering him to appear clean shaven for trial. A prosecutor, in turn, argued before the Army Court of Criminal Appeals that the court martial judge, Colonel Gregory Gross, was empowered to maintain decorum in his courtroom. Hasan is accused of shooting to death 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, in November 2009. ...

Obama mocks Romney, says rival is hiding his views Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:47 PM PDT Mocking his Republican rival, President Barack Obama says Mitt Romney once described himself as "severely conservative." But these days, Obama says Romney is trying to convince voters he was, in Obama's words, "severely kidding."

Team Obama hopes veep debate halts GOP momentum Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:45 PM PDT Democrat Joe Biden and Republican Paul Ryan were under pressure Thursday to help boost their tickets out of a closely fought battle for the White House as the nation's eyes turned to the pair of scrappy vice presidential nominees meeting for their only debate.

U.S. court clears Samsung phone, hands Apple setback Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:44 PM PDT WASHINGTON/SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court overturned a pretrial sales ban against Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's Galaxy Nexus smartphone, dealing a setback to Apple Inc in its battle against Google Inc's increasingly popular mobile software. Apple is waging war on several fronts against Google, whose Android software powers many of Samsung's devices. The ruling on Thursday from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit is not expected to have an outsized impact on the smartphone market, as the Nexus is an aging product in Samsung's lineup. ...

Biden: Imperfect Messenger on Abortion Rights Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:43 PM PDT No one in politics would make the mistake of saying the vice president opposes abortion rights, but Joe Biden, the women's rights advocate and a staunch Catholic, has not been unwavering throughout his career in support of the right  to choose. Biden steps up tonight...

Mexico passes law to combat cartel money laundering Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:43 PM PDT MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's Congress on Thursday approved a long-awaited law to crack down on money laundering in a bid to attack the finances of the country's powerful drug cartels. The law, proposed two years ago by President Felipe Calderon as part of his offensive against drug gangs, was passed by the Senate on Thursday. The lower house passed it earlier this year. The new federal law puts restrictions on cash purchases of real estate, jewelry, armored cars and other assets that criminals use to launder illicit funds. ...

Violent street gang: US targets finances of MS-13 Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:38 PM PDT The Obama administration declared the ultra-violent street gang MS-13 to be an international criminal group on Thursday, an unprecedented crackdown targeting the finances of the sprawling U.S. and Central American gang infamous for hacking and stabbing victims with machetes.

US envoy on NKorea to talk with Japan, SKorea Posted: 11 Oct 2012 01:37 PM PDT A U.S. special envoy travels to East Asia next week for joint talks on North Korea with Japan and South Korea.

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