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House Democrats are divided on the health bill's public option, and Nancy Pelosi's got a solution: rallying against a "common enemy," according to Politico's Glenn Thrush. In a press conference Thursday, the Speaker of the House fielded a question about progressive Democrats' rebellion against House leaders' concessions to Blue Dog Democrats—by blasting insurance companies as "almost immoral" in their attack of the public option. "Of course, they've been immoral all along," she said. "They are the villains in this, they have been part of the problem in a major way. They are doing everything in their power to stop a public option from happening and the public has to know. They have had a good thing going for a long time at the expense of the American people and the health of our country." She added, "This is the fight of our lives."
Nothing like a casual brewski between friends—or a highly orchestrated "beer summit" in the White House Rose Garden between the president, a scholar and the cop who arrested him. Yes, the presidential happy hour finally happened. Two weeks after noted black scholar Henry Louis "Skip" Gates accused Cambridge (Mass.) Police Sgt. James Crowley of racial profiling for arresting him at his home near Harvard University, the men clinked mugs of beer Thursday evening with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. Obama's beer of choice? Bud Light. Crowley, meanwhile, chose Blue Moon. Sitting at a round table, the men also munched peanuts and pretzels out of silver bowls—as TV cameramen and reporters were kept 50 feet away, after being allowed to view the meeting for less than a minute. The president's aides hoped the "summit" would convey a hopeful message about race relations in this country, and turn down the temperature on an incident that has become "so hyped and so symbolic." At a press conference following the meeting, Sgt. Crowley called it "cordial and productive" and said that he and Gates would meet again.
Obama's much-heralded "Cash for Clunkers" program was supposed to last until the end of October—but on Thursday, less than one week after its launch, the White House announced the program would be suspended. Apparently it burned through the $1 billion allocated for it in six short days. The program began last Friday, with car dealerships registering to sell new, more fuel-efficient vehicles to consumers who traded in older ones. Consumers were to receive a discount on their new vehicles. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is responsible for the program, has yet to comment on Clunkers' demise.
A memo prepared by Col. Timothy R. Reese, a senior U.S. military adviser in Baghdad, states bluntly that it's time for American forces to "declare victory and go home." The memo suggests that an American military presence in Iraq beyond 2010 will do little to help Iraqi military performance and will more likely cause more native resentment towards American occupation. Though the memo does admit that the Iraqi forces are plagued by corruption, poor management, and weakness against Shiite political pressure, it also asserts that the forces are entirely capable of holding off Sunni insurgency and Shiite militias. The memo suggests a new withdrawal deadline of August, 2010—accelerating existing U.S. plans by 15 months.
There's no such thing as a free lunch, even at the White House. When four of the country's top executives got the chance to spend their lunch hour in the president's private dining room last month, White House staffers asked the guests to foot the bill. "From time to time, White House guests are asked to reimburse for their meals, the reasons include ensuring there is no conflict or appearance of a conflict," said White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki. But the Bush administration never charged for these types of meals, a former official told Politico, saying that meals are typically covered by official entertainment expenses under the executive residence budget or by the White House's annual account. "We've got to relax about this," said Letitia Baldridge, who headed Jackie Kennedy's staff in the 1960s. "To have people to the White House and worry about the price of things is laughable." Hopefully Skip Gates brings his wallet.
The mystery mama carrying actor Jude Law's fourth child has been revealed: It's Samantha Burke, a 24-year-old actress, model, and ex-Law lover. DNA tests confirmed the notorious playboy's paternity, reports TMZ. Burke's due date is October 6, according to her online registry at Babies "R" Us, which also reveals that she's expecting a girl she'll name Sophia. "Since informing Mr. Law of the pregnancy, he has been nothing but responsive and supportive of Ms. Burke and the pregnancy," said a statement issued by Burke's attorneys. Law has three children with former wife Sadie Frost, and is currently single.
The highly anticipated Julie & Julia doesn't hit theaters until next Friday, but appetites for the film have already been whet. A glowing review in USA Today notes that, amid a summer of effects-driven, male-oriented blockbusters, the tale of domestic bliss (and frustration) is both out of step, and completely welcome. Written and directed by Nora Ephron, the movie is both an homage to master chef Julia Child (played by Meryl Streep) and the story of Julie Powell (played by Amy Adams), a frustrated Queens cubicle-dweller who takes to the blogosphere in her pursuit of all things Julia. In a new interview, Powell describes finding her life blown up on screen “surreal,” though “I really wasn’t involved with the movie at all.”
Whoever is dishing the dirt on the results of the secret steroid tests Major League Baseball carried out in 2003 does not have many fans in the players' union. The latest sluggers to have reportedly tested positive? Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz, the super-popular duo that led the Boston Red Sox to a World Series victory in 2004, their first since 1918. Manny, the colorful left-fielder known as one of the most dangerous hitters in baseball history, already tested positive for performance enhancing drugs this season and has served a 50-game suspension. Thursday's revelation marks the first time David Ortiz has been directly linked with a positive test. The New York Times implies that Ortiz's statistics arouse some suspicion: In 2002 the Minnesota Twins "effectively cut him after failing to trade him." The next year he set career-high numbers, that continued to improve the following four seasons.
Some say it was the grueling concert schedule that killed Michael Jackson; others, the influence of addiction-enabling handlers. Could there be a connection? The New York Times reports that the LAPD is investigating correspondences between Jacko's personal physician, Conrad Murray, and Anschutz Entertainment Group, which was organizing the King of Pop's final concert series in London. The LAPD is one of several agencies participating in the sprawling investigation of Dr. Murray and seven other doctors. The federal Drug Enforcement Administration is also participating, and documents filed this week in Nevada included "shipping orders, distribution lists, use records relating to the purchase, transfer, receiving, ordering, delivery and storage of Propofol." Search warrants list 19 aliases that Mr. Jackson allegedly used to acquire illegal prescriptions.
A federal judge has ordered that one of the youngest detainees at Guantánamo be released by late next month, "in a case that drew wide attention because of rulings that he had been tortured by Afghan officials and abused in American custody," The New York Times reports. Mohammed Jawad has long faced American charges that, as a 14- or 15-year-old, he threw a hand grenade in Kabul that injured two American servicemen and their Afghan interpreter. But the judge, Ellen Segal Huvelle, declared that the government's case for continuing Jawad's imprisonment was “riddled with holes” and that almost all of the government’s evidence came from confessions made after being threatened with death. “Enough has been imposed on this young man to date,” Huvelle said. Still, Jawad may face civilian criminal charges in the U.S. "We have won the battle,” said his military lawyer, Maj. David J. R. Frakt. “Have we won the war? Perhaps it remains to be seen.”
This is no way to inspire confidence in airline passengers. The Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which is already two years overdue, has a grievous flaw in its wings that give it a failing grade from the Federal Aviation Administration. The problem revolves around the amount of stress that the fancy plane's wings can endure. Last week it was mistakenly reported that the plane failed stress tests just above the "ultimate load," meaning that the wings were compromised by an amount of pressure well-above federal regulator's requirements. As it turns out, the wings did not pass the "limit load," or the base requirement defined by the FAA. Boeing engineers have essentially gone back to the drawing board and are beginning the long process of implementing a solution. The Seattle Times reports that Dreamliner will likely not take to the skies until next year.
Sure, the arrest of Skip Gates for disorderly conduct is largely regarded as an example of poor race relations--but is a broad law at the real heart of the matter? Frustrated with the news that Gates was arrested at his home after an alleged break-in, a 33-year-old lawyer named Pepin Tuma shouted "I hate the police" while walking along a D.C. street Saturday night. Nearby officers heard the rant and arrested Tuma, again for disorderly conduct. The local chapter of the ACLU has said that the city's law is "confusing, overbroad, frequently used by police to harass disfavored individuals" and that it "violates constitutional rights of free speech, assembly and petition," according to the Huffington Post. Tuma spent a few hours in a holding cell and has filed a complaint with the D.C. Office of Police Complaints, asserting a lack of probable cause. It is the belief of Tuma that Gates' case has more to do with abusive police powers than it does with race relations. "It's an ongoing problem of police using disorderly conduct to shut people up," Tuma said.
Twist! Originally suspected to have been murdered by his wife, police have ruled that the death of boxer Arturo Gatti was a suicide. Lead investigator Paulo Alberes told the Associated Press that Gatti killed himself July 11 in the northeastern Brazil apartment he was renting on vacation with his wife and 10-month-old son, clearing Amanda Rodrigues of allegations that she strangled her husband with a purse strap as he slept. Gatti was found hanging by the strap, and Rodrigues's lawyer pointed out that Rodrigues could not have physically lifted Gatti in order to suspend him. The retired world-class boxer and his wife were rumored to have a rocky marriage and the vacation was intended to be a second honeymoon of sorts. Though friends remain adamant that Gatti was not suicidal, Rodrigues will be freed from jail this afternoon.
One of the world's greatest mysteries is on the brink of being solved as two teams of scientists search for the remains of 1930s pilot Amelia Earhart. Earhart and her navigator, Fred Noonan, quite literally fell off the radar July 2, 1937 in an attempt to fly around the world—their whereabouts unknown. Next May, two DNA labs in Ontario are launching a $500,000 expedition to an island about 1,800 miles south of Hawaii that is believed to be the site of Lady Lindy's plane crash-early 20th-century makeup and broken glass were found there in 2007 but were contaminated before they could be tested for DNA. The evidence collected so far is inconclusive, but the teams of scientists, led by American Richard Gillespie, remain optimistic: in 1940, an administrator from the island nation of Kiribati discovered bones and a campsite that could have been proven to be Earhart's were they not later lost.
President Obama announced on Thursday the 16 recipients of the Medal of Freedom—the highest honor available to American citizens whom the president considers "agents of change." Some of the names include Harvey Milk, the gay rights advocate who was assassinated in 1978; Sidney Poitier, who broke ground for black actors on the silver screen; and Chita Rivera, the multi-talented Puerto Rican entertainer. Ted Kennedy, who fought for health-care reform for much of his career in the Senate, will also receive the honor. It is hard to ignore the political subtext of the award, as the president is currently locked in a knock-down drag-out fight over Kennedy's signature issue.
Kids grow up so fast these days—Miley Cyrus is only 16, but she already has a stalker. Meet Mark McLeod of Appling, Georgia, who was arrested for headbutting cops after being caught in Tybee Island, where Cyrus was filming her new movie The Last Song. McLeod told the police he had thousands of pictures and letters to the Hannah Montanna star on his computer, and that he'd mailed her diamond rings, the New York Daily News reports. The police report says that McLeod "stated that Cyrus' responses came in the form of 'secret messages' on her television show directed only to him." McLeod also told the police that Cyrus had accepted his marriage proposal, of which her father approved. Of the first time he saw her in concert, he said, "Our eyes met at her concert and we both knew." McLeod was charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct and obstruction, but was released a day later due to jail overcrowding. Apparently, the police were unaware of a Los Angeles restraining order that barred McLeod from coming near Cyrus. McLeod's whereabouts are currently unknown, leaving Disney executives worried for their star.
The man just can’t seem to help himself. Entertainment Weekly reports that Jude Law is expecting a fourth child this fall. Law's lawyer released a terse statement saying that "following a relationship last year" the star "has been advised that he is to be the father of a child." Although Law "is no longer in a relationship with the individual concerned" he intends to be "a fully supportive part of the child's life." Law has three children with former wife Sadie Frost, and is currently single.
A female journalist has decided to challenge the ruling of a Sudanese court over the punishment of 40 lashings for wearing pants in public, a violation of the strict Islamic law enforced by Sudan's regime. Lubna Hussein, a United Nations worker in Khartoum, was one of 13 women to be arrested on the charge earlier this month. "This is not a case about me wearing pants," Hussein said. "This is my battle." Sharia, or Islamic law has ruled Sudan since Omar al-Bashir took over the country in 1989 with an army coup. Most women in the Sudanese capital wear traditional outfits that cover their heads and shoulders. According to The Guardian, the raid on a cafe popular with journalists and foreigners, which resulted in Hussein's arrest, was unusual.
Reigniting Bush-era fears about domestic terrorism, Attorney General Eric Holder told ABC News that recent reports about homegrown jihadis are “particularly troubling.” Holder said that people who are "leaving this country and going to different parts of the world and then coming back, all, again, in aim of doing harm to the American people is a great concern." He's not just whistling Dixie either: In the news of late have been the arrests of members of an alleged North Carolina terror group. A New York man is being charged of training with al Qaeda to help attack U.S. forces. The Obama administration has, up to this point, taken a different path than its predecessor by choosing not to highlight domestic terrorism as a leading threat to American security.
Can't Henry Waxman (D-CA) catch a break? On Wednesday the House Energy and Commerce Committee chairman scored a breakthrough compromise with the House's stubbornly moderate Blue Dog Democrats—and almost immediately, the committee's progressives demanded yet another markup delay. Waxman told reporters that, rather than rush the legislation, "it's more important that we sit in the Democratic Caucus and let people ask questions, get answers, hear each other out." Waxman's watershed Blue Dog deal slashed more than $100 billion from the bill, has the support of House leadership and the White House, and limits the public option—to progressives' dismay. Congressional Progressive Caucus co-chair Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) said the public option "has to be much stronger to get our support." Woolsey adds, "We've got a long way to go before this gets to the House floor," but Waxman appears to disagree—he remains committed to finishing the bill on Friday.
So what if the birthers are right, and Barack Obama was born in Kenya in 1961? Daniel Hannan, British politician and member of the European Parliament, points out that Obama would be a British subject, since Kenya was a colony under British rule until 1963. In a tongue-in-cheek blog post for The Daily Telegraph, Hanna proposes an alternate birther theory: "Perhaps his entire career is a clever scheme to bring the colonists' rebellion to an end and revoke the Declaration of Independence." He continues: "If so, we should ensure that the reunification of the two states happens on the best possible terms. It would be nice if American learned to make tea properly." Hannan, a conservative, also proposes that Obama's nation of wayward colonists learn to play cricket better, and that they export some patriotism.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates returns to America after a two-day visit to Iraq with good news: He's ready to "modestly accelerate" the withdrawal of tens of thousands of American soldiers still stationed there. Recent Iraqi security force successes—including Tuesday's raid on an Iranian opposition group—suggest to Gates that the nation is increasingly able to police itself. According to The Washington Post, Gates wants to remove three combat brigades this year, up from the original plan for two to leave. Each brigade consists of about 5,000 soldiers. General Ray Odierno, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, could still nix Gates' plan, but the secretary said "I think there is at least some chance of a modest acceleration because of the way General Odierno sees things going." Delicate security operations are still under way in Iraq's oil-rich north, where Arabs and Kurds continue to clash. Gates met with Kurdish President Massoud Barzani during his trip, reminding Barzani of the amount regional leaders need to accomplish before the Americans leave permanently.
Standing in the aisles of a North Carolina supermarket, President Barack Obama made his pitch Wednesday: "We have stopped the free-fall. The market's up and the financial system is no longer on the verge of collapse," the president said. "So there's no doubt that things have gotten better." Telling the Raleigh audience that he inherited "the worst economy of our lifetimes," Obama defended the bailout of the banks as a necessary measure to hold off greater financial trouble. Numbers released by the Federal Reserve seemed to support the president's view, showing the conditions in 12 different regions of the country were stabilizing. The report suggests that the end of recession, which began in December 2007, may be in sight.
They can run (or, rake in $3 billion in three months) but they can't hide. A Senate panel has subpoenaed financial institutions, including Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank, seeking evidence of fraud in last year's mortgage-market meltdown, sources tell The Wall Street Journal. The congressional investigation is focusing on whether emails and other internal communications reveal that bankers privately doubted whether the mortgage-related securities they were facilitating were as sound as their public reports suggested. Washington Mutual, now largely owned by J.P. Morgan Chase, has also been subpoenaed. The investigation is the latest in a series of moves by Congress to examine the roots of the economic meltdown. Spokesmen from the banks have yet to comment.
It's not a good time to be over 55, white, and male. USA Today reports that the "last in, first out" policy followed during previous recessions has been turned on its head. Jobless rates for white men older than 55 were at 6.5 percent in the second quarter this year, the highest they've been since the Great Depression. The decline of unions is playing a part in the erosion of this segment of the work force. Says USA Today, "The recession has hit older men hard because job loss has been concentrated in male-dominated fields, such as construction, manufacturing and finance."
The clock may be running out on Obama's health-care plan, but Americans say they like how he has handled himself. As Obama pushes for health-care overhaul, a recent New York Times/CBS poll reveals a conflicted nation: 75 percent of people were concerned that health-care costs would spike if the government failed to create a plan, but 77 percent said costs would rise if the government did create a health-care system. Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they were afraid their quality of care would decline under the Obama plan. Yet, people still trust Obama—69 percent said he was trying to play nice with Republicans, while only 33 percent said Republicans were returning the favor. By a margin of 55 percent to 26 percent, people said Obama had better ideas about changing health care than Republicans did.
So much for that health-care compromise. Two leading Senate Republicans are saying that a health-care bill is out of reach before the Senate goes on its August recess. “There are a lot of tough decisions to make and they aren’t going to be made real quickly,” Senator Charles Grassley told CNN late Wednesday. Grassley's colleague Michael Enzi backed up the need for a delay. “You can’t say you got to do it in a week, you got to do it in a month,” Enzi said. “You got to do it in the amount of time it takes.” Enzi said he took offense to headlines claiming that he was close to brokering a deal with the Democrats. “I’m not interested in lending credibility to disaster,” he said.
Not the Rose Garden, the Beer Garden: Barack Obama, Skip Gates, and Cambridge police officer James Crowley will sit down Thursday at the White House picnic table for some brews and conversation. The picnic table appears to be a favorite site for White House reconciliation: Obama and Hillary Clinton were spotted there earlier this year. It’s located outside the Oval Office, near the first daughters’ swing set. Crowley's bringing his family. Obama will bring the beers.
The horrific murder of eight-months-pregnant Darlene Haynes, 23, has a small bright spot: The baby girl cut out of her mother's womb is alive and in "fairly good health" according to Massachusetts police. The Associated Press reports that a "horrifying smell" led Haynes' landlord to enter her apartment on Monday, where he found her body wrapped in a blanket in a closet. Evidently, she had been dead for several days. The fetus wasn't discovered missing until the autopsy, which also revealed that Haynes suffered head injuries. On Wednesday, police arrested Julie Corey, 35, of Worcester, Mass., at a homeless shelter in Plymouth N.H. where she was accompanied by a male acquaintance and the baby. Corey's acquaintances had become suspicious of her claim that she had just given birth.
The media must be disappointed that the battle for custody of Michael Jackson's children came to a quick and painless ending. CBS News reports that Katherine Jackson has come to an agreement with Debbie Rowe, the children's biological mother, and that Katherine will get her three grandkids. Katherine's lawyer L. Londell McMillan said, "It's an agreement...for the best interests of the children. This is not a money deal. There's no situation better for these children then to be raised and reared under the care of Mrs. Jackson." The Jackson clan has reportedly agreed that Michael's oldest sibling, his sister Rebbie, would raise the children if Katherine got custody.
Riot police ordered Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi to leave the mourning ceremony commemorating Neda Agha-Soltan, whose death under their force was disseminated to the world via YouTube, and others killed in the post-election violence on June 12. The New York Times reports that hundreds of people gathered around Agha-Soltan's grave, which Mousavi attempted to approach before police forced him back into his car. As Mousavi drove off, police and mourners argued. Some reports say police arrested mourners and tried to scatter them. It's significant that this is the 40th day since Agha-Soltan's death. As the Times put it, "The 40th day marks an important Shiite mourning ritual, and similar commemorations for dead protesters fueled the demonstrations that led to the Islamic Revolution in 1979."
Think New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo might have an election on his mind? Look no further than the title of his new report on big bank bonuses for the answer, which does not shy away from stoking the populist furor. Titled "No Rhyme or Reason: The 'Heads I Win, Tails You Lose' Bank Bonus Culture," the report chronicles the outrageous amounts of cash given to executives, even as they presided over one of the biggest economic catastrophes in recent history. Three firms—Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan Chase—actually doled out bonuses that exceeded their total earnings in 2008. Cuomo does not mince words when conveying his disgust: "When the banks did well, their employees were paid well. When the banks did poorly, their employees were paid well. And when the banks did very poorly, they were bailed out by taxpayers and their employees were still paid well."
Scandal is following the Bush administration into retirement: The Washington Post has obtained emails showing that Karl Rove played a larger role in the U.S.-attorney-firing scandal than was previously known. According to the Post, “The documents and interviews provide new information about efforts by political aides in the Bush White House, for example, to push a former colleague as a favored candidate for one of the U.S. attorney posts. They also reflect the intensity of efforts by lawmakers and party officials in New Mexico to unseat the top prosecutor there.” Rove specifically cheerleaded on behalf of his former employee, Timothy Griffin, writing to deputy Sarah Taylor: “Give him options. Keep pushing for Justice and let him decide. I want him on the team.” The news come as Rove finished his second day of closed-door testimony about the firings to the House Judiciary Committee.
President Obama better hope his “beer summit” goes well: “President Barack Obama's approval rating among white Americans has fallen as they have watched him wade into the racially tinged dispute between a white Cambridge, Mass., police officer and a well-known black Harvard scholar,” according to the Associated Press. The poll was conducted from July 22-26. On Wednesday and Thursday, 53 percent of whites approved of Obama’s job performance; on Friday through Sunday, only 46 percent of whites approved. With 80 percent of respondents saying they had heard of Obama’s “acted stupidly” comment, the poll by Pew found that 41 percent of respondents disapproved of Obama’s handling of the Gates controversy, with only 29 percent approving.
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