US News

House passes economic stimulus bill

2009-02-13T16:31:00.000-08:00

House passes economic stimulus bill

By John Fritze and Rich Wolf, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — With Democrats arguing that the economic crisis requires a large and immediate infusion of government spending, a deeply divided House of Representatives approved a final version of President Obama's $787 billion economic stimulus plan Friday afternoon.
After about 90 minutes of debate, the House voted 246-183 largely along party lines to approve the legislation, which includes $46 billion for transportation projects, $40 billion to extend and increase unemployment benefits, and $115 billion in new income tax credits for 95% of workers. No Republicans voted for the legislation. The Senate is slated to vote on the bill Friday night.

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Obama: Stimulus delay 'inexcusable and irresponsible'

2009-02-06T10:49:00.000-08:00

Obama: Stimulus delay 'inexcusable and irresponsible'

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Obama ratcheted up the pressure on Congress, saying Friday it would be "inexcusable and irresponsible" to delay approval of his gigantic stimulus plan as a grim new unemployment report revealed the depths of the U.S. economic tailspin.
The nearly $1 trillion package is Obama's top legislative priority in his early presidency, its urgency highlighted by Friday's report. The package's passage, which could potentially come as early as Friday afternoon, would be a huge relief for the president, who has struggled to win the backing he sought from opposition Republicans.

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Stimulus seeks to bar illegals from tax credit

2009-01-30T08:03:00.000-08:00

Stimulus seeks to bar illegals from tax credit

WASHINGTON - Illegal immigrants without Social Security numbers could not get tax credits under the $800 billion-plus economic stimulus package making its way through Congress.

A senior GOP congressional official expressed concern Thursday that the bill could steer government checks to undocumented workers, but in fact the measure prevents anyone without a Social Security number from claiming tax credits of $500 per worker and $1,000 per couple. It also expressly disqualifies nonresident aliens.

The Republican spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly. But Democrats were quick to reject the notion.

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Economy shrinks at 3.8% pace, worst since '82

2009-01-30T07:49:00.000-08:00

Economy shrinks at 3.8% pace, worst since '82

WASHINGTON - The economy shrank at a 3.8 percent pace at the end of 2008, the worst showing in a quarter-century, as the deepening recession forced consumers and businesses to throttle back spending.

Although the initial result was better than economists expected, the figure is likely to be revised even lower in the months ahead and some believe the economy is contracting in the current quarter at an even faster pace.

The new figure, released Friday by the Commerce Department, showed the economy sinking at a much faster clip in the October-December period than the 0.5 percent decline logged in prior quarter. Economists had forecast an even worse fourth-quarter performance — a staggering 5.4 percent rate of decline — but the results were still grim.

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Tijuana off-limits to U.S. Marines

2009-01-22T16:27:00.000-08:00

Tijuana off-limits to U.S. Marines

By William M. Welch, USA TODAY
LOS ANGELES — For tens of thousands of U.S. Marines in Southern California, new orders from the brass amount to: Baghdad si, Tijuana no.
Citing a wave of violence and murder in Mexico, the commanding officer of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force based at Camp Pendleton has made the popular military "R&R" destinations of Tijuana and nearby beaches effectively off-limits for his Marines.

The order by Lt. Gen. Samuel Helland restricts travel into Mexico by the 44,000 members of the unit, many of whom have had multiple tours of duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and other combat zones under their belts — or are there now.

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Schedule of events for Obama's inauguration

2009-01-20T07:47:00.000-08:00

Schedule of events for Obama's inauguration

A schedule of some official and unofficial activities surrounding Barack Obama's inauguration on Jan. 20:

TUESDAY, JAN. 20 (INAUGURATION DAY)

Gates to the Inaugural Ceremony open at 8 a.m. EST. The inaugural festivities are scheduled to start at 10 a.m. on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol. They will include
Musical selections of The United States Marine Band, followed by the San Francisco Boys Chorus and the San Francisco Girls Chorus.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein provides call to order and welcoming remarks.

Invocation by the Rev. Rick Warren.

Musical selection of Aretha Franklin.

Biden will be sworn into office by Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens.

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Hudson River hero is ex-Air Force fighter pilot

2009-01-16T08:03:00.000-08:00

Hudson River hero is ex-Air Force fighter pilot

NEW YORK - Civil engineer Robert Bea wasn't surprised when he learned the name of the cool-headed pilot who guided his hobbled jetliner over the city and landed it in the Hudson River. The pilot, after all, had been studying crisis management.

Bea, co-founder of UC Berkeley's Center for Catastrophic Risk Management, said he could think of few pilots as well-situated to bring the plane down safely than Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III.

Sullenberger, 57, of Danville, Calif., is a former fighter pilot who runs a safety consulting firm in addition to flying commercial aircraft. He had been studying the psychology of keeping airline crews functioning even in the face of crisis, Bea said.

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U.S. jobless rate jumps to 7.2% in December

2009-01-09T08:18:00.000-08:00

U.S. jobless rate jumps to 7.2% in December

WASHINGTON - The nation's unemployment rate bolted to 7.2 percent in December, the highest level in 16 years, as nervous employers slashed 524,000 jobs. The labor market is expected to remain weak as mass layoffs continue.

The Labor Department's report, released Friday, underscored the terrible toll the deepening recession is having on workers and companies, and highlights the hard task President-elect Barack Obama faces in resuscitating the flat-lined economy.

For all of 2008, the economy lost a net total of 2.6 million jobs. That was the most since 1945, when nearly 2.8 million jobs were lost. Although the number of jobs in the U.S. has more than tripled since then, losses of this magnitude are still being painfully felt.

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Expert predictions: Stock market could be good in 2009

2009-01-02T09:56:00.000-08:00

Expert predictions: Stock market could be good in 2009

By Adam Shell, USA TODAY
NEW YORK — Stock market forecasts tend to be sunny, and 2009 is no exception. Wall Street gurus are again predicting gains. But this year's bullish market call comes with an asterisk.
Wary stock strategists, unsure how the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression will play out, are hedging their bets. Rather than just sharing an opinion about what they think is the most likely outcome for stocks in their '09 outlook reports, some strategists are including worst-case and best-case market scenarios that reflect lower-probability outcomes — but ones that can't be ruled out.

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U.S.: Roadside bombs in Afghanistan doubled in 2008

2008-12-30T08:02:00.000-08:00

U.S.: Roadside bombs in Afghanistan doubled in 2008

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The number of roadside bombs and kidnappings doubled in Afghanistan in 2008 from the year previous, the U.S. ambassador said Tuesday, grim statistics that underscore the country's deteriorating security situation.
The number of roadside bombs rose from roughly 1,000 in 2007 to 2,000 in 2008, while the number of kidnappings jumped from about 150 to 300, said Ambassador William Wood.

Compiling accurate data for roadside bombs and kidnappings is difficult, he said, and the numbers were approximate.

Speaking at an end-of-the-year news conference, Wood called 2008 a "good year but also a hard year."

Afghanistan, he said, saw progress against opium poppies, the main ingredient in heroin, as land for cultivating them dropped by almost 20% in 2008.

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Medicaid applicants grow as recession widens

2008-12-23T07:50:00.000-08:00

Medicaid applicants grow as recession widens

WASHINGTON (AP) — That day in July was one that Tammy Morse won't soon forget. Five months earlier, her husband lost his job as a recruiter for the financial services industry. Once the family savings were gone, the mother of two from Stratford, Conn., saw no way to get health insurance coverage for her family other than to apply for Medicaid.
"It was humbling," she said of her visit to the state's Department of Social Services office. "For lack of a better way to put it, that was for other people. It wasn't for me."

Around the country, similar stories are playing out for thousands of families.

Since the recession began a year ago, many states have seen increases in the Medicaid rolls just as tax revenues are falling below projections. Governors have lobbied President-elect Barack Obama and Congress to help them weather the downturn by increasing the federal government's share of Medicaid spending for at least two years.

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Denver crash baffles aviation experts

2008-12-23T07:42:00.000-08:00

Denver crash baffles aviation experts

The co-pilot of the Continental Airlines jet that veered off a Denver runway Saturday has told investigators that the takeoff acceleration was normal until the plane made "a sudden left turn," investigators said Monday.
The unnamed pilot said that he noticed that the Boeing 737-500 jet began to turn away from the center of the runway as it reached about 100 mph, according to Robert Sumwalt, a member of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

Sumwalt revealed new data at an evening briefing in Denver that appeared to rule out several possible causes. Evidence at the charred wreckage and from the data recorder shows the engines and brakes were fine, Sumwalt said. The jet was also properly set for takeoff, he said.

The circumstances have so far left aviation safety experts baffled. Jets such as the 737 should be able to roll straight down the runway, even if problems arise during takeoff, said consultant John Cox, a former airline pilot and accident investigator.

"You'd keep the airplane tracking straight with the rudder," Cox said.

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Winter storm pounds Midwest, Northeast

2008-12-19T15:36:00.000-08:00

Winter storm pounds Midwest, Northeast

A winter storm packing snow, freezing rain and biting wind cut power to tens of thousands of customers Friday, disrupted travel and gave schoolchildren from Iowa to New England an early start on their holiday break.
"One thing about it, you're going to have a white Christmas this year," said Lee Longdyke, as he shoveled a sidewalk in Pontiac, Mich., for the third time Friday morning.

More than 300 flights were canceled at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, and more than 600 at three New York City-area airports.

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More low-income families need food aid

2008-12-19T15:27:00.000-08:00

More low-income families need food aid

The economic downturn has left many low-income Americans struggling with hunger for the first time, a survey out Thursday by Feeding America shows.
The hunger relief group, formerly known as America's Second Harvest, found that 36% of low-income households say they ate less or skipped meals because they didn't have enough money for food, and 40% say they chose between food or paying for utilities in the past year.

"We've never seen anything like this," says Vicki Escarra, the group's president. "We're seeing more people come (to food banks) who've never come before."

The group surveyed 450 low-income households. The findings are part of a growing body of research that suggest hunger is worsening in the USA:

• The number of people receiving food stamps jumped from 26.9 million in September 2007 to a record 31.6 million in September 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

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U.S.: Allow pirate hunt in Somalia, its air space

2008-12-12T08:50:00.000-08:00

U.S.: Allow pirate hunt in Somalia, its air space

UNITED NATIONS - As Somalia's government crumbles, the U.S. is proposing that the United Nations authorize tracking down Somali pirates not only at sea, but on land and in Somali air space.

The U.S. is circulating the draft U.N. Security Council resolution as one of the Bush administration's last major foreign-policy initiatives. The resolution proposes that all nations and regional groups cooperating with Somalia's U.N.-backed government in the fight against piracy "may take all necessary measures ashore in Somalia."

But Somalia's struggling government may need even more propping up.

The council's group that monitors Somalia reported Thursday that more than 15,000 soldiers and police - 80 percent of the government's security capabilities - have deserted the government and fled with their vehicles and weapons.

Piracy is booming, meanwhile, with about 1,500 pirates based in the Puntland region raking in millions of dollars, South African Ambassador Dumisani Kumalo told the council.

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Air tests reveal elevated levels of toxics around schools

2008-12-09T07:56:00.000-08:00

Air tests reveal elevated levels of toxics around schools

By Brad Heath and Blake Morrison, USA TODAY
MIDLAND, Pa. — In this borough of 2,900 in the westernmost part of the state, the steel industry used to be the primary employer. Today, Midland's schools offer the most jobs — and now are beginning to unravel a mystery that could affect the health of their students.
For five days this fall, USA TODAY monitored the air near Midland Elementary-Middle School, a red-brick building blocks from the riverside steel plants that defined the town for generations. It was one of 95 schools in 30 states where the newspaper teamed with scientists at Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland to take samples and analyze toxic chemicals in the air.

The highest readings appeared near seven of the schools, including Midland. At those locations, USA TODAY's monitoring showed pollution at levels that could make people sick or significantly increase their risk of cancer if they were exposed to the chemicals for long periods.

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Oil, gasoline hit 4-year lows as economy sags

2008-12-04T16:34:00.000-08:00

Oil, gasoline hit 4-year lows as economy sags

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Oil tumbled below $44 a barrel Thursday and average gasoline prices slipped under $1.80 a gallon, both four-year lows, as unemployment benefit claims hit a 26-year high and major companies announced more job cuts.
The unprecedented decline in energy prices has provided some relief to consumers and businesses.

But fewer people have jobs to drive to. Gasoline futures for January delivery closed below a dollar, with optimism about the nation's economic health in serious decline.

It was the first close below $1 since 2006, when gasoline began trading in the current format. When gasoline included the additive MTBE, it last crossed the $1 barrier in February 2004.

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U.S. 'falling behind' bombings in Afghanistan, panel says

2008-11-25T11:22:00.000-08:00

U.S. 'falling behind' bombings in Afghanistan, panel says

By Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — A congressional panel has warned that the U.S. is "falling behind" in Afghanistan in the fight against makeshift bombs, the No. 1 killer of U.S. troops there, after the attacks reached an all-time high this summer.
Improvised explosive device (IED) attacks have increased every year since 2005, according to Pentagon data. The attacks peaked at 329 in August before declining to 264 last month upon the arrival of colder weather, which usually hinders fighting in Afghanistan.

The increased deployment of IEDs has come amid a broad offensive by the Taliban and warnings from U.S. commanders that violence could worsen. The bombs have contributed to an increase in casualties among coalition forces: 129 U.S. servicemembers were killed in Afghanistan through October this year, compared with 83 combat deaths in all of 2007.

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GM extends holiday shutdown, may cut production

2008-11-21T09:16:00.000-08:00

GM extends holiday shutdown, may cut production

By Tom Krisher, AP Auto Writer
DETROIT — General Motors (GM) will extend its holiday shutdown or make other production cuts at up to 10 factories as it deals with a continued U.S. auto sales slump and fights to stay solvent.
The cash-strapped automaker told workers about the cuts Friday morning, according to local union officials.

Dave Green, president of a United Auto Workers local in Lordstown, Ohio, said workers were told that the normal holiday shutdown will be extended until Jan. 20 at the sprawling factory complex, which stamps parts for and assembles the Chevrolet Cobalt and Pontiac G5 small cars.

The last scheduled workday will be Dec. 23, although production will start to wind down before that, he said.

Details of the other cuts were not available. GM spokesman Chris Lee would not comment on the announcements.

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Schwarzenegger wants to trim Calif.'s 14 holidays

2008-11-14T12:42:00.000-08:00

Schwarzenegger wants to trim Calif.'s 14 holidays

SACRAMENTO - California's generous offering of holidays for state workers - the equivalent of nearly three work weeks - is among the items Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is looking to trim to help counter a mounting budget deficit.

Lincoln's Birthday and Columbus Day would get the ax under a proposal the governor's administration estimates will save $114 million during this fiscal year and the next one starting in July.

"We think it's not so painful to give up a couple of holidays," said Mike Genest, Schwarzenegger's finance director.
Union leaders are resisting the move, but California isn't the only state looking to save money by cutting back on paid days off.

New Jersey passed a benefit-cutting bill in September that included eliminating Lincoln's Birthday as a state paid holiday amid a budget deficit projected to reach $1.2 billion in the current fiscal year. Gov. Jon Corzine also stopped the tradition of giving employees the day after Thanksgiving as a paid day off.

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U.S. economic picture darkens

2008-11-07T08:07:00.000-08:00

U.S. economic picture darkens

WASHINGTON - A fresh wave of bad economic news, including a half-million Americans newly out of work and the weakest October retail sales in nearly 40 years, pummeled the stock market Thursday, driving the Dow Jones industrials under 9,000 again with a stunning two-day decline of 10 percent.

The high market volatility that characterized the financial meltdown in September and October has returned, and the economic picture is growing notably bleaker, with the holiday shopping season and the new administration of President-elect Barack Obama looming in coming months.

Henry Paulson, President Bush's Treasury secretary, pledged to work closely with Obama for a smooth handoff of power. Paulson said a "methodical and orderly" transition was in the best interests of the financial markets

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US economy loses 240,000 jobs

2008-11-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

US economy loses 240,000 jobs

WASHINGTON — The nation's unemployment rate bolted to a 14-year high of 6.5 percent in October as another 240,000 jobs were cut, stark proof the economy is almost certainly in a recession.

The new snapshot, released Friday by the Labor Department, showed the crucial jobs market deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid pace.

The jobless rate zoomed to 6.5 percent in October from 6.1 percent in September, matching the rate in March 1994. Unemployment has now surpassed the high seen after the last recession in 2001. The jobless rate peaked at 6.3 percent in June 2003.

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Powerball jackpot to hit $42 million

2008-10-19T18:57:00.000-07:00

Powerball jackpot to hit $42 million

DES MOINES, Iowa - The Powerball jackpot is expected to reach $42 million dollars Wednesday because none of the tickets sold for the Powerball game Saturday night matched all six numbers drawn.

Saturday's winning numbers were 10-14-32-40-49

Power Play: 4

Players matching all five numbers and the Powerball would have won or shared the $33.6 million jackpot. The prize goes to an estimated $42 million for Wednesday.

Tickets that match the first five numbers, but miss the Powerball, win $200,000 each, and there were two of those. They were sold in: Indiana and Montana.

There was one Power Play Match 5

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Democrats bank early votes in battleground states

2008-10-19T17:08:00.000-07:00

Democrats bank early votes in battleground states

WASHINGTON - Two weeks before Election Day, Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama is busily banking every early vote he can get in key states. Republican nominee John McCain is more selectively working to lock in the early votes of his most iffy supporters, figuring the rest will make it to the polls sooner or later.

Voters in every state can now cast ballots through early voting or absentee voting programs. Results won't be released until Nov. 4, but a look at those who have voted shows the Democrats have been aggressive.

In Georgia, Iowa, North Carolina and Ohio, Democrats - or at least those living in heavily Democratic areas - are requesting and submitting ballots in large numbers. In Florida, Republicans hold an edge, while in Indiana, absentee voting has been split among Republican and Democratic areas.

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Authorities: Georgia Law Firm Bomb Suspect Died in Blast

2008-10-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

Authorities: Georgia Law Firm Bomb Suspect Died in Blast

The elderly suspect in a Friday morning blast that rocked a Georgia law firm died in the explosion, according to investigators, but his motive was still unclear.

District Attorney Kermit McManus told FOX News that the man believed to have set off the bomb in the McCamy, Phillips, Tuggle & Fordham office in downtown Dalton is dead.

Investigators said later Friday afternoon that the person whose body was found was the 71-year-old man believed responsible. McManus told The Daily Citizen that the suspect is Lloyd Cantrell, but that wasn't immediately confirmed by police.

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Obama Accuses McCain of Wanting to Cut Medicare

2008-10-17T16:56:00.000-07:00

Obama Accuses McCain of Wanting to Cut Medicare

Last Edited: Friday, 17 Oct 2008, 1:23 PM MST
Created: Friday, 17 Oct 2008, 1:23 PM MST

By DAVID ESPO
AP Special Correspondent

ROANOKE, Va. -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said Friday that Republican rival John McCain wants to cut $882 billion from Medicare over a decade to finance his health care plan and the result would be more costly drugs, diminished services and lower quality care for seniors.

"It's entirely consistent with Sen. McCain's record during his 26 years in Congress where, time and again, he's opposed Medicare," Obama said. "In fact, Sen. McCain has voted against protecting Medicare 40 times."

Campaign officials said the $882 billion estimate was drawn in part from a study by the Center for American Progress, a public policy organization stocked with prominent Democrats.

In response, McCain's campaign issued a statement saying Obama was "simply lying." The statement said the Republican planned to trim spending, but said his plans "do not cut a single benefit."

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Hurricane Norbert nears Mexico's Baja California

2008-10-10T15:10:00.000-07:00

Hurricane Norbert nears Mexico's Baja California

LA PAZ, Mexico - Fishermen pulled in their boats and hotels warned tourists away from beaches Friday as Hurricane Norbert strengthened to a Category 2 storm and bore down on Mexico's southern Baja California Peninsula.

Norbert, with winds of 100 mph, was expected to hit land early Saturday along a relatively unpopulated stretch of coastline north of the resort of Cabo San Lucas. A hurricane warning was issued for the west coast of Baja California, from Puerto San Andresito to Agua Blanca. Forecasters said it would weaken somewhat before hitting land.

Under overcast skies, fishermen pulled their boats onto beaches in La Paz, a port town in the peninsula's eastern coast. Yellow flags were up on beaches, warning people to stay out of the water

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Penn State trading cards tout academics, not athletes

2008-10-10T11:50:00.000-07:00

Penn State trading cards tout academics, not athletes

By Genaro Armas, Associated Press
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Perennial college football powerhouse Penn State University is promoting glossy trading cards similar to those collected by sports fans. Only, there's no card for Hall of Fame football coach Joe Paterno or any of his Nittany Lions.
The 10-card set showcases top faculty members. Glaciologist Richard Alley is a featured academic star, as is entomologist James Tumlinson.

"We have many great faculty, and they are surely worthy of the accolades our society often lavishes on athletes, coaches, and celebrities in the entertainment world," school president Graham Spanier wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

"We hope the cards will remind people of the important work being done by our leading scholars," he said.

The Penn State Alumni Association paid to produce the cards, which aren't for sale. Instead, they're giveaways at tailgate parties that Spanier hosts on weekends of home football games — though a set or two can be found in a reception area at an office in the Old Main administration building.

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Some traders start calling stock market rout a 'crash'

2008-10-10T11:48:00.000-07:00

Some traders start calling stock market rout a 'crash'

By Jeffrey Stinson and Paul Wiseman, USA TODAY
NEW YORK — In another roller-coaster day on Wall Street, stocks continued their historic downward plunge as investors fled stocks to get out of the way of a bruising bear market that some traders are now describing as a crash.
The heavy selling carried over from Thursday's late-day plunge to the start of trading Friday. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged almost 700 points right at the open, mounted a full recovery that put the Dow in the black for a few minutes, before selling off again. At 2:00 ET, the Dow was down 556 points to 8023, extending its year-to-date losses to 39.5%.

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Kentucky's Creation Museum reports 550,000 visitors since opening

2008-10-10T11:24:00.000-07:00

Kentucky's Creation Museum reports 550,000 visitors since opening

By Dylan T. Lovan, Associated Press Writer
LOUISVILLE — The museum exhibits are taken from the Old Testament, but the special effects are pure Hollywood: a state-of-the-art planetarium, animatronics and a massive model of Noah's Ark, all intended to explain the origins of the universe from a biblical viewpoint.
The Creation Museum, which teaches life's beginnings through a literal interpretation of the Bible, is claiming attendance figures that would make it an unexpectedly strong draw less than a year and a half after it debuted. More than a half-million people have toured the Kentucky attraction since its May 2007 opening, museum officials said.

For creationists — Christians who believe the Bible's first chapter of Genesis is the literal telling of the universe's start — the museum is a godsend. Many have returned with family and friends, some from faraway states arguing it's one of the few with a Christian worldview.

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Bush Confident Bailout Bill Will Stabilize Economy

2008-10-10T11:06:00.000-07:00

Bush Confident Bailout Bill Will Stabilize Economy

Last Edited: Monday, 29 Sep 2008, 11:37 AM MST
Created: Monday, 29 Sep 2008, 6:08 AM MST
By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON -- Key supporters of a Wall Street bailout package prodded lawmakers to approve the plan hours ahead of a difficult House vote on Monday, with President Bush saying it is needed to "keep the crisis in our financial system from spreading throughout our economy."

"Every member of Congress and every American should keep in mind that a vote for this bill is a vote to prevent economic damage to you and your community," said Bush, fully aware that congressional passage of the $700 billion compromise legislation is far from assured.

"With this strong and decisive legislation," he said, "we will help restart the flow of credit so American families can meet their daily needs and American businesses can make purchases, ship goods and meet their payrolls."

The package cleared a key procedural hurdle on the House floor Monday morning with a 220-198 vote to move it to three hours of general debate and a final vote, likely by midday or early afternoon.

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Bush says anxiety feeding market instability

2008-10-10T11:03:00.000-07:00

Bush says anxiety feeding market instability

Last Edited: Friday, 10 Oct 2008, 8:09 AM MST
Created: Friday, 10 Oct 2008, 8:07 AM MST
WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush said Friday that the government's financial rescue plan was aggressive enough and big enough to work, but would take time to fully kick in.

"We are a prosperous nation with immense resources and a wide range of tools at our disposal ... We can solve this crisis and we will," Bush said in brief remarks from the White House Rose Garden.

Bush spoke as leaders of the world's leading economies gathered in Washington amid frozen credit markets, panic selling in stock markets and a looming global recession

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Bush signs historic $700B bailout bill into law

2008-10-03T14:57:00.000-07:00

Bush signs historic $700B bailout bill into law

WASHINGTON — With the economy on the brink and elections looming, Congress approved an unprecedented $700 billion government bailout of the battered financial industry on Friday and sent it to President Bush for his certain signature.

The final vote, 263-171 in the House, a comfortable margin that was 58 more votes than it garnered on Monday. The vote capped two weeks of tumult in Congress and on Wall Street, punctuated by daily warnings that the country confronted the gravest economic crisis since the Great Depression if lawmakers failed to act.

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High storm activity predicted

2008-10-03T08:58:00.000-07:00

High storm activity predicted

By Doyle Rice and Oren Dorell, USA TODAY
Hurricane forecasters at Colorado State University say weather patterns indicate that October will see above-average Atlantic storm activity.
One storm could become a "major hurricane" of Category 3 or higher (on a scale of 1 to 5), with winds higher than 111 mph. Overall, the Tropical Meteorology Project expects activity to be nearly twice the activity of the average October.

"We continue to observe low sea-level pressures and warm sea-surface temperatures across the tropical Atlantic," says Phil Klotzbach, lead author of the hurricane forecast. "A combination of these two factors typically leads to an active October."

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Gas shortages ease up in Southeast

2008-10-03T08:46:00.000-07:00

Gas shortages ease up in Southeast

By Larry Copeland, USA TODAY
ATLANTA — The Southeast heads into the weekend facing less severe gas shortages than a week ago, although the Energy Department expects scarce supplies to linger for a week or two.
Atlanta and Charlotte, the metropolitan areas most affected by fuel shortages caused by Hurricanes Gustav and Ike, have seen improvement — more so here than in Charlotte.

Gas lines here were shorter and less common Thursday than last week. All 111 QuikTrip stations in metropolitan Atlanta had gas Thursday — up from just 25%-50% a week ago, company spokesman Mike Thornbrugh says

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Bush Signs Spending Bill That Includes Auto Loans

2008-10-01T09:10:00.000-07:00

Bush Signs Spending Bill That Includes Auto Loans
Last Edited: Wednesday, 01 Oct 2008, 3:51 AM MST
Created: Wednesday, 01 Oct 2008, 3:51 AM MST

WASHINGTON -- President Bush has signed a sprawling, stopgap spending bill to keep the government running for the next 12 months.

The president's Tuesday move, which came on the last day of the government's budget year, was expected even though the measure spends more money and contains more pet projects than he would have liked. The legislation is one of the few bills this election year that simply had to pass.

The $630 billion-plus spending bill wraps together a record Pentagon budget with aid for automakers and natural disaster victims, and increased health care funding for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The measure also lifts a quarter-century ban on oil drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, a victory for Bush and fellow Republicans.

Read Artcile: My Fox Phoenix

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Pirates demand $20 mil for ship

2008-09-29T08:49:00.000-07:00

Pirates demand $20 mil for ship
U.S. Navy patrols seized boat loaded with Russian tanks

MOGADISHU, Somalia - As a heavily armed U.S. destroyer patrolled nearby and planes flew overhead Sunday, a Somali pirate spokesman told the Associated Press his group was demanding a $20 million ransom to release a cargo ship loaded with Russian tanks.

The spokesman also warned that the pirates would fight to the death if any country tried military action to regain the ship, and a man who said he was the ship's captain reported that one crew member had died.

Pirates seized the Ukrainian-operated ship Faina off the coast of Somalia on Thursday as it headed to Kenya carrying 33 Russian-built T-72 tanks and a substantial amount of ammunition and spare parts. The ordnance was ordered by the Kenyan government.

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WaMu is largest U.S. bank failure

2008-09-25T21:39:00.000-07:00

WaMu is largest U.S. bank failure

By Elinor Comlay and Jonathan Stempel
1 hour, 11 minutes ago

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Washington Mutual Inc was closed by the U.S. government in by far the largest failure of a U.S. bank, and its banking assets were sold to JPMorgan Chase & Co for $1.9 billion

Thursday's seizure and sale is the latest historic step in U.S. government attempts to clean up a banking industry littered with toxic mortgage debt. Negotiations over a $700 billion bailout of the entire financial system stalled in Washington on Thursday.

Washington Mutual, the largest U.S. savings and loan, has been one of the lenders hardest hit by the nation's housing bust and credit crisis, and had already suffered from soaring mortgage losses.

Washington Mutual was shut by the federal Office of Thrift Supervision, and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp was named receiver. This followed $16.7 billion of deposit outflows at the Seattle-based thrift since Sept 15, the OTS said.

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Fate of Friday's presidential debate remains a question

2008-09-25T09:16:00.000-07:00

Fate of Friday's presidential debate remains a question

From staff and wire reports
The fate of Friday night's first presidential debate hung in the balance Thursday as John McCain confirmed that he would not attend during the economic crisis and Barack Obama said the American people deserved to hear from the candidates.
The debate is scheduled for Friday night at the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss., with Jim Lehrer, of PBS' NewsHour moderating.

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Flu Shots Season

2008-09-24T17:49:00.000-07:00

Flu shot season begins with ample supply coming
Sept. 24, 2008 03:40 PM
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Just about everybody needs a flu vaccine - unless you're an infant or a healthy adult hermit - but far too few of the Americans who need protection the most get it.

That's the message as flu-shot season officially began Wednesday with a call for a record number to be inoculated - including 30 million more school-age children than ever before targeted.

"Get out there and get protected and protect others and for sure protect your children," said Dr. Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

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US Stocks

2008-09-23T09:35:00.000-07:00

U.S. stocks maintain modest rise as bailout debated

By Kate Gibson, MarketWatch

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Stocks edged up Tuesday after the prior session's heavy losses, with investors tuned into Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's testimony on Capitol Hill as lawmakers haggled over the $700 billion bailout plan designed to clear banks of bad debt.

"Investors remain reluctant to stick their necks out too far, even as policymakers meet to discuss the proposed bailout plan. A nagging fear of 'what ifs' is also weighing on sentiment," said Frederic Ruffy, options strategist at WhatsTrading.com.

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Pakistan Rejects U.S. Help

2008-09-22T09:09:00.000-07:00

Pakistan rejects U.S. help in probe of hotel blast

By Paul Wiseman and Zafar M. Sheikh, USA TODAY
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan on Sunday rejected a U.S. offer to help investigate the weekend suicide bombing that killed at least 53 people and destroyed the Islamabad Marriott, this capital city's best-known hotel.
"We do not need help. We are competent. We reject it," Interior Ministry adviser Rehman Malik told reporters Sunday after the U.S. offered FBI help in pursuing the terrorists behind the attack

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Early Voting Starts Today In Some States

2008-09-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

Early voting starts today in some states

By Richard Wolf, USA TODAY
FAIRFAX, Va. — Voters by the thousands will begin casting ballots for president this week in an early voting process that's expected to set records this year.
Residents of Virginia, Kentucky and Georgia are among the first in the nation eligible to vote in person, as well as by mail. During the next few weeks, at least 34 states and the District of Columbia will allow early in-person voting for Nov. 4 elections.

Experts such as Paul Gronke of the Early Voting Information Center predict nearly a third of the electorate will vote early this year, up from 15% in 2000 and 20% in 2004. In closely contested Colorado, Nevada and New Mexico, about half the voters are expected to cast ballots before Election Day. Florida could be 40%.

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Light Rail Train Carsh

2008-09-19T08:37:00.001-07:00

Light rail train, bus crash near downtown LA
Sept. 19, 2008 07:18 AM
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES - Fire officials say a light rail train has collided with a bus south of downtown Los Angeles, injuring at least 13 people.

Fire department spokesman Brian Humphreys says it's unclear how the accident happened. Humphreys says most of the injuries appear to be minor.

The crash involving the Metro Blue Line comes one week after a Metrolink train linking the city to suburbs smashed into a freight train in the San Fernando Valley, about 30 miles northwest of downtown.

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IKE

2008-09-19T08:37:00.000-07:00

Post-Ike: 'It's a public health emergency'

By Donna Leinwand, USA TODAY
HOUSTON — A 30-year-old man falls 25 feet from a cherry picker, smacking his head and breaking his leg so badly that bone pokes through his thigh. A trauma team at Texas Medical Center's Memorial Hermann Hospital crowds around him.
Nearby, a trauma team prepares for a patient arriving by helicopter who was hit in the head by a falling tree.

It is noon Thursday, five days after Hurricane Ike. Every bed in the emergency department is full. Nearly every 20 minutes, a helicopter carrying another critically ill person lands on the roof.

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Cell Phone Texting

2008-09-18T15:03:00.000-07:00

Authorities: Engineer texting on day of Calif. train wreck
LOS ANGELES (AP) — U.S. authorities investigating why a commuter train engineer ran through a red signal and into an oncoming freight train have confirmed that he was text messaging while working on the day of the fatal collision.
The California Public Utilities Commission, meanwhile, was scheduled to vote Thursday on a proposed emergency order banning the use of cellphones while operating a train. Commission President Michael R. Peevey, who is seeking the order, said some railroads have such policies but they're widely ignored.

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No Child Left Behind

2008-09-17T09:26:00.000-07:00

Elementary, middle school kids make gains
Updated 1d 21h ago | Comments6 | Recommend3
The Associated Press
Students are doing better in elementary and middle school, but key indicators show little progress among high school and college students, Education Secretary Margaret Spellings said.
"We've got a long way to go," Spellings said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We've turned the tide. We've started. We've gone from heretofore flat to making some real progress, where we've focused."

She cited a few of what she called leading indicators to make her point. Spellings was presenting the figures Monday at an education conference sponsored by the Aspen Institute, a think tank.

Kids in elementary and middle school have made progress because that is where the focus has been, Spellings told the AP.

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2008-09-16T08:25:00.000-07:00

Stocks higher in volatile trade after stocks fall in Asia, Europe

Staff and wire reports
NEW YORK — Stocks pulled well off their lows Tuesday as the financial sector partially recovered from Wall Street's worst session in years and as investors grew hopeful about a Federal Reserve interest rate cut. The Dow Jones industrial average traded in a wide range, sometimes dropping more than 100, sometimes up nearly 100.
Worries about AIG's well-being have intensified after several ratings agencies reduced their ratings on the company. Lower ratings can add to the amount of money the already cash-strapped company has to set aside. Investors are fearful that a failure by the world's largest insurer would touch off a wave of financial turmoil. AIG fell.

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2008-09-15T08:47:00.000-07:00

Is sad to know becuase of possible text message a mess like this resulted.

Feds look into texting before L.A. train crash

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Federal officials investigating a commuter rail collision that killed 25 people said they want to review cellphone records to determine if an engineer blamed for running a stop signal before the crash may have been text messaging at the time.
With no answer on the cause of Friday's crash, a smaller number of commuters than normal returned to the rails Monday morning.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa boarded one of the morning's earliest trains.
"I want to dispel any fears about taking the train," the mayor said. "Safety has to be our number one concern, and while accidents can and do happen, taking the train is still one of the safest and fastest options for commuters."
The National Transportation Safety Board confirmed on Sunday that the engineer, who was killed in the crash, had failed to stop at the final red signal.

Read Article: USA Today

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