Hijacked oil tanker nears Somalia
November 18, 2008
The Sirius Star
A giant Saudi oil tanker seized by pirates in the Indian Ocean is nearing the coast of Somalia, the US Navy says.
Search is on for new Yahoo CEO after Yang steps down
November 18, 2008
Search is on for new Yahoo CEO after Yang steps down
SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc said Jerry Yang will step down as chief executive as soon as the board finds a replacement, sending its shares up 4 percent on hopes his departure will clear the way for a deal with Microsoft.
Many voters began queuing early
November 17, 2008
Barack Obama and John McCain attended the 9/11 memorial service together in New York City this year.
Call it a meeting of the bipartisan minds.
World leaders urge fast action on financial crisis
November 16, 2008
World leaders urge fast action on financial crisis
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - World leaders pledged rapid action on Saturday to rescue a weakening global economy from the worst financial crisis in over 70 years and agreed to give emerging nations more say in running financial affairs.
Obama sees need for auto bailout
November 13, 2008
Obama sees need for auto bailout
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Since his election last week, Barack Obama has largely avoided getting entangled in resolving issues now that will face him later as president, except for one big item: Bailing out the U.S. auto industry.
A heated debate has broken out in Washington over whether to use $25 billion of a $700 billion financial bailout package to provide a lifeline to the Big Three automakers — GM, Ford and Chrysler — which are suffering from plummeting sales.
Professing that the United States has “only one president at a time,” Obama is avoiding Washington this week as world leaders who would love to take his measure are gathering there for a financial summit.
He is also steering clear of a lame-duck session of the U.S. Congress that will attempt to craft a new economic stimulus package, a job that will be left to him when he takes over on January 20 should an agreement fail to materialize.
But Obama, a Democrat who had solid support of labor unions during his presidential campaign, has come out firmly in favor of the auto bailout, raising the issue at a news conference last Friday and again in talks with Republican President George W. Bush on Monday.
Obama transition leader John Podesta told reporters on Tuesday that Obama wants to ensure that the auto industry survives to produce “the kind of vehicles that the American public need, and complete the job of creating more efficient vehicles that meet our energy needs.”
Proponents of a bailout see the auto industry as an important source for millions of U.S. jobs that must be saved, not just in production lines, but rippling down to auto parts companies, car dealers and repair shops.
If the U.S. government is willing to bail out insurance giant AIG with $150 billion in taxpayer funds, surely it can send $25 billion to Detroit, according to this line of thinking.
MILLIONS OF JOBS
“We’re talking about $25 billion to save millions of jobs in this country. I don’t think that’s unreasonable,” said Michigan Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow on Fox News Channel.
Detractors say the auto companies should be left to resolve their own problems after refusing for years to offer innovations such as more fuel-efficient cars in favor of gas-guzzling vehicles that have fallen out of favor after Americans got a taste of $4-a-gallon gasoline last summer.
New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman wrote on Wednesday that the auto industry has avoided innovation for years, shielded by Michigan’s congressional delegation from environmental and mileage concerns and the full impact of global competition.
The Bush administration has been cool to the idea of using the $700 billion bailout package to rescue the Big Three.
White House spokesman Tony Fratto said if Congress wants to send money to the Big Three, there is already a loan program in place for the auto industry that only needs to be amended.
“It’s strange that Congress’ intent here is to take money that was appropriated to deal with an emergency in our financial system and use it for some other purpose,” Fratto said. “The emergency has not gone away. We are still dealing with an emergency situation in our financial system, so taking money away from it does not make sense.”
Presidential scholar Stephen Hess, who examines what new presidents need to know in his book, “What Do We Do Now? — A Workbook for the President-Elect,” said Obama appears to be on the right side of public opinion on the issue.
“I think it’s not only what people consider justifiable, but it’s something that presumably Congress can try to do in it’s lame-duck session,” he said.
But economist Peter Morici of the University of Maryland’s School of Business said Obama would be making a mistake to bail out the Big Three without major reforms or else they will end up in bankruptcy two or three years from now.
“It won’t work,” he said. “Giving them some assistance now won’t make them cost effective two years from now.”
White House says Bush says didn’t link trade, autos
November 12, 2008
White House says Bush says didn
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The White House said on Tuesday President George W. Bush did not link support for economic stimulus measures or further aid to U.S. automakers to congressional passage of free trade pacts in a meeting with President-elect Barack Obama.
“The president did not suggest a quid-pro-quo,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino told reporters, adding, however, that Bush did speak to Obama about the merits of free trade.
An Obama adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, also said Bush did not link the issues in their White House meeting on Monday.
The New York Times, citing people familiar with the discussion, reported Bush indicated he might support further aid to struggling automakers and a broader economic stimulus package if Democrats in Congress passed a stalled free-trade agreement with Colombia.
At the meeting, Obama urged Bush to use existing bailout measures to help the ailing industry on top of a $25 billion loan packaged approved in September, another Obama aide said.
That aide, who insisted on anonymity, said Obama suggested accelerating implementation of the current loan package and exploring avenues that exist under current law.
Obama suggested identifying someone in charge of the auto issue who would have authority to bring about reforms that would lead to a viable auto industry, the aide said.
Obama also raised the need for a second stimulus plan that would create jobs and help relieve “the squeeze on families,” the aide said.
EXISTING PACKAGE
The Bush administration said any new and substantial money for manufacturers could come out of the existing loan package, which was passed to help Detroit make more fuel-efficient vehicles. But any change would require additional legislative action, White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.
“We’re open to ideas from Congress to accelerate funds they’ve already appropriated in the auto loan program — as long as funding will continue to go to viable firms and with strong taxpayer protections,” Fratto said.
Detroit has asked for up to $25 billion in additional loans to stave off collapse. U.S. auto sales are plunging and General Motors Corp, Chrysler LLC and Ford Motor Co, are burning through billions of dollars of cash monthly.
Automakers privately say the financing for fuel-efficient vehicles would take too long to obtain and has too many strings attached to help shake the current crisis. They would like another $25 billion later to reduce retiree health-care costs.
Top congressional Democrats asked Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson on Saturday to consider using the $700 billion financial bailout initiative that has so far covered banks and other financial services companies to help automakers as well.
Congress next week could act to increase the flexibility of the bailout program if Treasury balks.
Obama, who takes office on January 20, said in a news conference on Friday that aid for automakers is a high priority of his transition team.
Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said on the plane back from Washington after the meeting on Monday that Obama did not ask Bush for help for a specific American automaker.
Obama makes historic White House visit
November 11, 2008
Obama makes historic White House visit
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Barack Obama visited the White House on Monday for his first post-election meeting with President George W. Bush, a strikingly symbolic moment in the transition of power.
Obama, who will take office on January 20 with the country close to recession, urged Bush to back immediate emergency aid for the struggling U.S. automakers, The New York Times reported.
The president and first lady Laura Bush greeted the newly elected president and his wife, Michelle, with smiles and handshakes, even as Obama’s advisers reviewed some of Bush’s executive orders with an eye to reversing them after he is sworn in on January 20.
The two men met privately in the Oval Office for over an hour in talks thought to have encompassed the global financial crisis, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other daunting challenges the Republican president will bequeath to his Democratic successor.
It was their first face-to-face encounter following Obama’s resounding victory over Republican John McCain in Tuesday’s election, which will make him the United States’ first black president.
Obama, 47, had repeatedly attacked Bush’s “failed policies” on the campaign trail, and the Illinois senator swept to power on a theme of change — specifically, change from the unpopular president’s approach to economics and foreign affairs.
Top congressional Democrats have asked the Bush administration to consider aid to the automakers through the financial bailout initiative that has so far covered banks and other financial services companies, and Obama urged Bush to act quickly at their meeting, according to The New York Times.
Citing people familiar with their discussion, the Times said Bush indicated he might support some aid for the auto industry and a broader economic stimulus package if Obama dropped his opposition to a free-trade pact with Colombia.
Obama’s aides say after taking office he will likely move quickly to roll back Bush’s executive orders that limit stem cell research and expand oil and gas drilling in some areas.
But members of Obama’s team cautioned on Monday he had not yet decided whether to reverse executive orders.
There was no outward sign of tension, however, when the Obamas stepped from their limousine at the south portico of the White House. Earlier, they had been cheered by crowds of onlookers as their motorcade sped through the capital.
“Good morning,” Laura Bush chirped, though it was well past noon.
Obama put his hand on Bush’s back cordially as the two couples entered the mansion. The leaders then strolled down the colonnade side by side, chatting. Obama was the more animated of the two, gesturing with both hands. He had never set foot in the Oval Office before and was ushered in ahead of Bush.
While their husbands met, the first lady gave Michelle Obama a tour of the White House living quarters, which will soon be her family’s new home and where daughters Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, will be running the halls.
SENSE OF URGENCY
At the end of a two-hour visit, Bush and Obama had nothing to say to reporters and both camps were mostly tight-lipped.
White House spokeswoman Dana Perino would only say that domestic and international issues were discussed and that Bush “again pledged a smooth transition.”
Obama spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter said the leaders agreed on the need to cooperate in the changeover “in light of the nation’s many critical economic and security challenges.”
Later, as Obama’s plane sat on the airport tarmac in Washington before taking off for Chicago, journalists onboard overheard snippets of a cell phone conversation the president-elect had with an unknown party.
“I am not going to be spending too much time in Washington over the next several weeks,” Obama said.
Newly elected presidents traditionally visit the White House between election and inauguration but usually wait longer than Obama did. He came calling at Bush’s invitation after only six days, underscoring a sense of urgency in the transition.
It will be the first wartime transfer of power in four decades and comes amid economic upheaval at home and abroad.
Financial markets, struggling in a global credit crunch, are awaiting news of Obama’s appointments for key jobs such as Treasury secretary, but a spokeswoman for Obama said on Monday he would not make any Cabinet announcements this week.
Obama said in his first post-election news conference on Friday he would not be rushed into making hasty decisions.
Underscoring Obama’s assertion he will not act as a shadow president during the transition, an aide confirmed what the White House had been saying — that he will not attend a global financial summit in Washington on Friday and Saturday.
Bush, whose low approval ratings helped propel Obama to victory, has said he will do all he can to help in the changeover.
Though visits by incoming presidents to the White House before taking office are a ritual dating back decades, there was little denying Obama’s tour carried special significance.
The son of a black father from Kenya and white mother from Kansas, Obama made history by winning the presidency, an achievement seen as a breakthrough in U.S. race relations.
Source: reuters.com
Many killed in twin Baghdad bombs
November 10, 2008
The bombings struck a mainly-Sunni district of Baghdad
At least 22 people have been killed in two bombings that occurred just moments apart in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad.
The first bomb went off in a car and then a suicide bomber detonated the second blast in a crowd that had gathered to help, police say.
Bali bomb burials stoke tensions
November 9, 2008
There are fears the bombers
Indonesian security forces are on high alert after the state execution of three Islamic militants for the 2002 Bali bombings that killed 202 people.
There were reports of clashes as hundreds of supporters attended burials in the men’s home villages in Java.
Russia: At least 20 dead in nuclear sub accident
November 9, 2008
A file photo of the Shchuka-B type Russian submarine, classified by NATO as Akula.
An accident aboard a Russian nuclear-powered submarine making a test run in the Sea of Japan killed at least 20 people, officials said Sunday.
The accident occurred when a fire-extinguishing system went into operation in error aboard the submarine, Dygalo and other officials said. The system is designed to release Freon coolant when activated, according to the ITAR-Tass news agency, which cited an official with Russia’s top investigative agency.
It was unclear what activated the fire-extinguishing system.
The official, Sergei Markin, said 14 civilians and six sailors were killed and 22 others were hospitalized after being evacuated to a destroyer that brought them to the Pacific port of Vladivostok, ITAR-Tass reported.
Earlier, Dygalo said more than 20 people were killed, including sailors and workers from the shipyard that built the submarine, and that 21 were injured and hospitalized. He said there were 208 people aboard, including 81 servicemen. Officials did not reveal the name of the submarine.
It was Russia’s worst naval accident since torpedo explosions sank another nuclear-powered submarine, the Kursk, in the Barents Sea in 2000, killing all 118 seamen aboard. In 2003, 11 people died when a submarine that was being taken out of service also sank in the Barents Sea.
Saturday’s accident came as the Kremlin flexes its military muscle and seeks to restore Russia’s naval reach, part of a drive to show off the nuclear-armed country’s clout amid strained ties with the West. A naval squadron is headed to Venezuela for joint exercises this month in a show of force near U.S. waters.
Dygalo said the casualties resulted from the “unsanctioned activation” of the firefighting system in the two sections of the submarine closest to the bow, and that the nuclear reactor that powers it was not threatened.
The submarine was not damaged and was heading back toward shore on its own power, escorted by a rescue vessel, Dygalo said.
Markin said authorities have opened an investigation into violations of rules for operating military vessels, suggesting human error was likely involved.
The state-run RIA-Novosti news agency cited an unnamed official at the Amur Shipbuilding Factory as saying the sub was built there and is called the Nerpa. Testing on the submarine began last month and it submerged for the first time last week, according to the agency.
Construction of the Nerpa, an Akula II class attack submarine, started in 1991 but was suspended for years because of a shortage of funding, RIA-Novosti reported.
Despite a major boost in military spending during Vladimir Putin’s eight years as president, Russia’s military is still hampered by decrepit infrastructure, aging weapons ad problems with corruption and incompetence.
First Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Kolmakov and navy chief Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky were heading for the Pacific Coast in the wake of the accident, Dygalo said.
The Kremlin said President Dmitry Medvedev had been informed about the accident immediately by his defense minister and was receiving frequent updates, Russian news agencies reported. Medvedev ordered a thorough investigation.
Putin, now prime minister, was criticized for his slow response to the Kursk disaster, which marred the first of his eight years as president.
Source: cnn.com