http://http://www.kentucky.com/676/index.xml News, sports, and entertainment from Kentucky.com en-us Copyright 2009 Kentucky.com Politics -Wire 60 Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:09:18 EDT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss McClatchy Interactive's Workbench interactive-ops@herald-leader.com http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858772.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858772.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:05 EDT
If the West weighs new moves against Iran this fall, as Obama suggested Friday, it will likely mean new U.N. sanctions or unilateral U.S. penalties, rather than military strikes.

Obama told reporters in Italy, where he met with other world leaders, that there is now a September "time frame" for Iran to respond to offers to discuss its nuclear program. While he did not call it a deadline, he said the world cannot afford to wait long for Iran to make its intentions clear.

"We're not going to just wait indefinitely and allow for the development of the nuclear weapon," he said.

Obama said that in September "we will re-evaluate Iran's posture toward negotiating the cessation of a nuclear weapons policy." If by then it has not accepted the offer of talks, the United States and "potentially a lot of other countries" are going to say "we need to take further steps," he said.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858739.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858739.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:00 EDT
Several senior White House staffers had the honor Friday, after President Barack Obama's private audience with Pope Benedict XVI. First lady Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha also met the pontiff.

Among the top aides who got to meet the leader of the Roman Catholic church were senior adviser David Axelrod, deputy chief of staff Mona Sutphen, national security adviser James Jones and one of his deputies, Denis McDonough, and press secretary Robert Gibbs.

Obama introduced them to the pope, one by one, almost like a proud father.

He even noted that McDonough has a brother who is a priest.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858719.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858719.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:45 EDT
The department says 11 law enforcement agencies are ready to participate in the redesigned program.

Government investigators had criticized the program for not clearly spelling out when officers could use their arrest authority or whether it was meant for the pursuit of serious offenders.

The department says a new agreement with participating agencies spells out the extent of local officers' authority.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858691.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858691.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:00 EDT
Researchers from the Southern Poverty Law Center, based in Montgomery, Ala., identified about 40 personal profiles of people who list the military as their occupation Web site New Saxon, according to the group's founder, Morris Dees.

The site, run by the Detroit-based National Socialist Movement, describes itself as an "online community for whites by whites." He said some of the participants are wearing military uniforms in profile photos, although it was not possible to verify whether any of them are actually serving in the armed forces.

Examples that Dees cited from the Web page include:

-A person claiming to be in Iraq, who writes that he "hate(s) illegal immigrants with a passion and feel(s) every true red-blooded, white American should do whatever it takes to stop the foreign invasion."]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858682.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858682.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:10 EDT
Led by the senior Republican on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., committee members argued simultaneously that the government was spending too much money and not spending it fast enough.

They argued that projects are mired in red tape, that the slow pace of transportation spending is to blame for rising unemployment, and that the stimulus was not targeted to areas that needed jobs the most.

A look at their claims:

---]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858675.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858675.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:00 EDT
White House national security aide Denis McDonough said Obama and Benedict discussed Kennedy at the end of a half-hour one-on-one meeting at the Vatican on Friday. Obama asked the pope to pray for Kennedy, a member of one of the United States' most prominent Roman Catholic families and a politically ally to Obama.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters aboard Air Force One that Obama phoned Kennedy after the meeting. The spokesman said the pair talked for about 10 minutes before Obama boarded his airplane to Ghana.

Kennedy, a Massachusetts Democrat, was diagnosed a year ago with terminal brain cancer.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858647.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858647.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:45 EDT
It's unclear how much valuable intelligence was yielded by the surveillance program started after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, according to the unclassified summary of reports by five inspectors general. The reports mandated by Congress last year were delivered to lawmakers Friday.

President George W. Bush authorized other secret intelligence activities - which have yet to become public - even as he was launching the massive warrentless wiretapping program, the summary said. It describes the entire program as the "President's Surveillance Program."

The report describes the program as unprecedented and raises questions about the legal grounding used for its creation. It also says the intelligence agencies' continued retention and use of the information collected under the program should be carefully monitored.

Many senior intelligence officials believe the program filled a gap in intelligence. Others, including FBI, CIA and National Counterterrorism Center analysts, said intelligence gathered by traditional means was often more specific and timely, according to the report.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858642.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858642.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:31 EDT
The former Senate majority leader has been at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington since last week when he experienced a "sharply" elevated heart rate in the middle of the night, a statement from his law firm Alston and Bird said Friday.

Doctors determined the 85-year-old Dole's heart is fine, but surgeons performed several procedures on his left leg that had open sores. Dole's legs are healing properly and a skin graft is planned for Monday if Dole's progress continues at its current pace, according to the law firm's statement.

The medical attention "has been painful, but I think I will be fine," Dole said in the statement.

"I am recovering nicely thanks to the great doctors, nurses and staff at Walter Reed. I have been coming to Walter Reed for over 40 years and I hope to be out by my birthday, July 22," Dole said in a statement.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858639.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858639.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 13:24 EDT
The White House said Friday that some embassies would have screenings and discussions during the speech in Accra.

The U.S. Mission to the African Union has invited representatives to watch Obama's speech to the parliament. In Kenya, U.S. State Department officials plan to stream Voice of America's coverage of the speech over cellular phones. And Sierra Leone plans to broadcast the speech at more than 500 cinemas.

Obama is making his first trip to sub-Saharan Africa as president. He is a highly popular figure on the continent as the first African-American U.S. president.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858622.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858622.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:29 EDT
A report released by the National Transportation Safety Board indicates an inflated slide may have pressed against critical control cables, forcing the emergency landing of Obama's campaign plane on July 7, 2008.

The slide inflated inside the tail cone of the campaign's McDonnell Douglas MD-81 shortly after takeoff from Chicago's Midway International Airport, the report said.

Investigators found evidence that the slide and a broken walkway railing inside the tail cone may have pressed against elevator cables that run the length of the plane. The cables are used to control whether the plane points up or down.

The plane's flight crew struggled to level the aircraft's nose, which continued to point upward after takeoff, but regained control by manipulating the control column and adjusting the trim on the plane's tail, the report said. However, the flight crew noted the pitch control pressure required to level the airplane was higher than normal, the report said.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858588.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858588.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 14:00 EDT
Legal observers saw the ruling as an expansion of immunity for federal lawmakers that could make it harder for lawmen to go after misconduct in Congress.

The case involves former Florida Republican Rep. Tom Feeney and a golf trip he took to Scotland, paid for by the now-imprisoned Abramoff.

The House Ethics Committee said in 2007 that the trip violated House rules and Feeney agreed to pay the U.S. Treasury $5,643, the purported cost of the trip.

The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington revealed - in an opinion filed June 23 but just unsealed Thursday - that the Justice Department subsequently began an investigation into statements Feeney made to the committee. The opinion, which did not name Feeney but described elements of his case, concluded that statements to the ethics committee are excluded from criminal investigations by the Constitution.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858587.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858587.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:59 EDT
Clinton called Friday for North Korea to grant amnesty to Laura Ling and Euna Lee and let them return home quickly to their families. She says "everyone is very sorry that it happened."

Ling's sister says Laura acknowledged during a recent phone call that she had broken North Korean law and that she and Lee are seeking the U.S. government's help.

The women worked for U.S.-based Current TV. The North says they documented their journey into North Korea, even pocketing a stone to commemorate the illicit trip across the frozen Tumen River from China.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858575.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858575.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:44 EDT
Geithner defended the stimulus plan Friday after Florida Republican Rep. Bill Posey asked where the government's plan went wrong, because unemployment remains high.

Geithner says unemployment was an inescapable element of the recession. Still, he added, there has been substantial progress against what he called "the worst recession globally we've seen in generations."

Geithner is testifying before the House Financial Services Committee and House Agriculture Committee.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858531.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858531.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 11:59 EDT
The VA's inspector general ordered the review as part of legislation passed to fix problems after the 2007 death of 27-year-old Justin Bailey in a Los Angeles residential facility.

Bailey, a Marine, had surgeries for a groin injury he sustained during the first part of the Iraq war and was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

His father, Tony Bailey, later testified before Congress that the day before his son died, he was given five different prescriptions in doses covering 14, 15 and 30 days. The father also said that his son had been in the treatment facility for six weeks, but had yet to see a psychiatrist. He said his son was known to abuse prescription medications and had used illegal drugs.

The inspector general's review says less than half of sites visited had appropriate policies to screen patients. It also says more than 10 percent of patients allowed to give themselves narcotics received more than a week's supply.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858522.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858522.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 10:39 EDT
Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., said at a hearing Friday that he cares less about which agency will be given the task than about making sure that it's done.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner was testifying before the House committees on financial services and agriculture on the administration's plan to regulate privately traded derivatives.

Derivatives are financial instruments whose value are derived from something else, such as a mortgage-backed security or a commodity like oil.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858504.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858504.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 16:00 EDT
The 30-minute meeting Vatican audience was described by both sides as positive - constructive talks between two men who agree on helping the poor and pushing for Middle East peace but disagree on what the Vatican considers prime ethical issues.

"It's a great honor," Obama said, greeting the pope and thanking him for this first meeting.

Afterward, the Vatican said the leaders discussed immigration, the Middle East peace process and aid to developing nations. But the Vatican's statement also underscored the pair's deep disagreement on abortion.

"In the course of their cordial exchanges, the conversation turned first of all to questions which are in the interest of all and which constitute a great challenge ... such as the defense and promotion of life and the right to abide by one's conscience," the statement said.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858469.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858469.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:19 EDT
Speaking in Italy at the conclusion of a summit of the world's developed countries, Obama said in response to a question that getting involved in a country's internal affairs would not always be a "neat decision" because other countries would object.

But he also said there will be exceptions.

The president said that genocide in Rwanda was an example of a crisis that made international intervention a moral imperative.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858468.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858468.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 09:19 EDT
He says there are national security reasons for these nations to help boost food supplies, too.

The U.S. president spoke Friday at a news conference at the end of a summit of the Group of Eight developed nations in Italy. He said world leaders had agreed to invest $20 billion to combat world hunger.

Obama says he understands the issue in personal terms.

The president, whose father was Kenyan, says he still has relatives living in villages where hunger is a reality.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858454.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858454.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:59 EDT
Concluding the G-8 summit in Italy, Obama spoke of the need to find the right combination of international leaders to move ahead on global issues.

One problem, he says, is that everyone wants a seat at the table. He says if a nation is the 21st biggest, it thinks there should be a G-21, rather than a G-8.

Obama says "a lot of energy" is going into these summits - which, he suggests, can sometimes work more effectively and rapidly than the United Nations can. Obama says he's a "strong supporter" of the UN, but that it needs to be reformed and revitalized.

One thing is clear - Obama says when it comes to dealing with decision-making bodies, the U.S. Congress is "always tougher" than the groups he deals with overseas.]]> http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858455.html http://www.kentucky.com/676/story/858455.html Fri, 10 Jul 2009 08:59 EDT
He says he hopes Congress will pass health care legislation by the August recess but "nothing is do or die."

Obama says he is making health care his "highest legislative priority".

He spoke at a news conference Friday following the summit in the Italian city of L'Aquila.]]>