Evening Edition

Evening Edition is an Open Thread

From Yahoo News Top Stories

1 Russian fury on eve of World Cup vote

by Rob Woollard, AFP

46 mins ago

ZURICH (AFP) – Last-ditch lobbying for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups cranked into overdrive Wednesday as Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin launched a thinly veiled attack against England’s bid on the eve of the vote.

The five countries battling for the 2022 football extravaganza — Australia, the United States, South Korea, Japan and Qatar — showcased their bids one last time in presentations at FIFA headquarters in Zurich.

Meanwhile, high-powered delegations from countries slugging it out for the 2018 tournament were engaging in frenzied politicking with the climax to the scandal-tainted vote less than 24 hours away.

2 Putin slams anti-FIFA ‘smears’ on eve of World Cup vote

by Rob Woollard, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 10:56 am ET

ZURICH (AFP) – Last-ditch lobbying for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups cranked into overdrive Wednesday as Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin launched a scathing attack on England’s bid on the eve of the vote.

The five countries battling for the 2022 football extravaganza — Australia, the United States, South Korea, Japan and Qatar — showcased their bids one last time to voters at FIFA headquarters in Zurich.

Meanwhile, high-powered delegations from the countries slugging it out for the 2018 tournament were engaging in frenzied lobbying with the climax to the scandal-tainted looming less than 24 hours away.

3 Frenzied lobbying as World Cup D-day looms

by Rob Woollard, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 8:06 am ET

ZURICH (AFP) – The frenzied race for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups entered the home straight on Wednesday as rival bids prepared to make final presentations on the eve of the scandal-tainted election.

The five countries battling for the 2022 football extravaganza — Australia, the United States, South Korea, Japan and Qatar — were to showcase their bids in 30-minute pitches to voters at FIFA headquarters in Zurich.

High-powered delegations from England and other countries slugging it out for the 2018 tournament meanwhile were engaging in frantic last-ditch lobbying before making their own presentations on Thursday.

4 Lawyer slams ‘persecution’ as Interpol hunts WikiLeaks chief

by Danny Kemp, AFP

1 hr 32 mins ago

LONDON (AFP) – The lawyer of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Wednesday his client was being persecuted for publishing embarrassing US diplomatic cables as Interpol called for his arrest over rape accusations.

As Washington tried to calm new outbursts of anger from world leaders over the leaks, France-based Interpol said it had alerted all member states to arrest Assange, who is wanted in Sweden on allegations of sex crimes.

Assange’s mother said she did not want her son “hunted down”, while his lawyer in London suggested the alert issued by the global police body could be linked to the “bellicose” US reactions over the dumping of the classified documents.

5 ‘Sarkozy the American’ mulled troops for Iraq: WikiLeaks

by Dave Clark, AFP

Tue Nov 30, 6:43 pm ET

PARIS (AFP) – Even before his election, President Nicolas Sarkozy convinced the US he was the most pro-American French leader since the war and even discussed sending French troops to Iraq, leaked cables showed.

The French daily Le Monde, citing a trove of stolen diplomatic cables given to it by the activist website WikiLeaks, said Sarkozy wooed US diplomats in Paris long before taking office in 2007 and convinced them he was a firm ally.

“Sarkozy is the French politician who most supports the role of the United States in the world,” the US embassy in Paris wrote in a 2006 portrait of the right-wing minister shortly before he announced his presidential run.

6 Arrest warrant for WikiLeaks chief as chaos spreads

AFP

Wed Dec 1, 10:14 am ET

PARIS (AFP) – Interpol called Wednesday for the arrest of WikiLeaks’ shadowy founder as the site’s release of secret US cables laid bare international concerns over the safety of Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal.

France-based Interpol said it had alerted all member states to arrest Julian Assange, who is wanted in Sweden for “probable cause of suspected rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion”.

Assange’s mother said she did not want her son, who has denied the charges, “hunted down”.

7 German EON offloads ‘milestone’ Gazprom stake

by Simon Sturdee, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 12:38 pm ET

BERLIN (AFP) – Germany’s EON said Wednesday it had sold its 3.5-percent stake in Russian gas giant Gazprom, a holding once hailed as a “milestone” in Moscow and Berlin’s growing commercial ties.

EON, the world’s largest private utilities group, said it would raise 3.4 billion euros (4.4 billion dollars) from selling 2.7 percent in Gazprom to state-owned Vnesheconombank (VEB) and 0.8 percent on the stock market.

The stake in the world’s largest gas firm was held by EON’s subsidiary EON Ruhrgas, which built up a 6.4-percent interest between 1998 and 2003 before exchanging 2.9 percent for a stake in the Yuzhno-Russkoye gas field in Russia.

8 Rugby chiefs to use Olympics as ‘calling card’

by Luke Phillips, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 12:02 pm ET

DUBAI (AFP) – The inclusion of rugby sevens at the 2016 Olympic Games will act as a “calling card” to grow all forms of the game on a global level, the sport’s governing body said Wednesday.

The abbreviated form of rugby union, a high-octane game featuring seven-a-side teams competing in pool action before progressing to a knock-out stage, was accepted by the International Olympic Committee for the Rio Games.

And Mark Egan, head of development at the International Rugby Board (IRB), said sevens was ideal for growing the shortened game and full 15-a-side rugby, for both men and women.

9 South Africa’s anti-AIDS drugs reach a million people

by Tabelo Timse, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 1:12 pm ET

DRIEFONTEIN, South Africa (AFP) – A million people are now receiving anti-AIDS drugs in South Africa, a country with the world’s heaviest HIV infections, Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe said on Wednesday.

“More than 200 000 new patients have been initiated on ARV’s since April this year, bringing a total number to one million,” Motlanthe told a public gathering to mark World AIDS Day in the eastern province of Mpumalanga.

Motlanthe said more public health institutions were now providing treatment, with more nurses trained to administer ARV (anti-retroviral) drugs.

10 End to gay ban poses little risk for military: Pentagon

by Dan De Luce, AFP

Tue Nov 30, 6:15 pm ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) – A Pentagon study issued Tuesday said ending a ban on gay soldiers serving openly would create no serious problem for the US military, as the White House pressed for repealing the law.

The long-awaited report said that a “solid majority” of troops expressed no objection to the change, though members of combat units had more misgivings.

The study, which the White House hopes will pave the way for Congress to lift the ban, concluded the risk “to overall military effectiveness is low” if the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” law is repealed.

11 Eurozone debt crisis deepens

AFP

Tue Nov 30, 6:03 pm ET

PARIS (AFP) – The financial cloud hanging over the eurozone darkened Tuesday, with the euro falling and Italy hit by rising borrowing rates as EU measures to control sovereign debt left investors uncertain and anxious.

The euro fell under 1.30 dollars for the first time since mid-September, dropping at one point to 1.2969 dollars from 1.3121 dollars late Monday. The single currency later edged back up to 1.2982 dollars.

Upward pressure intensified on 10-year borrowing rates for countries seen at risk of needing a rescue after Greece and Ireland, with attention focused on Spain, a potentially much bigger problem for the EU.

12 Islamists, secular party withdraw from Egypt poll run-off

by Samer al-Atrush, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 1:15 pm ET

CAIRO (AFP) – The Muslim Brotherhood and the secular Wafd party both withdrew on Wednesday from Egypt’s election after a crushing first-round defeat by the president’s ruling party in a poll marred by alleged fraud and violence.

The move left barely any opposition to contest the second round of the parliamentary poll and dealt another blow to the credibility of the vote after Egypt came in for heavy criticism from its US ally and human rights groups.

The Muslim Brotherhood won a fifth of the seats in the 2005 election but failed to secure a single one in Sunday’s ballot.

13 Giant scarf knitted for Peru’s missing

by Bayly Turner, AFP

Wed Dec 1, 11:00 am ET

AYACUCHO, Peru (AFP) – A clutch of women knitting together is a familiar, friendly sight in the Peruvian highlands, a region prized for its wool where traditional, home-knitted outfits are part of everyday clothing.

But the women in Ayacucho share more than a love of knitting. They are the bereaved mothers, sisters and widows of some of the tens of thousands of men who went missing in what they call “The War”.

Each one is working on a panel roughly the size of an A4 sheet of paper to remember their “disappeared” loved ones. The panels are then pieced together in an enormous scarf, a work in progress that already measures 350-metres (yards) long and went on show in Lima for the first time last week.

14 Deficit panel recalibrates, seeks more support

By Kevin Drawbaugh and Donna Smith, Reuters

18 mins ago

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A presidential commission trying to balance the U.S. budget on Wednesday softened a proposed tax overhaul to win broader support for its bold plan to slash the $1.3 trillion federal deficit.

The plan faced an uphill struggle to win sufficient backing to trigger a congressional vote. Even if that happens, analysts predict Congress won’t take substantive steps to reduce the deficit this year.

Changes made to the plan included dropping a proposal to kill the popular mortgage interest tax deduction, as had been recommended on November 10. The revised version proposed a limited, 12 percent mortgage interest tax credit.

15 Geithner and lawmakers debate Bush-era tax cuts

By Kim Dixon, Reuters

2 hrs 5 mins ago

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Barack Obama’s top economic advisers and key leaders in Congress haggled over how to extend low Bush-era tax rates on Wednesday, seeking to break a political deadlock and prevent taxes from rising next year.

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who is leading negotiations for the White House with budget director Jack Lew, said participants had a “civil, constructive discussion” but he would not talk about where those talks were heading.

“We went through everything on the table,” Geithner told reporters. “We also agreed, this is very important, that we are not going to characterize the discussions in the room.”

16 Special report: How BP’s oil spill costs could double

By Tom Bergin, Reuters

Wed Dec 1, 8:28 am ET

LONDON (Reuters) – Last month, BP increased by $8 billion the financial provisions it was taking for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill; the company’s shares rose. Better-than- expected underlying profits and upbeat comments from new Chief Executive Bob Dudley were taken by the market as a sign the company had turned the corner and would soon return to pumping out steadily rising dividends.

Key to this sanguine outlook is confidence that the new estimate of the total cost of the spill — $40 billion — will be sufficient. “We think that $40 billion adequately provisions for the liabilities that are outstanding so far,” said Mark Lacey, Fund Manager at Investec Global Energy Fund. Paul Mumford, fund manager at Cavendish Asset Management, went further, saying the provision is likely to be overly conservative: “You might well find that you get provision write-backs,” he said, hinting the bill could be lower.

That optimistic view may turn out to be true. BP executives have said this is their “best estimate” of costs, adding they could turn out lower. But history shows there is ample scope for nasty surprises from BP. The London-based oil giant — last year it was the biggest non-state controlled oil and gas producer in the world — has so far consistently underestimated the scope and potential cost of the Gulf spill. It also has a track record of low-balling disasters, including the fatal Texas City refinery blast in 2005. Not only has the company underestimated the cost of repairing equipment and ecosystems in the past, it has also made overly optimistic assumptions about legal challenges.

17 Russia’s Putin warns West over missile defense: report

By Steve Gutterman, Reuters

Wed Dec 1, 8:38 am ET

MOSCOW (Reuters) – Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told CNN television that Russia would deploy nuclear weapons and “strike forces” if it were shut out of a Western missile shield, adding punch to a warning from President Dmitry Medvedev.

In an interview with Larry King taped on Tuesday, Putin also said the WikiLeaks scandal was “no catastrophe” and told the United States not to meddle with Russian elections.

Putin said missile threats against Europe must be tackled jointly — a reference to an agreement reached at a November 20 Russia-NATO summit to cooperate on missile defense. Plans are sketchy and Russia has warned it wants an equal role.

18 U.N. climate talks seek to define rich, poor duties

By Timothy Gardner and Gerard Wynn, Reuters

Tue Nov 30, 7:05 pm ET

CANCUN, Mexico (Reuters) – Climate negotiators at U.N. talks in Mexico on Tuesday struggled over proposals that would abolish a two-decade divide between rich and poor on scrutiny of greenhouse gas emissions.

Developed countries say fast-growing emerging economies led by China, which has become the top carbon emitter, have to do far more to curb their emissions. Many poor nations oppose changing a 1992 U.N. convention that obliges the rich to lead.

“I can guarantee you that this will be a controversial issue,” Artur Runge-Metzger, a senior European Union negotiator, said at the November 29 to December 10 talks in a Caribbean resort.

19 Military study gives green light to end gay ban

By Phil Stewart and Ross Colvin, Reuters

Tue Nov 30, 6:51 pm ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Pentagon unveiled a study on Tuesday that predicted little impact if the U.S. military ended its ban on gays, bolstering President Barack Obama’s push to get Congress to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” by year-end.

Gay rights activists swiftly applauded the study, which dismissed or minimized concerns among some U.S. lawmakers and up to a third of the military about ending the policy.

Obama called for swift action by Congress, where he faces stiff opposition from Senate Republicans who are threatening to block him..

20 Portugal under the gun as borrowing costs rise

By Sergio Goncalves, Reuters

Wed Dec 1, 10:22 am ET

LISBON (Reuters) – Debt-ridden Portugal suffered another blow on Wednesday when its borrowing costs rose sharply in a government Treasury bill auction, but officials insisted the country could survive without an international bailout.

All the 500 million euros in 12-month T-bills on offer in the auction were sold. But yields rose to a euro lifetime record of 5.281 percent from 4.813 percent two weeks ago, demonstrating sagging investor confidence in the Iberian nation which is now in the frontline of the euro zone debt crisis.

“Should bond yields not ease soon, there is a significant chance of Portugal being the next country having to seek an EU bailout,” said Diego Iscaro, an economist at IHS-Global Insight in London.

21 Social Security cuts are part of deficit plan

By ANDREW TAYLOR, Associated Press

55 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Divisions remain within President Barack Obama’s deficit commission on politically explosive budget cuts and slashes in Social Security benefits, even as the panel’s co-chairmen go public with a revised plan to tame the runaway national debt.

The new plan by co-chairmen Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson, to be unveiled Wednesday, faces an uphill slog. Resistance is certain, not only because of the idea of raising the Social Security retirement age, but also because of proposed cuts to Medicare, curtailment of tax breaks and a doubling of the federal tax on a gallon of gasoline.

Though the plan appears unlikely to win enough bipartisan support from the panel to be approved for a vote in Congress this year or next, Bowles has already declared victory, saying he and Simpson have at least succeeded in initiating an “adult conversation” in the country about the pain it will take to cut the deficit.

22 Deficit panel split; painful package in doubt

By ANDREW TAYLOR and TOM RAUM, Associated Press

6 mins ago

WASHINGTON – A painful package of spending cuts and tax increases drew sharp challenges from both the left and right on President Barack Obama’s deficit commission Wednesday, putting approval in doubt. However, both parties’ Senate budget point men embraced the plan, and even opponents called it a starting point for efforts next year to control the nation’s ballooning debt.

“It’s a template that gives people an opportunity to start discussing what we have to do to get our fiscal house in order,” said Rep. Xavier Becerra, a California Democrat on the panel who hasn’t said whether he’ll support the package.

The 18-member bipartisan commission could vote on the plan Friday. But as Wednesday’s meeting demonstrated, the co-chairmen, Democrat Erskine Bowles and Republican Alan Simpson, face a difficult chore in rounding up the 14 votes needed to officially send the plan to Congress for consideration.

23 GOP says it’ll block bills until tax cuts extended

By JULIE HIRSCHFELD DAVIS, Associated Press

56 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Senate Republicans threatened Wednesday to block virtually all legislation until expiring tax cuts are extended and a bill is passed to fund the federal government, vastly complicating Democratic attempts to leave their own stamp on the final days of the post-election Congress.

“While there are other items that might ultimately be worthy of the Senate’s attention, we cannot agree to prioritize any matters above the critical issues of funding the government and preventing a job-killing tax hike,” all 42 GOP senators wrote in a letter to Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. The 42 signatures are more than enough to block action on almost any item he wishes to advance.

The threat does not apply to a new arms control treaty with Russia that is pending, since it would be debated under rules that differ from those that apply to routine legislation. President Barack Obama has made ratification of the pact a top priority.

24 Lawmakers stand firm on taxes as talks start

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 12:48 pm ET

WASHINGTON – Democrats and Republicans are working to reach a deal to extend Bush-era tax cuts that expire at the end of the year, but neither side is budging as negotiations begin in earnest.

Even as they talk, House leaders are planning to hold a politically charged vote Thursday to extend middle-class tax cuts while letting taxes for the wealthy rise.

The bill, even if it passes the House, stands no chance in the Senate. Nevertheless, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he is considering holding a similar vote.

25 Obama: No offshore drilling in East Coast waters

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON and MATTHEW DALY, Associated Press

57 mins ago

WASHINGTON – In a reversal, the Obama administration said Wednesday it will not pursue offshore drilling off the East Coast of the U.S. and the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

A senior administration official told The Associated Press that because of the BP oil spill, the Interior Department will not propose any new oil drilling in waters off the East Coast for at least the next seven years.

President Barack Obama’s earlier plan – announced in March, three weeks before the April BP spill – would have authorized officials to explore potential for drilling from Delaware to central Florida, plus the northern waters of Alaska. The new plan allows potential drilling in Alaska, but officials said they will move cautiously before approving any leases.

26 Citing BP, Obama rejects East Coast oil drilling

By MATTHEW DALY and BRENDAN FARRINGTON, Associated Press

14 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Pointing to the BP blowout and risks of a new environmental disaster, the Obama administration reversed itself Wednesday and promised not to pursue offshore drilling in the eastern Gulf of Mexico or anywhere else along the nation’s East Coast.

The decision was hailed in Florida, which depends on tourists drawn by the state’s white beaches, but criticized by the oil industry, which said the administration was stifling crucial U.S. energy production and costing recession-battered jobseekers golden opportunities for new work.

The administration had backed a major expansion of offshore drilling earlier this year, in part to gain support for comprehensive climate legislation in Congress, one of President Barack Obama’s top legislative goals.

27 European police on alert for Wikileaks founder

By RAPHAEL G. SATTER and MALIN RISING, Associated Press

58 mins ago

LONDON – Swedish officials ratcheted up the pressure on WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on Wednesday, asking European police to arrest him on rape allegations as his organization continued to embarrass the Obama administration with a stream of leaked diplomatic cables.

The 39-year-old Australian computer hacker disappeared from public view after a Nov. 5 press conference in Geneva. He has spoken publicly only through online interviews, while a statement from his lawyer said the Australian was being persecuted by Swedish officials who are seeking his arrest on allegations of rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion.

Sweden’s Director of Public Prosecution Marianne Ny said that a European arrest warrant had been issued for Assange in connection with the allegations. London-based lawyer Mark Stephens complained that Assange had yet to receive formal notice of the allegations he faces – something he described as a legal requirement under European law – and said that Assange had repeatedly offered to answer questions about the investigation, to no avail.

28 Holidays about survival as jobless benefits end

By TOM BREEN, Associated Press

26 mins ago

Shawn Slonsky’s children know by now not to give him Christmas lists filled with the latest gizmos. The 44-year-old union electrician is one of nearly 2 million Americans whose extended unemployment benefits will run out this month, making the holiday season less about celebration than survival.

“We’ll put up decorations, but we just don’t have the money for a Christmas tree,” Slonsky said.

Benefits that had been extended up to 99 weeks started running out Wednesday. Unless Congress approves a longer extension, the Labor Department estimates about 2 million people will be cut off by Christmas.

29 Starry starry starry night: Star count may triple

By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer

10 mins ago

WASHINGTON – The universe may glitter with far more stars than even Carl Sagan imagined when he rhapsodized about billions upon billions. A new study suggests there are a mind-blowing 300 sextillion of them, or three times as many as scientists previously calculated. That is a 3 followed by 23 zeros. Or 3 trillion times 100 billion.

The estimate, contained in a study published online Wednesday in the journal Nature, is based on findings that there are many more red dwarf stars – the most common star in the universe – than once thought.

But the research goes deeper than that. The study by Yale University astronomer Pieter van Dokkum and Harvard astrophysicist Charlie Conroy questions a key assumption that astronomers often use: that most galaxies have the same properties as our Milky Way. And that conclusion is deeply unsettling to astronomers who want a more orderly cosmos.

30 Study says even being a bit overweight is risky

By STEPHANIE NANO, Associated Press

8 mins ago

NEW YORK – Lugging around a few extra pounds? One of the largest studies to look at health and weight finds that you don’t have to be obese to raise your risk of premature death. Merely being overweight carries some risk, too.

Obesity increases the risk of death from heart disease, stroke and certain cancers. But whether being merely overweight contributes to an early death as well has been uncertain and controversial. Some research has suggested being a little pudgy has little effect or can even be a good thing.

The latest research involving about 1.5 million people concluded that healthy white adults who were overweight were 13 percent more likely to die during the time they were followed in the study than those whose weight is in an ideal range.

31 Fed ID’s companies that used crisis aid programs

By JEANNINE AVERSA, AP Economics Writer

11 mins ago

WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve revealed details Wednesday of trillions of dollars in emergency aid it provided to U.S. and foreign banks during the financial crisis.

New documents show that the most loan and other aid for U.S. institutions over time went to Citigroup ($2.2 trillion), followed by Merrill Lynch ($2.1 trillion), Morgan Stanley ($2 trillion), Bank of America ($1.1 trillion), Bear Stearns ($960 billion), Goldman Sachs ($620 billion), JPMorgan Chase ($260 billion) and Wells Fargo ($150 billion). Many of the individual loans they took were worth billions and had short durations but were paid back and renewed many times.

Merrill Lynch was later acquired by Bank of America, while Bear Stearns collapsed and was sold to JPMorgan.

32 Putin opts out of helping Russia’s World Cup bid

By RAF CASERT, AP Sports Writer

1 hr 11 mins ago

ZURICH – With Prime Minister Vladimir Putin pulling out of helping Russia’s 2018 World Cup bid, Wednesday’s frantic last day of politicking was left to other leaders, princes, actors and models to work their charm on the 22 voters.

Putin’s withdrawal and allegation that the bidding process had turned into an “unfair competition” following scandals targeting FIFA dented Russia’s stature as a favorite to host the event.

England continued to lead the sporting diplomacy, with Prime Minister David Cameron, Prince William and David Beckham seeking to sway FIFA’s executive committee for their 2018 bid.

33 FCC preparing to vote on network neutrality rules

By JOELLE TESSLER, AP Technology Writer

Wed Dec 1, 7:52 am ET

WASHINGTON – Federal regulators are moving ahead with a plan to prohibit phone and cable companies from blocking or discriminating against Internet traffic flowing over their broadband networks.

Julius Genachowski, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, will outline his proposal for so-called “network neutrality” rules in a speech on Wednesday. Despite Republican opposition in Congress, Genachowski plans to bring his proposal to a vote by the full commission before the end of the year.

Net neutrality rules were one of the Obama administration’s top campaign pledges to the technology industry and have been among Genachowski’s priorities since he took over the FCC more than a year ago.

34 In WikiLeaks wake, whistle-blower bill set to pass

By RICHARD LARDNER, Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 10:33 am ET

WASHINGTON – Following the latest baring of U.S. secrets on the Internet, Congress is poised to pass legislation giving employees in the most sensitive government jobs a way to report corruption, waste and mismanagement without turning to outside organizations like WikiLeaks.

President Barack Obama is expected to sign the bill, which supporters say will discourage leaks of classified information. The legislation would allow intelligence agency whistle-blowers to raise concerns within their agencies instead of giving classified materials to WikiLeaks or other outlets, which is illegal.

Without protections spelled out in law, whistle-blowers risk being fired or demoted for informing their chains of command about misconduct, according to Tom Devine, legal director at the Government Accountability Project. That leaves no alternative to anonymous – and potentially damaging – leaks unless whistle-blowers are willing to jeopardize their careers, he said.

35 NY pilot expands organ recovery to at-home deaths

By SAMANTHA GROSS, Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 1:20 pm ET

NEW YORK – Families choosing whether to donate a loved one’s organs usually have days to grapple with their decision, all while the patient lies hooked up to machines in a hospital bed.

But they would have only about 20 minutes to make the choice in a new pilot program meant to recover organs from patients who die at home.

That’s roughly how long a team of organ specialists will have after a cardiac-arrest patient is declared dead to arrive at the home, check a donor registry, determine medical eligibility, obtain a family member’s consent and get the person into a specialized ambulance.

36 Ill. Senate approves civil unions for gay couples

By CHRISTOPHER WILLS and CARLA K. JOHNSON, Associated Press

9 mins ago

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Gay rights advocates celebrated Wednesday as the Illinois Legislature voted to legalize civil unions, although some wondered whether the measure that the governor is expected to sign will make it easier or harder to someday win approval of same-sex marriage.

The state Senate approved the legislation 32-24, sending it to Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn. It passed despite complaints from some senators that civil unions threaten the sanctity of marriage or increase the cost of doing business in Illinois.

After Quinn signs the measure, gay and lesbian couples will be able to get official recognition from the state and gain many of the rights that accompany marriage – the power to decide medical treatment for an ailing partner, for instance. Illinois law will continue to limit marriage to one man and woman, and the federal government won’t recognize the civil unions at all.

37 Steele, absent from debate, factor in RNC race

By PHILIP ELLIOTT, Associated Press

44 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Although absent from the hotel ballroom and his name largely unspoken, Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele and his tenure at the helm of the GOP’s central committee dominated Wednesday’s debate among candidates who want to replace him.

At the first public forum for those pursuing the chairmanship, party fundraising played prominently in the discussion that took place on stage between a U.S. flag and a “Don’t Tread on Me” banner popular among tea party activists. Four potential future chairs criticized the RNC but steered clear of naming the polarizing incumbent chairman and his record-breaking spending.

“The party under his leadership failed to raise the major donor money it is going to require to defeat Barack Obama,” said Gentry Collins, who headed the powerful political department of the RNC and is now weighing a campaign for chairman.

38 2 cleared, 1 guilty in white supremacists case

By DAVE COLLINS, Associated Press

1 hr 22 mins ago

HARTFORD, Conn. – A federal jury on Wednesday acquitted two men and convicted a third in what prosecutors said was a conspiracy by white supremacists to sell grenades and guns to a purported national supremacist group member, who was really a government informant.

The jury at the U.S. District Court in Bridgeport found Kenneth Zrallack, 29, of Ansonia and David Sutton, 46, of Milford not guilty of conspiracy charges. Alexander DeFelice, 33, of Milford, was convicted of several conspiracy and weapons charges.

Federal prosecutors said Zrallack is the leader of the Connecticut-based Battalion 14 white supremacist group, formerly known as the Connecticut White Wolves. Officials said DeFelice is a Battalion 14 member who knows how to make explosives, while Sutton, who is black, has known DeFelice for years but isn’t a white supremacist.

39 Opening statements given in AIM murder trial

By NOMAAN MERCHANT, Associated Press

2 hrs 39 mins ago

RAPID CITY, S.D. – After years of delays and legal wrangling, a murder trial began Wednesday for a man accused of shooting an American Indian Movement activist 35 years ago on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge reservation.

During his opening statement, South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley recounted for jurors what investigators believe happened in the three days leading up to the December 1975 slaying of Annie Mae Aquash. He told them the defendant, John Graham, 55, shot her because the activist group’s leaders thought she was a government informant.

Graham’s attorney, John Murphy, countered in his opening statement that the prosecution lacked a murder weapon, fingerprints or other physical evidence to link Graham with Aquash’s killing or the site of her death.

40 Millions of men grow mustaches for cancer effort

By MEGHAN BARR, Associated Press

2 hrs 41 mins ago

CLEVELAND – The scraggly patch of blond hair on Zak MacDonald’s upper lip is a source of mockery among his co-workers in this testosterone-laden office, where the art of growing a mustache has become a full-blown competition.

Scanning the cubicles, there are several handlebars and respectably bushy mustaches. The most prominent even rival the collage of famous ‘staches displayed on the wall, including Tom Selleck’s iconic facial hair. Much to his chagrin, though, MacDonald’s is not among them.

“As you can tell, we’re 22 days in and there’s not a whole lot happening up in the ‘stache area,” he admitted, rubbing a hand over his lip. “But you know, God knows I’m trying.”

41 Crop bounty spurs construction boom at elevators

By ROXANA HEGEMAN, Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 10:26 am ET

LARNED, Kan. – A construction boom has been under way at grain elevators across the Great Plains, where farmers have grown more corn and opted to keep more of the grain to meet the demand from ethanol plants.

Storage capacity at the nation’s federally licensed grain elevators is at an all-time high, but there’s still not enough in states like Kansas and Nebraska, where millions of bushels of grain have been piled up outside elevators at risk of damage from foul weather.

Low interest rates have made it less expensive to build elevators, and commodity markets have encouraged farmers to store crops during the harvest glut to wait for better prices later in the season. The result has been a busy year for construction, most of it at existing elevators that are expanding.

42 Nissan’s electric car a trendsetter

By ANN M. JOB, For The Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 10:07 am ET

Nissan’s Leaf plug-in electric hatchback is an endearing car for people who don’t mind metering their mileage, planning ahead and sometimes tapping the electricity at a friend’s home while sharing dinner.

The first all-electric car offered in the United States by a mainstream auto manufacturer since the early days of the automobile, the new-for-2011 Leaf has seats for five, a roomy, straightforward interior and a surprisingly solid, stable feel.

Best of all for consumers who worry about the nation’s oil consumption and the environment, the Leaf is rated at 99 miles per gallon of gasoline equivalent by the federal government for combined city and highway driving.

43 1970s LA Skid Row killings conviction overturned

By LINDA DEUTSCH, AP Special Correspondent

Wed Dec 1, 5:11 am ET

LOS ANGELES – Three decades after Los Angeles courts were rocked by a scandal involving lying jailhouse informants the issue has come back from the dead with an appellate court reversal of a high profile murder case tainted by a lying snitch.

A three judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the lower court Tuesday to either grant a new trial or release from prison a man who had been presumed to be the “Skid Row Stabber” who killed homeless men in the 1970s.

The court overturned two murder convictions and the life sentence of Bobby Jo Maxwell who has been imprisoned since 1979. The judges said Maxwell was convicted in 1984 on the basis of a jailhouse snitch’s lies.

44 Trial to start in ’75 slaying on SD reservation

By NOMAAN MERCHANT, Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 3:22 am ET

RAPID CITY, S.D. – After years of delays and legal wrangling, a murder trial begins Wednesday for the man accused of shooting an American Indian Movement activist 35 years ago on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge reservation.

Prosecutors say John Graham, a Southern Tutchone Indian from Canada, and two other activists kidnapped and killed Annie Mae Aquash in late 1975 because AIM leaders believed she was a government spy. Graham, 55, faces first- and second-degree murder charges and a potential life sentence. He has continued to maintain his innocence.

Aquash’s slaying has become synonymous with AIM and its often violent struggles with federal authorities during the 1970s. Family members and observers have said Graham’s trial could help to answer lingering questions about why Aquash died and who ordered her killing.

45 Residents show support for Ore. mosque after fire

By JEFF BARNARD, Associated Press

Wed Dec 1, 12:16 am ET

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Steady rain Tuesday didn’t stop people from attending a candlelight vigil in support of an Islamic center targeted by an apparent hate crime after a teen who occasionally worshipped there was accused of planning mass killings in Portland.

Hundreds of residents of this small college town came out for the vigil at the Salman Alfarisi Islamic Center.

Elizabeth Oettinger, senior minister of the First Congregational Church United Church of Christ, said a number of religious leaders organized the event to show support for the Muslim community after the center’s office was set on fire Sunday.

46 AP Enterprise: Guards shown watching inmate attack

By REBECCA BOONE, Associated Press

Tue Nov 30, 9:30 pm ET

BOISE, Idaho – The surveillance video from the overhead cameras shows Hanni Elabed being beaten by a fellow inmate in an Idaho prison, managing to bang on a prison guard station window, pleading for help. Behind the glass, correctional officers look on, but no one intervenes when Elabed is knocked unconscious.

No one steps into the cellblock when the attacker sits down to rest, and no one stops him when he resumes the beating.

Videos of the attack obtained by The Associated Press show officers watching the beating for several minutes. The footage is a key piece of evidence for critics who claim the privately run Idaho Correctional Center uses inmate-on-inmate violence to force prisoners to snitch on their cellmates or risk being moved to extremely violent units.

47 Lesbian nurse expects Air Force reinstatement

By GENE JOHNSON, Associated Press

Tue Nov 30, 7:28 pm ET

SEATTLE – A lesbian flight nurse who was discharged under the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy said Tuesday she hopes to be reinstated to the Air Force Reserve in December.

A federal judge ruled two months ago that Maj. Margaret Witt’s firing advanced no legitimate military goals and thus violated her rights. He ordered her to be reinstated, and while the Air Force filed an appeal last week, it did not seek a stay to block Witt from rejoining her unit at Joint Base Lewis-McChord while the appeal proceeds.

Though the Department of Justice could still seek such a stay, it informally told Witt’s legal team Monday that it probably won’t, one of Witt’s lawyers said.

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