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BP reaches $7.8 billion deal over Gulf of Mexico spill
Fri,2 Mar 2012 10:27 PM PST
Reuters -  NEW YORK (Reuters) - BP PLC has reached an estimated $7.8 billion deal with plaintiffs suing over the massive 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the company said on Friday, but the oil giant still faces claims by the U.S. government, Gulf states and drilling partners. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier, who is overseeing the litigation, said in a court order that the proposed terms of the class settlement would be submitted to court for approval. He also adjourned the first phase of the trial over the spill, which had been scheduled to begin on March 5. ...
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Iran parliament vote seen bolstering Supreme Leader
Fri,2 Mar 2012 10:05 PM PST
Reuters -  TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iranians wrapped up a parliamentary election likely to reinforce Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's power over rival hardliners led by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Iranian leaders were looking for a high turnout at Friday's poll to ease a crisis of legitimacy caused by Ahmadinejad's re-election in 2009, when widespread accusations of fraud plunged the Islamic Republic into the worst unrest of its 33-year history. ...
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Republican Fed bill would restrict bond investments
Fri,2 Mar 2012 10:04 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican legislation to limit the Federal Reserve's mandate to fighting inflation would restrict the types of bonds the U.S. central bank could buy and potentially force sooner-than-expected sales of mortgage-backed securities. Aides to Representative Kevin Brady said on Friday his reform bill would allow the Fed to invest only in U.S. Treasury debt and repurchase and reverse-repurchase transactions used to add or drain banking system reserves except during emergencies. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. government ultimately paid bail for Egypt NGOs
Fri,2 Mar 2012 08:55 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The bail paid for U.S. pro-democracy activists facing charges in Egypt ultimately came from the U.S. government, the State Department said on Friday. Egyptian authorities had accused the workers, including the son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, of working for groups receiving illegal foreign funding and had barred them from leaving the country. The case put at risk $1.3 billion in annual U.S. military aid to Egypt, a cash transfer that began flowing after Egypt made peace with Israel in 1979, and it marked the deepest rift in U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
Fed's Bullard: U.S. economic outlook is brighter
Fri,2 Mar 2012 08:45 PM PST
Reuters - VANCOUVER (Reuters) - St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard said on Friday the U.S. economic outlook is brighter and household confidence has improved, suggesting he sees no need for further steps to ease financial conditions. "I think the data is coming stronger on the U.S. economy. I think it's a good time to wait and see and gather more data, get a better read on what's going on in Europe, and see what is going to happen next," he told reporters after a speech at Simon Fraser University. ... Full Story | Top |
Venezuela publishes photos of Chavez with Fidel
Fri,2 Mar 2012 07:51 PM PST
Reuters - CARACAS (Reuters) - Venezuela published photographs on Friday of President Hugo Chavez chatting with Cuba's Fidel Castro and walking in a hospital as he recovers from cancer surgery on the Communist-led island. Stung by criticism it has shrouded the 57-year-old Chavez's condition in secrecy and put out misleading information in the past, Venezuela's government insists he is recovering quickly and will be ready to contest a presidential election on October 7. ... Full Story | Top |
Miami students rally for valedictorian facing deportation
Fri,2 Mar 2012 06:51 PM PST
Reuters - MIAMI (Reuters) - More than 2,000 Miami students walked out of class and took to the streets on Friday in a show of solidarity with a high school valedictorian ordered to leave the United States by an immigration judge. A judge on Monday denied a green card request by Daniela Pelaez, an 18-year-old who was born in Colombia and brought by her parents to the United States when she was four. Her lawyer is appealing the decision. Pelaez grew up in the Miami area after she and her family overstayed their tourist visas. ... Full Story | Top |
Washington state caucus a momentum test for Romney
Fri,2 Mar 2012 06:39 PM PST
Reuters - (Reuters) - Mitt Romney, who regained front-runner status in the Republican presidential race with three state wins this week, could build on that momentum with a victory in the Washington state caucuses on Saturday just three days before crucial Super Tuesday voting. The former Massachusetts governor led a Public Policy Polling opinion poll in Washington state on Friday, boosted by wins this week over main rival, former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum, in Michigan, Arizona and Wyoming nominating contests. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama calls student as contraception fight turns nasty
Fri,2 Mar 2012 06:28 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama called a law student on Friday to express his support after she was branded a "slut" by controversial right-wing talk-show host Rush Limbaugh for her outspoken support of Obama's new policy on contraception coverage. Sandra Fluke, a 30-year old student and women's rights activist at Georgetown University in Washington, has been caught in the middle of a contentious election-year fight between Obama and Republicans over the policy, which requires health insurance plans to cover contraception. ...
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In Ohio, Republicans try to stick to economic issues
Fri,2 Mar 2012 06:25 PM PST
Reuters - CHILLICOTHE, Ohio (Reuters) - After a week in which the race for the Republican presidential nomination often was a forum for divisive social and religious issues, the campaign turned Friday toward jobs and the economy, key issues in the upcoming "Super Tuesday" contests. Rick Santorum, fighting to stay within sight of Republican front-runner Mitt Romney and score a game-changing victory in Ohio's primary on Tuesday, stuck mostly to calls for less government regulation and lower taxes in making his pitch to Ohio manufacturers and entrepreneurs. ... Full Story | Top |
Regulators seek input on cell phone interruptions
Fri,2 Mar 2012 05:53 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The deliberate disruption of mobile phone service last year by transit police in San Francisco has prompted federal communications regulators to consider rules for similar situations in the future. The Bay Area Rapid Transit Police Department said it cut cellphone service to aid public safety but civil liberties groups criticized the actions as a violation of free speech and argued it put people at more risk. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama says not bluffing on Iran military option
Fri,2 Mar 2012 05:14 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON/OTTAWA (Reuters) - President Barack Obama issued his most direct threat yet of U.S. military action against Iran if it builds a nuclear weapon, but in a message to Israel's leader ahead of White House talks he also cautioned against a pre-emptive Israeli strike. "As president of the United States, I don't bluff," Obama warned Iran in a magazine interview published on Friday, three days before he will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington. ...
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New York man gets 27 years for plot to kill troops
Fri,2 Mar 2012 05:05 PM PST
Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal judge sentenced a New York man on Friday to 27 years in prison for his attempts to join an al Qaeda-linked group and fight U.S. soldiers, federal prosecutors said. U.S. District Judge John Gleeson sentenced Betim Kaziu, 23, who was convicted by a jury after a trial in Brooklyn federal court last July. Prosecutors had sought life in prison for him. Kaziu, an American citizen, had sought to link up with militants in retaliation for perceived abuses against the global Muslim community, prosecutors said. ... Full Story | Top |
Netanyahu warns against diplomatic path with Iran
Fri,2 Mar 2012 04:59 PM PST
Reuters - OTTAWA (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday global powers would be falling into a trap if they pursued talks with Iran and he challenged Tehran with a series of demands before he meets U.S. President Barack Obama. But at the same time, Netanyahu was careful at a news conference with Canada's leader to avoid widening a rift with Obama over what Washington fears could be an Israeli rush to attack Iranian nuclear facilities before economic sanctions and diplomacy run their course. ... Full Story | Top |
NASA says was hacked 13 times last year
Fri,2 Mar 2012 04:55 PM PST
Reuters -  (Reuters) - NASA said hackers stole employee credentials and gained access to mission-critical projects last year in 13 major network breaches that could compromise U.S. national security. National Aeronautics and Space Administration Inspector General Paul Martin testified before Congress this week on the breaches, which appear to be among the more significant in a string of security problems for federal agencies. ...
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IRS software glitch delays some tax refunds
Fri,2 Mar 2012 04:41 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Internal Revenue Service's new software system for handling electronic tax returns has experienced problems during the tax filing season, angering some taxpayers whose refunds have been delayed. In an issue that could draw congressional scrutiny, the IRS said it was addressing the software glitches and that delays in sending refunds to taxpayers would be minimal. The tax collection agency has made a big commitment to upgrading its software and has been expecting to shut down its old software system in October. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama calls student as contraception fight turns nasty
Fri,2 Mar 2012 03:48 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama called a law student on Friday to express his support after she was branded a "slut" by controversial right-wing talk-show host Rush Limbaugh for her outspoken support of Obama's new policy on contraception coverage. Sandra Fluke, a student at Georgetown University in Washington, has been caught in the middle of a contentious election-year fight between Obama and Republicans over the policy, which requires health insurance plans to cover contraception. ...
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Libya's Muslim Brotherhood sets up political party
Fri,2 Mar 2012 03:13 PM PST
Reuters - TRIPOLI (Reuters) - Libya's Muslim Brotherhood teamed up with other Islamists on Friday to establish a new political party that is set to be a leading player in the country's first elections since the overthrow of Muammar Gaddafi in a NATO-backed uprising. Islamist and secular parties will vie in June elections for seats in a national assembly that will draft a new constitution for the North African country. ... Full Story | Top |
NY Gov Cuomo, lawmakers agree on revenue estimates
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:53 PM PST
Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and the state's legislature agreed to revenue estimates for the new budget on Friday, a legally required step in order to enact the budget by the April 1 deadline. The new and higher estimates for revenue, which include taxes, fees and other income, range from $133 million to $315 million, just 0.3 percent above Cuomo's earlier forecasts. Cuomo's $132.5 billion budget proposal must close a $2 billion gap - just one-fifth of last year's $10 billion deficit, caused by falling tax revenues after the 2008-2009 recession. ... Full Story | Top |
U.N. chief slams Syria for "atrocious" Homs assault
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:47 PM PST
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon turned up the pressure on Syria on Friday, telling U.N. member states of "grisly reports" of Syrian government forces arbitrarily executing, imprisoning and torturing people in the battle-scarred city of Homs. "The Syrian government has failed to deliver on its responsibility to protect its people," Ban told the 193-nation U.N. General Assembly. "Civilian populations are under military assault in several cities." "A major assault on Homs took place yesterday," he said. "Civilian losses have clearly been heavy. ... Full Story | Top |
States slash birth control subsidies as federal debate rages
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:45 PM PST
Reuters - (Reuters) - Even as a national debate rages over contraception insurance, tens of thousands of low-income women and teenagers across the United States have lost access to subsidized birth control as states slash and restructure family planning funds. Montana and New Jersey have eliminated altogether their state family planning programs. New Hampshire cut its funding by 57 percent and five other states made more modest program trims. But the biggest impact, by far, has been in Texas. State lawmakers last fall cut family-planning funds by two-thirds, or nearly $74 million over two years. ... Full Story | Top |
Support cited for F-35 fighter after joint meeting
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:34 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and eight other countries helping to develop the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter underscored their full and continued support for the program, according to two sources who attended a gathering hosted by Canada. Despite U.S. plans to put off orders for 179 planes over the next five years and a steady drip of news about technical problems and developmental issues, a statement issued by Canada on Friday cited "good progress" on the program. ... Full Story | Top |
U.S. security team attacked in Yemen, bomb injures 22
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:34 PM PST
Reuters - ADEN (Reuters) - A gunman opened fire on a U.S. security team as it trained Yemeni soldiers in the south of the country, the Pentagon and a security official said on Friday, both denying reports from an Islamist group that a CIA officer was killed in the assault. In the north of the country, a bomb blast hit an anti-U.S. protest, injuring at least 22 people, a rebel group that controls much of the region said. ... Full Story | Top |
U.N. aviation body says emissions proposal by year-end
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:12 PM PST
Reuters - (Reuters) - The head of the United Nations body that oversees civil aviation said on Friday that his agency still plans to have a proposal on measures to address emissions from aviation by the end of 2012, even as critics push for faster change. "I read the press like anyone. I listen to all of the criticisms which have been stated by some about the pace," Secretary General Raymond Benjamin told Reuters in an interview marking his reappointment for a new three-year term at the helm of the Montreal-based International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). ... Full Story | Top |
Afghan clerics demand punishment for Koran burners
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:10 PM PST
Reuters -  KABUL (Reuters) - Senior Afghan clerics said on Friday the burning of Korans at a NATO base last month was an "evil act" that must be punished, a demand that could deepen widespread public anger over the incident. "The council strongly condemns this crime and inhumane, savage act by American troops by desecrating holy Korans," members of a council of clerics said after meeting President Hamid Karzai, according to a statement issued by his office. "The council emphasized that the apology for this evil act can never be accepted. Those who committed this crime must be publicly tried and punished. ...
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U.S., North Korea hope to finalize food deal next week
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:10 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States and North Korea will meet in Beijing next week to finalize details of a new U.S. food aid program that has opened the door to a renewal of nuclear talks with Pyongyang, the U.S. State Department said on Friday. Robert King, the State Department's special envoy for human rights in North Korea, is to meet with North Korean officials on Wednesday to discuss technical elements of the proposal along with monitoring standards. ...
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Is the long primary schedule hurting Republicans?
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:07 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - For Republicans, "Super Tuesday" will not be quite as super as it used to be. In recent presidential campaigns, the wave of state contests on the same day in February or March has been a defining moment, often settling the Republican race. That will not happen this Tuesday, when 10 states hold Super Tuesday contests that could boost Mitt Romney as the clear front-runner but will not hand him the nomination. ...
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Florida bill on 'inspirational messages' in schools advances
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:05 PM PST
Reuters - TALLAHASSEE, Florida (Reuters) - Florida students will be allowed to offer an "inspirational message" at graduations, pep rallies and other school events under a bill on its way to the desk of the state's Republican Governor Rick Scott. The measure was approved on Thursday following lengthy debate in both chambers of Florida's Republican-controlled legislature. The bill lets local school boards adopt standards permitting students to lead public prayer at any school event, even mandatory gatherings like student commencement. ... Full Story | Top |
Economist Sachs seeks job heading World Bank
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:03 PM PST
Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - American economist Jeffrey Sachs threw his name into the ring for the presidency of the World Bank on Friday in an unusual public campaign for the top global development job. In an opinion piece in The Washington Post, Sachs argued his credentials made him a better candidate than the bankers and politicians usually put forward by Washington. "Unlike previous World Bank presidents, I don't come from Wall Street or U.S. politics. I am a practitioner of economic development, a scholar and a writer," he wrote. He was more blunt in an interview. ... Full Story | Top |
Obama says he's not bluffing on Iran military option
Fri,2 Mar 2012 02:02 PM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON/OTTAWA (Reuters) - President Barack Obama issued his most direct threat yet of U.S. military action against Iran if it builds a nuclear weapon, but in a message to Israel's leader ahead of White House talks he also cautioned against a pre-emptive Israeli strike. "As president of the United States, I don't bluff," Obama warned Iran in a magazine interview published on Friday, three days before he will host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington. ...
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Key adviser to Cameron takes year off
Fri,2 Mar 2012 01:24 PM PST
Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - One of Prime Minister David Cameron's closest advisers is to take a year out of politics, depriving the prime minister of a sometimes controversial strategist who helped mastermind his rise to power. Steve Hilton, Cameron's flamboyant director of strategy famous for bicycling to work and going around Downing Street without shoes, will take a year-long unpaid academic sabbatical at Stanford University in California, starting this summer, Cameron's office said on Friday. ... Full Story | Top |
Fewer women in parliaments after Arab Spring: study
Fri,2 Mar 2012 01:19 PM PST
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Opportunities from the Arab Spring to boost the low number of women in parliaments are being missed, while globally the average number of female politicians inched up half a point last year to 19.5 percent, an organization of parliaments said on Friday. Despite pro-democracy protests toppling leaders in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, the Arab region was the only area in the world without a parliament of at least 30 percent women, according to the Inter-Parliamentary Union's "Women in Parliament 2011" study. ... Full Story | Top |
Hackers winning security war: executives
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:48 PM PST
Reuters - SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Technology security professionals seeking wisdom from industry leaders in San Francisco this week saw more of the dark side than they had expected: a procession of CEO speakers whose companies have been hacked. "It's pretty discouraging," said Gregory Roll, who came for advice and to consider buying security software for his employer, a large bank which he declined to name because he was not authorized to speak on its behalf. "It's a constant battle, and we're losing. ... Full Story | Top |
"Game Change" depicts a devoted yet unhinged Sarah Palin
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:33 PM PST
Reuters -  NEW YORK (Reuters) - There is one thing the new HBO movie "Game Change" won't alter after it airs on television in one week: Sarah Palin still will be loved by many Republican conservatives and loathed by liberal Democrats. In the controversial new TV movie that aims at a behind-the-scenes portrait of the former vice presidential candidate, Julianne Moore portrays Sarah Palin as a devoted Republican who lacks basic knowledge of world affairs and careens out of control. ...
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U.N. chief fears executions, torture in Syria's Homs
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:22 PM PST
Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Friday said he was worried that Syrian government forces were arbitrarily executing, imprisoning and torturing people in the battle-scarred city of Homs. "A major assault on Homs took place yesterday," Ban told the 193-nation U.N. General Assembly. "Civilian losses have clearly been heavy. We continue to received grisly reports of summary executions, arbitrary detentions and torture." (Reporting By Louis Charbonneau and Michelle Nichols; Editing by Doina Chiacu) Full Story | Top |
Netanyahu warns against diplomatic path with Iran
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:17 PM PST
Reuters - OTTAWA (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday global powers would be falling into a trap if they pursued talks with Iran and he challenged Tehran with a series of demands before he meets U.S. President Barack Obama. But at the same time, Netanyahu was careful at a news conference with Canada's leader to avoid widening a rift with Obama over what Washington fears could be an Israeli rush to attack Iranian nuclear facilities before economic sanctions and diplomacy run their course. ... Full Story | Top |
Benghazi protesters demand justice be restored
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:16 PM PST
Reuters - BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) - Hundreds of Libyans protested outside the main courthouse in Benghazi on Friday, demanding that a militia which had occupied the building during the revolution leave and allow judges to return to work. The militia, one of dozens set up during the 2011 uprising that ousted Muammar Gaddafi, has been using the courthouse as its headquarters and wants it to remain a symbol of the revolt that began in the eastern coastal city. ... Full Story | Top |
FIFA in scathing attack on Brazil's 2014 plans
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:07 PM PST
Reuters -  BAGSHOT, England (Reuters) - FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke made a scathing attack on Brazil's preparations for the 2014 World Cup on Friday, saying "not a lot is moving" and organizers needed "a kick up the backside." Valcke, who has continually raised concerns about the tournament, said time was running out and there was no "Plan B" in place. Soccer's ruling body is particularly concerned about transport and accommodation issues and the sluggish movement through Brazilian bureaucracy of World Cup laws relating to the sale of alcohol is also worrying FIFA. ...
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Over two dozen arrested in $325 million counterfeit
Fri,2 Mar 2012 12:03 PM PST
Reuters - NEWARK, New Jersey (Reuters) - More than two dozen people from the United States and China were charged on Friday with running a $325 million counterfeit goods ring through a New Jersey port, one of the largest knock-off smuggling busts in history, authorities said. Simultaneous stings by two federal agencies at Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal in Elizabeth, New Jersey, also uncovered a related scheme to smuggle crystal methamphetamine into the U.S. from Taiwan. "It's huge," said New Jersey U.S. ... Full Story | Top |
Challenge to Obama recess appointments denied
Fri,2 Mar 2012 11:41 AM PST
Reuters -  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A federal judge on Friday threw out a challenge to President Barack Obama's recent recess appointments to the National Labor Relations Board, refusing to add the issue to a lawsuit on another topic. "The Court declines this invitation to take up a political dispute that is not before it, and the motion will be denied," wrote U.S. District Court Justice Amy Berman Jackson. The National Federation of Independent Business, a lobbying group for small businesses, sought to add the appointments challenge to a legal action filed last year. ...
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