Daily News Digest: Politics - Bloomberg News Headlines - Yahoo! News

Yahoo! Alerts

Yahoo! News | My Alerts | Edit Alert

Friday, May 4, 2012 8:31 PM PDT

Today's Politics - Bloomberg News Headlines - Yahoo! News: University of California urged not use force to end protests Intelligence, military at odds on Afghanistan: congressman Afghan-bound U.S. soldiers urged to be on best behavior Americans favor limited U.S. role in Afghanistan Boris for prime minister? London win raises stakes Longtime Senator Lugar trails Tea Party rival in poll London win eases Cameron's UK vote setback Muslim woman wins $5 million verdict from AT&T for discrimination London win eases Cameron's vote setback Muslim woman wins $5 million verdict from AT&T for discrimination Jailed U.S. contractor in Cuba pleads for brief release Planned Parenthood can be in Texas health program, court says Edwards acknowledged secret payments "for his benefit": heiress's lawyer U.S. must heal native peoples' wounds, return lands: U.N. Wall Street Week Ahead: All eyes on European elections China says dissident may apply to study in U.S. U.S. law firm Dewey warns of impending layoffs Canada pitches the penny, wants charities to gain Seau's brain could hold clues about NFL injuries' impacts Football great Junior Seau's brain to be examined Afghan-bound U.S. soldiers urged to be on best behavior Treasury to sell more AIG common stock Army imposes curfew in Cairo district after clashes Turkey court gives Ferguson time to settle - media Turkey court gives Ferguson time to settle -media U.S. proposes new rules for fracking on federal lands Hiring slows, spells trouble for economy, Obama Bodies of 23 found dumped near U.S. border in Mexico drug war Intelligence, military at odds on Afghanistan: congressman Keystone XL pipeline takes second shot at U.S. OK Libertarians gather to choose presidential nominee Americans favor limited U.S. role in Afghanistan Fewer jobs means more spending on U.S. Medicaid Planned Parenthood can be in Texas health program, court says Government granted core participant status in Leveson inquiry U.S. launches advanced military communications satellite There's a chill in the air as Romney, Santorum talk France's Sarkozy in vote appeal as margin narrows Ohio turns over five dangerous wild animals to private farm Russia talk of pre-emptive strike unjustified: NATO University of California urged not use force to end protests Fri,4 May 2012 06:58 PM PDT Reuters - SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The University of California, heavily criticized over campus police tactics during the "Occupy" movement, should establish strategies to handle protests without resorting to the use of force, a report commissioned by administrators urged on Friday. The draft report came after the 10-campus University of California system came under heavy criticism over its handling of protests last fall, during which a UC Davis officer was videotaped dousing a group of seated protesters with a heavy dose of pepper spray. ... Full Story Top Intelligence, military at odds on Afghanistan: congressman Fri,4 May 2012 05:43 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Military and intelligence officials are at odds about how the 11-year war in Afghanistan is faring as President Barack Obama presses ahead with a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops out of the country, a leading Republican lawmaker said Friday. The U.S. military is more optimistic about the state of the battle against Taliban insurgents than are intelligence officials on the ground in Afghanistan, said House intelligence committee Chairman Mike Rogers, who returned this week from a visit to the country. ... Full Story Top Afghan-bound U.S. soldiers urged to be on best behavior Fri,4 May 2012 05:43 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Defense Secretary Leon Panetta urged a group of Afghanistan-bound soldiers on Friday to behave with integrity in the war zone, saying thoughtless photos and actions could provoke violence that would endanger their lives and their mission. "These days it takes only seconds, seconds, for a picture, a photo, to suddenly become an international headline," Panetta told members of the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team at Fort Benning, Georgia. "Those headlines can impact the mission that we're engaged in. ... Full Story Top Americans favor limited U.S. role in Afghanistan Fri,4 May 2012 05:39 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Most Americans want U.S. troops out of Afghanistan and oppose a significant long-term commitment to support that nation's economy and security, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Friday. But the poll also indicated that most Americans favor keeping some U.S. forces in Afghanistan to help train that nation's troops, and to continue missions targeting al-Qaeda. Taken together, the findings suggest "Americans essentially want to be done with Afghanistan," said Ipsos pollster Chris Jackson. ... Full Story Top Boris for prime minister? London win raises stakes Fri,4 May 2012 05:19 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Boris Johnson's victory in the race to lead London through the Olympics raises expectations that he will one day cross the Thames from City Hall to Downing Street, but critics question whether he has what it takes to be Britain's prime minister. Johnson, whose popularity is largely down to his comic talent and colorful past, won a second four-year term as mayor of London on the same day that his Conservative Party suffered heavy losses in nationwide local elections. ... Full Story Top Longtime Senator Lugar trails Tea Party rival in poll Fri,4 May 2012 05:17 PM PDT Reuters - INDIANAPOLIS (Reuters) - Senator Richard Lugar, a six-term incumbent representing Indiana and a leading voice on foreign policy in Congress, trails his Tea Party-backed challenger by double-digits ahead of Tuesday's Republican primary, a poll showed on Friday. Indiana Treasurer Richard Mourdock, who draws support from the conservative Tea Party movement, leads Lugar by 10 percentage points ahead of Tuesday's primary, the Howey/Depauw Indiana Battleground Poll showed. ... Full Story Top London win eases Cameron's UK vote setback Fri,4 May 2012 05:02 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Boris Johnson dodged a humiliating nationwide defeat for Prime Minister David Cameron by winning London in local elections that saw voters angry at Britain's economic woes flock to opposition Labour and a right-wing anti-European fringe party. Maverick mayor Johnson's silver-lining win in London was the only good news for Cameron whom local media said had been given a bloody nose by voters upset at spending cuts and Britain's return to recession. ... Full Story Top Muslim woman wins $5 million verdict from AT&T for discrimination Fri,4 May 2012 05:01 PM PDT Reuters - KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - A Kansas City woman who converted from Christianity to Islam has been awarded $5 million in punitive damages by a jury who found the telecommunications giant AT&T created a "hostile work environment" after her conversion, according to a judge's order issued Friday. Susann Bashir, a 41-year-old married mother, sued AT&T unit Southwestern Bell for what she said was a pattern of offensive and discriminatory conduct by her supervisors that began when she converted to Islam in 2005, six years after she started working for the company as a network technician. ... Full Story Top London win eases Cameron's vote setback Fri,4 May 2012 04:59 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - Boris Johnson dodged a humiliating nationwide defeat for Prime Minister David Cameron by winning London in local elections that saw voters angry at Britain's economic woes flock to opposition Labour and a right-wing anti-European fringe party. Maverick mayor Johnson's silver-lining win in London was the only good news for Cameron whom local media said had been given a bloody nose by voters upset at spending cuts and Britain's return to recession. ... Full Story Top Muslim woman wins $5 million verdict from AT&T for discrimination Fri,4 May 2012 04:57 PM PDT Reuters - KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Reuters) - A Kansas City woman who converted from Christianity to Islam has been awarded $5 million in punitive damages by a jury who found the telecommunications giant AT&T created a "hostile work environment" after her conversion, according to a judge's order issued Friday. Susann Bashir, a 41-year-old married mother, sued AT&T unit Southwestern Bell for what she said was a pattern of offensive and discriminatory conduct by her supervisors that began when she converted to Islam in 2005, six years after she started working for the company as a network technician. ... Full Story Top Jailed U.S. contractor in Cuba pleads for brief release Fri,4 May 2012 04:46 PM PDT Reuters - MIAMI (Reuters) - An American contractor imprisoned in Cuba praised Raul Castro's economic reforms but called the Cuban government's treatment of him "shameful" on Friday in his first media interview since he was jailed more than two years ago. In a telephone interview with CNN, Alan Gross also made a new appeal to Cuban authorities to allow him to return to the United States for a brief visit with his gravely ill 90-year-old mother. Gross, a veteran development worker, was arrested in Havana in December 2009 for his work in a semi-covert U.S. ... Full Story Top Planned Parenthood can be in Texas health program, court says Fri,4 May 2012 04:45 PM PDT Reuters - AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Planned Parenthood can offer services for now as part of a Texas program for low-income women despite a new state rule that bans money going to affiliates of abortion providers, a U.S. appeals court ruled on Friday. The court order from a three-judge panel - which lifts an emergency stay put in place earlier this week - was the latest in a series of alternating legal victories for Planned Parenthood and the state of Texas. But the court battle over the Texas Women's Health Program is not finished. A hearing is scheduled for May 18 in U.S. ... Full Story Top Edwards acknowledged secret payments "for his benefit": heiress's lawyer Fri,4 May 2012 04:41 PM PDT Reuters - (Note: Graphic language in final paragraph) GREENSBORO, North Carolina (Reuters) - Former Senator John Edwards acknowledged that secret payments provided by an heiress during his 2008 presidential bid were "for his benefit," an attorney testified on Friday as the second week of Edwards' campaign-finance trial drew to a close. ... Full Story Top U.S. must heal native peoples' wounds, return lands: U.N. Fri,4 May 2012 04:30 PM PDT Reuters - UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United States must do more to heal the wounds of indigenous peoples caused by more than a century of oppression, including restoring control over lands Native Americans consider to be sacred, a U.N. human rights investigator said on Friday. James Anaya, the U.N. special rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, just completed a 12-day visit to the United States where he met with representatives of indigenous peoples in the District of Columbia, Arizona, Alaska, Oregon, Washington State, South Dakota, and Oklahoma. He also met with U.S. government officials. ... Full Story Top Wall Street Week Ahead: All eyes on European elections Fri,4 May 2012 04:12 PM PDT Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - After Wall Street ended its worst week of the year on Friday, U.S. stock investors will look across the Atlantic next week to take their cue from Europe as France and Greece go to the polls. That could offer some respite from a string of weak U.S. economic data and the earnings season winding down. Markets worldwide have closely watched developments in Europe for the past several months, with calls for austerity seen as positive for stocks as they seek to prevent a credit crisis in the region that could take down or deeply hurt the global economic recovery. ... Full Story Top China says dissident may apply to study in U.S. Fri,4 May 2012 03:16 PM PDT Reuters - BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Friday that blind dissident Chen Guangcheng could apply to study abroad, a move praised by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and suggesting an end may be near to a diplomatic standoff between Beijing and Washington. But rights activists sounded a note of caution, saying Beijing could move slowly on granting Chen permission to leave out of fear that appearing soft might embolden other challengers to Communist Party rule before a power handover late this year. ... Full Story Top U.S. law firm Dewey warns of impending layoffs Fri,4 May 2012 03:00 PM PDT Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf on Friday notified U.S. attorneys and staff of impending mass layoffs, a source close to the firm said, the starkest sign yet that the firm could be on the verge of collapse. The firm issued the notification letters under federal and New York statutes that require employers to notify workers of mass layoffs in advance, according to the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. ... Full Story Top Canada pitches the penny, wants charities to gain Fri,4 May 2012 03:00 PM PDT Reuters - WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Canada minted its final one-cent coin on Friday and urged people to donate the little copper-covered coins to charity rather than let them go to waste. Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said a charitable donation would be an apt last stop for the pennies, which Canada is pulling from circulation later this year after 104 years. "We hope all Canadians will consider putting their last pennies to good use by donating them to charity," Flaherty said. "I consider it fitting they could have a lasting impact on causes that Canadians believe in. ... Full Story Top Seau's brain could hold clues about NFL injuries' impacts Fri,4 May 2012 02:56 PM PDT Reuters - NEW YORK (Reuters) - When 300-pound professional football players repeatedly slam into each other like runaway freight trains, what impact does that have on their brains? To find out, researchers who study sports-related injuries are examining the brains of former National Football League players like Junior Seau, 43, who committed suicide on Wednesday. They are trying to determine what, if any, long-term effect sports-related head injuries can have on players and whether damage caused by repeated jarring blows could have contributed to Seau's and other players' deaths. ... Full Story Top Football great Junior Seau's brain to be examined Fri,4 May 2012 02:56 PM PDT Reuters - LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Football great Junior Seau's brain will be examined for evidence of repetitive injuries from his playing days following the retired linebacker's suicide in his California beachfront home, a pastor for the family said on Friday. Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl (all-star game) selection who played for 20 years in the National Football League, was found unconscious at his home by his girlfriend on Wednesday with a gunshot wound to the chest and a revolver nearby, police said. ... Full Story Top Afghan-bound U.S. soldiers urged to be on best behavior Fri,4 May 2012 02:52 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Defense Secretary Leon Panetta urged a group of Afghanistan-bound soldiers on Friday to behave with integrity in the war zone, saying thoughtless photos and actions could provoke violence that would endanger their lives and their mission. "These days it takes only seconds, seconds, for a picture, a photo, to suddenly become an international headline," Panetta told members of the 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team at Fort Benning, Georgia. "Those headlines can impact the mission that we're engaged in. ... Full Story Top Treasury to sell more AIG common stock Fri,4 May 2012 02:48 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Treasury Department said on Friday it plans a third sale of the common stock of American International Group that it acquired as part of the government bailout of the insurer in 2008, at the height of the financial crisis. The Treasury said the size and price of the offering are to be determined. Buyers purchased $6 billion of AIG common stock in March and $5.8 billion worth in May 2011. AIG has said it intends to buy up to $2 billion of the stock sold in the offering, the Treasury Department said in a statement. ... Full Story Top Army imposes curfew in Cairo district after clashes Fri,4 May 2012 02:47 PM PDT Reuters - CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's army imposed an overnight curfew around the defense ministry in Cairo on Friday after protesters clashed with troops there during demonstrations against the country's military rulers, leaving one soldier dead and 373 people wounded. The crowd hurled projectiles and insults at the soldiers sent to defend the ministry after 11 people were killed in fighting there on Wednesday, and called for the overthrow of the head of the ruling army council, Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi. ... Full Story Top Turkey court gives Ferguson time to settle - media Fri,4 May 2012 02:44 PM PDT Reuters - ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A Turkish court trying British duchess Sarah Ferguson for secretly filming the treatment of mentally handicapped children adjourned after opening on Friday to give time for an out-of-court settlement, Turkish media said. Ferguson, who holds the title Duchess of York as the ex-wife of Britain's Prince Andrew, was not present in court. She signalled when the charges were brought in January that she would not return to face trial. The offences carry a maximum sentence of up to 22 years and six months. ... Full Story Top Turkey court gives Ferguson time to settle -media Fri,4 May 2012 02:42 PM PDT Reuters - ISTANBUL (Reuters) - A Turkish court trying British duchess Sarah Ferguson for secretly filming the treatment of mentally handicapped children adjourned after opening on Friday to give time for an out-of-court settlement, Turkish media said. Ferguson, who holds the title Duchess of York as the ex-wife of Britain's Prince Andrew, was not present in court. She signaled when the charges were brought in January that she would not return to face trial. The offences carry a maximum sentence of up to 22 years and six months. ... Full Story Top U.S. proposes new rules for fracking on federal lands Fri,4 May 2012 02:35 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Obama administration unveiled long-awaited rules on Friday to bolster oversight on public lands of oil and natural gas drilling using fracking technology that has ushered in a boom in drilling but also triggered environmental protests. Interior's proposal would update its decades-old fracking regulations with new reporting standards and a requirement that companies get approval before using the drilling technique. The proposal also would require companies to reveal chemicals they use in hydraulic fracturing after they complete the process. ... Full Story Top Hiring slows, spells trouble for economy, Obama Fri,4 May 2012 02:34 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Employers cut back on hiring in April and more people stopped looking for work, troubling signs for President Barack Obama whose re-election prospects could hinge on his handling of the economy. Employers added 115,000 workers to payrolls last month, the Labor Department said on Friday. It was the third straight month in which hiring had slowed, intensifying fears the U.S. recovery is losing momentum. Even a slight drop in the unemployment rate to 8.1 percent had a dark tone because the fall was due entirely to people dropping out of the workforce. ... Full Story Top Bodies of 23 found dumped near U.S. border in Mexico drug war Fri,4 May 2012 02:25 PM PDT Reuters - MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - The bodies of 23 people were found hanging from a bridge or dismembered in ice boxes and garbage bags in northeastern Mexico on Friday, in an escalation of brutal violence involving rival drug gangs on the U.S. border. In a first incident, the bodies of five men and four women were found hanging from a bridge in Nuevo Laredo, in Tamaulipas state just across the border from the Texas city of Laredo. ... Full Story Top Intelligence, military at odds on Afghanistan: congressman Fri,4 May 2012 02:24 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. military and intelligence officials are at odds about how the 11-year war in Afghanistan is faring as President Barack Obama presses ahead with a gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops out of the country, a leading Republican lawmaker said Friday. The U.S. military is more optimistic about the state of the battle against Taliban insurgents than are intelligence officials on the ground in Afghanistan, said House intelligence committee Chairman Mike Rogers, who returned this week from a visit to the country. ... Full Story Top Keystone XL pipeline takes second shot at U.S. OK Fri,4 May 2012 02:19 PM PDT Reuters - CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - TransCanada Corp is taking its second shot at asking Washington to approve the contentious Keystone XL oil pipeline, betting that a new route through Nebraska and post-U.S. election time frame for a decision will push the project forward. The reapplication to the U.S. State Department on Friday comes after Canada's largest pipeline company carved the proposal into two parts in hopes of kickstarting the project. U.S. President Barack Obama rejected the full $7. ... Full Story Top Libertarians gather to choose presidential nominee Fri,4 May 2012 02:17 PM PDT Reuters - LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - The Libertarian Party chooses a presidential nominee on Saturday, who it hopes can capitalize on the Republican White House candidacy of Ron Paul and his focus on party values like small government and a non-interventionist foreign policy. While Paul is not expected to attend the convention in Las Vegas or run as the Libertarian candidate, his small but devoted following in Republican primaries this year has buoyed Libertarians. ... Full Story Top Americans favor limited U.S. role in Afghanistan Fri,4 May 2012 01:56 PM PDT Reuters - WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Most Americans want U.S. troops out of Afghanistan and oppose a significant long-term commitment to support that nation's economy and security, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Friday. But the poll also indicated that most Americans favor keeping some U.S. forces in Afghanistan to help train that nation's troops, and to continue missions targeting al-Qaeda. Taken together, the findings suggest "Americans essentially want to be done with Afghanistan," said Ipsos pollster Chris Jackson. ... Full Story Top Fewer jobs means more spending on U.S. Medicaid Fri,4 May 2012 01:47 PM PDT Reuters - (Reuters) - Millions of people turned to the Medicaid health insurance program for the poor during the 2007-2009 recession as families coped with job losses and drastic drops in income, pushing Medicaid spending up by an average of 6.6 percent per year, according to a study released on Friday. The study by the nonprofit Kaiser Foundation found that state and federal spending on the program, which states administer with partial reimbursements from the U.S. government, grew to $400 billion in 2010 from $330 billion in 2007. That represents an average annual increase of 6. ... Full Story Top Planned Parenthood can be in Texas health program, court says Fri,4 May 2012 01:44 PM PDT Reuters - AUSTIN, Texas (Reuters) - Planned Parenthood can participate for now in a Texas health program for low-income women despite a new state rule that bans affiliates of abortion providers, a U.S. appeals court ruled on Friday. The court order from the 5th U.S. Circuit -- which lifts an emergency halt that was put in place on earlier this week -- is the latest in a series of alternating victories for Planned Parenthood and Texas. But the court battle is not over. ... Full Story Top Government granted core participant status in Leveson inquiry Fri,4 May 2012 01:35 PM PDT Reuters - LONDON (Reuters) - The government on Friday won the right to see evidence before it is made public at the Leveson inquiry into press standards, a move that will help it brace itself for damaging disclosures likely to besmirch its own image. Prime Minister David Cameron and seven senior ministers were granted their late request to become "core participants" in the Leveson inquiry, a public probe which has already embarrassed at least one government minister and put Rupert Murdoch on the defensive. ... Full Story Top U.S. launches advanced military communications satellite Fri,4 May 2012 01:28 PM PDT Reuters - CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - An unmanned Atlas 5 rocket blasted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on Friday to deliver the second member of an advanced U.S. military communications satellite network into orbit. The 197-foot (60-metre) tall rocket, built by United Launch Alliance, blasted off its seaside launch pad at 2:42 p.m. EDT, piercing partly cloudy skies as it headed into orbit. Sealed inside the rocket's protective nosecone was the second Advanced Extremely High Frequency (AEHF) military communications satellite. ... Full Story Top There's a chill in the air as Romney, Santorum talk Fri,4 May 2012 12:59 PM PDT Reuters - O'HARA TOWNSHIP, Pennsylvania (Reuters) - They fought bitterly during the Republican presidential primaries, and now nominee-in-waiting Mitt Romney and conservative rival Rick Santorum are trying to make amends. Well, maybe they aren't trying that hard. After 90 minutes of peace talks in Pittsburgh on Friday, Santorum was not ready to endorse Romney, who he has said for months would not be able to defeat Democratic President Barack Obama in the November 6 election. The meeting, requested by Romney's campaign, was private and held at the office of a top Santorum aide, John Brabender. ... Full Story Top France's Sarkozy in vote appeal as margin narrows Fri,4 May 2012 12:54 PM PDT Reuters - PARIS (Reuters) - Conservative President Nicolas Sarkozy made an impassioned final appeal to voters on Friday, saying that a Socialist victory could send France spiraling the way of Greece, as polls showed him narrowing his challenger's lead two days before the vote. Final opinion polls put Francois Hollande's advantage at as little as four points. But Sarkozy faced an uphill battle after Hollande turned in a polished performance in their only television debate on Wednesday, and far-right and centrist leaders declined to back the unpopular president. ... Full Story Top Ohio turns over five dangerous wild animals to private farm Fri,4 May 2012 12:52 PM PDT Reuters - COLUMBUS, Ohio (Reuters) - The Columbus Zoo on Friday reluctantly turned over two leopards, a bear and two monkeys to the widow of a man who released them and more than four dozen other dangerous animals into the Ohio countryside before he committed suicide last October. The incident in October caused a panic in a rural area near Zanesville, Ohio and forced police to hunt the animals and kill most of them. ... Full Story Top Russia talk of pre-emptive strike unjustified: NATO Fri,4 May 2012 12:41 PM PDT Reuters - BERLIN (Reuters) - A Kremlin threat to launch pre-emptive strikes on a planned NATO missile defense system in Europe is unjustified as the system poses no threat to Russia's security, the head of the Atlantic alliance said on Friday. NATO has long insisted that the anti-missile shield it is developing is aimed at protecting member states from a possible Iranian attack, but Russia says it fears the system could undermine the effectiveness of its own nuclear arsenal. ... Full Story Top

You received this email because you subscribed to Yahoo! Alerts. Use this link to unsubscribe from this alert. To change your communications preferences for other Yahoo! business lines, please visit your Marketing Preferences. To learn more about Yahoo!'s use of personal information, including the use of web beacons in HTML-based email, please read our Privacy Policy. Yahoo! is located at 701 First Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA 94089.