| | |
| Day after 'Bridgegate' report, Christie says Port chair resigns Friday, Mar 28, 2014 03:27 PM PDT  By Daniel Kelley TRENTON, New Jersey (Reuters) - Governor Chris Christie on Friday said the chairman of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey had resigned, a day after an internal investigation cleared Christie in the "Bridgegate" scandal engulfing the potential 2016 Republican presidential contender. David Samson, 74, a lawyer and ally of the governor at the agency that oversees bridges and tunnels connecting the two states, had been discussing for a year his desire to step down, Christie told a news conference. "David tendered his resignation to me this afternoon, effective immediately," Christie said in his first news conference since a two-hour-long question and answer session on January 9 after a scandal erupted over the purportedly politically motivated closure of traffic lanes on the George Washington Bridge between New York City and Fort Lee, New Jersey. Christie defended the report, which blamed former deputy chief of staff Bridget Anne Kelly and Port Authority official David Wildstein for closing bridge entrance lanes in an apparent bid to retaliate against the Democratic mayor of the town of Fort Lee who had not endorsed Christie's 2013 re-election campaign. Full Story | Top |
| GM expands ignition switch recall to 2.6 million cars Friday, Mar 28, 2014 05:13 PM PDT  By Paul Lienert DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Co expanded its global recall of cars with defective ignition switches to 2.6 million on Friday, adding 971,000 later-model vehicles due to concerns over faulty replacement parts. About 95,000 faulty switches were sold to dealers and parts wholesalers, of which about 5,000 remain on shelves. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. judge OKs class action in e-book suit against Apple Friday, Mar 28, 2014 06:27 PM PDT  By Joseph Ax NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal judge in New York granted class certification on Friday to a group of consumers who sued Apple Inc for conspiring with five major publishers to fix e-book prices in violation of antitrust law. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote said the plaintiffs had "more than met their burden" to allow them to sue as a group. She rejected Apple's contentions that the claims were too different from each other, or that some plaintiffs were not harmed because some e-book prices fell. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment. Full Story | Top |
| Fresh objects seen in new Malaysia jet search area Friday, Mar 28, 2014 06:54 PM PDT  Australian authorities coordinating the operation moved the air and sea search 1,100 km (685 miles) north on Friday after new analysis of radar and satellite data concluded Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 travelled faster and for a shorter distance after vanishing from civilian radar screens on March 8. Five international aircraft spotted "multiple objects of various colors" in the new search area some 1,850 km (1,150 miles) west of Perth, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said on Saturday. Malaysia says the Boeing 777, which vanished less than an hour into a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, was likely diverted deliberately but investigators have turned up no apparent motive or other red flags among the 227 passengers or the 12 crew. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Russia threatened countries ahead of UN vote on Ukraine - envoys Friday, Mar 28, 2014 03:19 PM PDT  By Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Russia threatened several Eastern European and Central Asian states with retaliation if they voted in favor of a United Nations General Assembly resolution this week declaring invalid Crimea's referendum on seceding from Ukraine, U.N. diplomats said. The disclosures about Russian threats came after Moscow accused Western countries of using "shameless pressure, up to the point of political blackmail and economic threats," in an attempt to coerce the United Nations' 193 member states to join it in supporting the non-binding resolution on the Ukraine crisis. Full Story | Top |
| FBI most wanted fugitive arrested in murder of NY mother, toddler Friday, Mar 28, 2014 02:57 PM PDT  An accused gang member put on the FBI's "Ten Most Wanted Fugitives" list this week was arrested on Friday for his role in the 2010 killing of his girlfriend and her toddler son, federal authorities said. Juan Elias "Cruzito" Garcia, 21, a reputed member of the murderous international gang known as MS-13, was taken into custody when he voluntarily returned to the United States to face criminal prosecution, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said in a press release. Garcia, who has ties to El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and Panama, is accused in the execution-style shooting of the mother and child in Central Islip, New York, authorities said. His surrender on Friday - just two days after being put on the most wanted list - was the result of a coordinated effort between Nicaraguan authorities and U.S. law enforcement, which sent aircraft to bring Garcia to New York, the FBI said. Full Story | Top |
| PwC is sued for $1 billion over MF Global collapse Friday, Mar 28, 2014 03:24 PM PDT  By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - The administrator of MF Global Holdings Ltd's bankruptcy plan on Friday sued the auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers for at least $1 billion over its advice on a $6.3 billion European sovereign debt investment that helped fuel the brokerage's rapid demise. According to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, PwC committed professional malpractice by offering "flatly erroneous" advice concerning, and approval of, the off-balance-sheet accounting treatment for the debt by MF Global and its then-chief executive, Jon Corzine. The complaint said PwC knew that the investment would add significant risk to MF Global's already weak finances. It said MF Global would not have taken on the exposure, which allowed it to book immediate revenue, had it received sound advice. Full Story | Top |
| Russia's buildup near Ukraine may reach 40,000 troops: U.S. sources Friday, Mar 28, 2014 02:19 PM PDT  By Phil Stewart and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Russia's reinforcement of troops near Ukraine has brought the total forces there to as many as 40,000, U.S. officials estimated on Friday, as the United States voiced anxiety over the buildup and called on Moscow to pull back its military. The U.S. estimates of as many as 35,000 to around 40,000 troops are higher than the more than 30,000 total deployments reported earlier this week by U.S. and European sources familiar with official reporting. Some European sources remain cautious of increasing the estimates beyond 30,000. The military buildup is adding to concerns that Russia may again be readying an incursion into Ukraine following its annexation of Crimea, which has triggered the worst stand-off with the West since the Cold War. Full Story | Top |
| Obama seeks to reassure Saudi Arabia over Iran, Syria Friday, Mar 28, 2014 06:09 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Steve Holland RIYADH (Reuters) - President Barack Obama sought to reassure Saudi King Abdullah on Friday that he would support moderate Syrian rebels and reject a bad nuclear deal with Iran, during a visit designed to allay the kingdom's concerns that its decades-old U.S. alliance had frayed. Flying by helicopter to the king's desert camp, Obama underscored the importance of Washington's relationship with the world's largest oil exporter in a two-hour meeting that focused on the Middle East but did not touch on energy or human rights. Last year senior Saudi officials warned of a "major shift" away from the United States after bitter disagreements over its response to the "Arab spring" uprisings, efforts to negotiate with Iran, and Washington's decision not to intervene militarily in Syria, where Riyadh wants more American support for rebels. Full Story | Top |
| Former Vatican bank head's lawyers threaten to sue to clear name Friday, Mar 28, 2014 11:18 AM PDT  By Philip Pullella VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - In a new blow for the troubled Vatican bank, lawyers for its former head who was abruptly fired in 2012 threatened legal action on Friday to clear his name and show that he was unfairly dismissed. The surprise move by lawyers for Ettore Gotti Tedeschi came after months of relative calm for the Vatican bank under its new president, German Ernst Von Freyberg. Gotti Tedeschi was ousted after a no confidence vote by its lay board on May 24 at the height of the "Vatileaks" scandal, in which former Pope Benedict's butler leaked the pontiff's personal papers to the media. The board said Gotti Tedeschi was fired because he was an ineffective and divisive manager. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. judge OKs class action in e-book suit against Apple Friday, Mar 28, 2014 03:30 PM PDT  By Joseph Ax NEW YORK (Reuters) - A federal judge in New York granted class certification on Friday to a group of consumers who sued Apple Inc for conspiring with five major publishers to fix e-book prices in violation of antitrust law. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote said the plaintiffs had "more than met their burden" to allow them to sue as a group. She rejected Apple's contentions that the claims were too different from each other, or that some plaintiffs were not harmed because some e-book prices fell. An Apple spokeswoman declined to comment. Full Story | Top |
| Obama seeks to reassure Saudi Arabia over Iran, Syria Friday, Mar 28, 2014 04:57 PM PDT  By Jeff Mason and Steve Holland RIYADH (Reuters) - President Barack Obama sought to reassure Saudi King Abdullah on Friday that he would support moderate Syrian rebels and reject a bad nuclear deal with Iran, during a visit designed to allay the kingdom's concerns that its decades-old U.S. alliance had frayed. Flying by helicopter to the king's desert camp, Obama underscored the importance of Washington's relationship with the world's largest oil exporter in a two-hour meeting that focused on the Middle East but did not touch on energy or human rights. Last year senior Saudi officials warned of a "major shift" away from the United States after bitter disagreements over its response to the "Arab spring" uprisings, efforts to negotiate with Iran, and Washington's decision not to intervene militarily in Syria, where Riyadh wants more American support for rebels. Full Story | Top |
| Fresh objects seen in new Malaysia jet search area Friday, Mar 28, 2014 04:43 PM PDT  Australian authorities coordinating the operation dramatically moved the air and sea search 1,100 km (685 miles) north on Friday after new analysis of radar and satellite data concluded Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 travelled faster and for a shorter distance after vanishing from civilian radar screens on March 8. Australia said late on Friday that five international aircraft had spotted "multiple objects of various colors" in the new search area some 1,850 km (1,150 miles) west of Perth. One Chinese navy ship was in the area and would be trying to recover objects on Saturday, while other ships were steaming to the area, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said. Malaysia says the Boeing 777, which vanished less than an hour into a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, was likely diverted deliberately but investigators have turned up no apparent motive or other red flags among the 227 passengers or the 12 crew. Full Story | Top |
| GM expands ignition switch recall to 2.6 million cars Friday, Mar 28, 2014 03:24 PM PDT By Paul Lienert DETROIT (Reuters) - General Motors Co is adding 971,000 cars to its global ignition switch recall, which began in February with 1.6 million vehicles and has been linked to at least a dozen deaths. Even before the expansion, the recall had sparked investigations by Congress, federal regulators, the Department of Justice and GM itself. All are asking why it took GM so long to address an issue first noted by the company in 2001. GM said the newer models made after 2007 were equipped with a redesigned ignition switch, but that some of those cars might have been repaired with older replacement parts that may be faulty. Full Story | Top |
| At least three killed in Cairo clashes Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:32 PM PDT  At least three people were killed in clashes in Cairo on Friday amid protests by the Muslim Brotherhood, days after hundreds of its Islamist supporters were sentenced to death, official sources said. Newspaper Al Dustour said on its website Mayada Ashraf, one of its journalists, had died covering fighting which security sources said had involved Brotherhood supporters, security forces and residents. Security sources said birdshot had been fired during the clashes. State-run news agency MENA quoted an unnamed interior ministry official as saying four citizens were killed in the clashes, blaming Brotherhood supporters for the deaths. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. consumers lift spending, but sentiment slips Friday, Mar 28, 2014 09:26 AM PDT  By Lucia Mutikani WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. consumers stepped up spending a bit in February as incomes increased for a second straight month, offering hope the economy was regaining its footing after being slammed by an unusually cold winter. "So the winter may have slowed things temporarily, but with consumers still spending and incomes rising, we should see solid growth in the months ahead," said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors in Holland, Pennsylvania. Consumer spending rose 0.3 percent last month after a downwardly revised gain of 0.2 percent in January. Separately, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index dipped to 80.0 in March from 81.6 in February. Full Story | Top |
| Foreigners escape Taliban siege in Kabul; Afghan child killed Friday, Mar 28, 2014 01:06 PM PDT  By Mirwais Harooni and Hamid Shalizi KABUL (Reuters) - Taliban gunmen stormed a Kabul guesthouse used by a U.S.-based aid group and held four foreigners hostage for several hours on Friday, just eight days before Afghanistan holds a presidential election which the militant group has vowed to derail. Kabul is already on high alert and people across the country are on edge ahead of an April 5 vote the hardline Islamist movement has denounced as a Western-backed sham. The siege of the walled compound, which is also home to a small church, lasted several hours before Afghan security forces killed the last remaining Taliban gunman holed up inside. A Reuters witness saw about 20 people being evacuated from the guesthouse in an upmarket residential area of Kabul, many looking frightened and shocked. Full Story | Top |
| Turkish security breach exposes Erdogan in power struggle Friday, Mar 28, 2014 02:09 PM PDT  By Ralph Boulton and Orhan Coskun ISTANBUL/ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey's spymaster discusses possible military intervention in Syria with army and civilian chiefs, and days later their words are broadcast on the internet for all the world to hear. The breach appeared to highlight a disturbing truth for Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan: that Turkey can no longer keep even top-level security planning secret, despite his purge of thousands of officials to root out a covert network of enemies he accuses of trying to sabotage the state and topple him. "This crisis is one of the biggest in Turkish history," a senior government official, who declined to be named, told Reuters. We do not know who is in possession of them." Erdogan was out of public action on Friday, resting his voice strained by campaigning for local elections this weekend - the first in a string that will decide the future of a man who has reformed Turkey fundamentally but is now accused by critics of authoritarian and divisive tendencies. Full Story | Top |
| China takes no sides on Ukraine crisis, Xi tells Europe Friday, Mar 28, 2014 10:56 AM PDT  By Stephen Brown and Annika Breidthardt BERLIN (Reuters) - President Xi Jinping said on Friday China would not take sides with the West or Russia over Ukraine, disappointing any hopes Beijing might add its weight to international pressure on Moscow for annexing Crimea. "China does not have any private interests in the Ukraine question," Xi told a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. "All parties involved should work for a political and diplomatic solution to the conflict." China has adopted a cautious response to the Ukraine crisis, not wanting to alienate its ally Russia or make comment directly on a referendum in which Crimea voted to join Russia, lest it set a precedent for restive regions of its own such as Tibet. Full Story | Top |
| Exclusive: Oil sector withholds information about rail cargoes - U.S. regulator Friday, Mar 28, 2014 12:21 PM PDT By Patrick Rucker WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. transport regulators on Friday criticized the oil industry for not sharing important information about the kinds of rail shipments that were involved in a number of recent fiery derailments. In letters with regulators and testimony to lawmakers, leaders of trade groups like the American Petroleum Institute have said since January that they will share results of their tests on fuel from North Dakota's Bakken oil patch, where the derailed trains were loaded. But despite those assurances, the Department of Transportation said, the oil industry has largely declined to cooperate with regulators trying to understand why several recent fuel derailments led to explosions of uncommon force. "The overall and ongoing lack of cooperation is disappointing, slows progress, and certainly raises concerns." An oil industry representative on Friday said that examining North Dakota crude was an ongoing process. Full Story | Top |
| 'Mind your own business', North Korea says of U.N. demand for justice Friday, Mar 28, 2014 08:39 AM PDT  By Stephanie Nebehay and Tom Miles GENEVA (Reuters) - "Mind your own business," North Korea's ambassador told the U.N. Human Rights Council on Friday, moments before it voted to demand justice for Nazi-style atrocities in his country. U.N. human rights investigators said last month security chiefs and possibly Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un himself should be tried for ordering systematic torture, starvation and killings, saying the crimes were "strikingly similar" to those committed during World War Two. The United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva adopted a resolution, brought by Japan and the European Union and backed by the United States and South Korea, calling for the U.N. Security Council to seek accountability for those responsible. North Korea, also known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), has observer status with no vote. Full Story | Top |
| Fukushima worker killed in accident, cleanup halted Friday, Mar 28, 2014 05:16 AM PDT  By Mari Saito TOKYO (Reuters) - A worker at Japan's wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant died on Friday after being buried under gravel while digging a ditch, prompting the operator to suspend cleanup work for safety checks. Tokyo Electric Power Co said it was the first time a laborer had died as a direct result of an accident inside the plant since the nuclear disaster in March 2011, the world's worst since Chernobyl in 1986. "In the three years since the disaster, we had not had any worker deaths caused by work (inside the plant). The fact that such a serious accident has occurred is deeply regrettable," said Tepco spokesman Masayuki Ono. Full Story | Top |
| Rescue of Rio slums shaky on failed promise of basic services Friday, Mar 28, 2014 05:25 AM PDT  By Paulo Prada RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - In the three years since hundreds of police stormed the hills that her family calls home, Caroline Oliveira has been waiting for things to get better. True, the drug gangs that once controlled her Rio de Janeiro neighborhood are less dominant than they once were. As for the promise of nearby schools and health services, she will believe it when she sees it. "Not much has changed," says the 20-year-old mother of two, who has spent recent weeks seeking donations with neighbors to set up a community day-care center in their small corner of the Complexo do Alemão, a vast series of bare-brick shacks, open sewers and garbage heaps just north of central Rio. Full Story | Top |
| Pistorius murder trial adjourned until April 7 Friday, Mar 28, 2014 06:36 AM PDT  The murder trial of Oscar Pistorius was adjourned on Friday until April 7, when the South African Paralympic and Olympic track star is expected to take the stand in his own defense in a high-stakes bid to prove his innocence and avoid life in prison. Judge Thokozile Masipa postponed proceedings for more than a week due to the illness of one of the legal assistants who has been sitting at her side throughout the trial, one of the most high-profile in South African history. Prosecutors took 15 days to lay out their case against the 27-year-old, arguing he deliberately killed girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp in the early hours of Valentine's Day last year by firing four rounds from a 9 mm pistol through a closed toilet door. The trial has gripped South Africa and millions of athletics fans around the world who saw Pistorius as a symbol of triumph over physical adversity. Full Story | Top |
| Russia criticizes U.N. resolution condemning Crimea's secession Friday, Mar 28, 2014 02:15 PM PDT  Russia said on Friday a U.N. resolution declaring invalid Crimea's Moscow-backed referendum on seceding from Ukraine was counterproductive and accused Western states of using blackmail and threats to drum up "yes" votes. The non-binding resolution passed with 100 votes in favor, 11 against and 58 abstentions in the 193-nation U.N. General Assembly on Thursday, in a vote that Western nations said highlighted Russia's isolation. "This counterproductive initiative only complicates efforts to resolve the domestic political crisis in Ukraine," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Several Western diplomats, however, have said Russia's U.N. envoy led an aggressive lobbying campaign against the resolution in what they said showed how seriously Moscow took the U.N. vote condemning a referendum that led to its annexation of Crimea. Full Story | Top |
| U.S. consumer sentiment falls in March Friday, Mar 28, 2014 06:57 AM PDT  The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final March reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment came in at 80.0, up a tick from the preliminary 79.9 March reading but down from an 81.6 the month before. "Current conditions in the overall economy were reported by consumers to have recently weakened, and long term prospects for the economy softened," survey director Richard Curtin said in a statement. The survey's barometer of current economic conditions fell to 95.7 from the preliminary 96.1 reading but edged up from the 95.4 reading in the prior month. Expectations called for a 96.3 reading. Full Story | Top |
| South Korea proposes aid for North if it halts nuclear arms program Friday, Mar 28, 2014 03:52 AM PDT  South Korean President Park Geun-hye proposed a broad range of economic aid for impoverished North Korea on Friday if it agrees to give up its nuclear program. It was not immediately clear how the North would respond to the proposal, made in a speech in Dresden, Germany, but it has repeatedly rejected the idea of abandoning its nuclear program, which it says is a necessary deterrent against U.S. hostility. North and South Korea have been technically at war since the end of their 1950-53 civil conflict, as the fighting ended with a mere truce, not a treaty. North Korea threatened nuclear strikes against the South and the United States last year after the United Nations tightened sanctions against it for conducting its third nuclear test. Full Story | Top |
| Journalists, media under attack from hackers: Google researchers Friday, Mar 28, 2014 02:48 AM PDT  By Jeremy Wagstaff SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Twenty-one of the world's top-25 news organizations have been the target of likely state-sponsored hacking attacks, according to research by two Google security engineers. While many internet users face attacks via email designed to steal personal data, journalists were "massively over-represented" among such targets, said Shane Huntley, a security software engineer at Google. The attacks were launched by hackers either working for or in support of a government, and were specifically targeting journalists, Huntley and co-author Morgan Marquis-Boire said in interviews. Their paper was presented at a Black Hat hackers conference in Singapore on Friday. Full Story | Top |
| China's Baidu defeats U.S. lawsuit over censored search results Friday, Mar 28, 2014 01:32 AM PDT  By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chinese Internet company Baidu Inc on Thursday won the dismissal of a U.S. lawsuit by pro-democracy activists who complained that Baidu illegally suppressed political speech on China's most widely used Internet search engine. Eight New York writers and video producers had accused Baidu of creating search engine algorithms, at the behest of China, to block users in the United States from viewing articles, videos and other information advocating greater democracy in China. The plaintiffs said this kept Baidu users from seeing their work, unlike users of other search engines such as Google and Microsoft's Bing. Full Story | Top |
| Grenade attack on Thai anti-graft office ahead of PM hearing Thursday, Mar 27, 2014 11:53 PM PDT  By Panarat Thepgumpanat BANGKOK (Reuters) - Grenades were thrown at the offices of Thailand's anti-corruption agency, which has summoned the prime minister to answer charges of dereliction of duty next week, as protesters trying to oust her prepared for a big weekend rally. Supporters of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra have been demonstrating at the building this week. The National Anti-Corruption Commission is examining the alleged failure of Yingluck to stop corruption and stem huge losses in a government rice-buying program. It is widely expected to recommend her impeachment by the Senate. Full Story | Top |
| City on the edge holds key to Ukraine future Thursday, Mar 27, 2014 11:25 PM PDT  By Alastair Macdonald DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - Lenin looks out on Donetsk, unmoved, anthracite grey and steely eyed. It is torn between its Soviet past, a corrupt and unhappy present and a future somewhere between Russia and the West. Below his plinth on Lenin Square, protesters bemoan the fall of a local boy made good, president Viktor Yanukovich. Some hope Russia may do for the Donbass coalfield what it did in Crimea - claim Russian-speaking borderlands for Moscow, bringing higher pensions, wages and a return to a Soviet comfort zone. Full Story | Top |
| Mudslide death toll poised to soar despite dearth of details Friday, Mar 28, 2014 02:22 PM PDT By Eric M. Johnson ARLINGTON, Washington (Reuters) - The death toll from a catastrophic mudslide in Washington state appeared poised to climb dramatically as rescue teams drenched by steady rains on Friday clawed through thick muck searching for more victims nearly a week after a disaster that has left 90 people missing. Authorities already have said that some of those killed might never be found, and on Thursday braced the public for news - still yet to come - that the number of dead would "increase substantially" in the next 24 to 28 hours. Full Story | Top |
| As U.S. momentum stocks take beating, some sectors benefit Friday, Mar 28, 2014 07:04 AM PDT  By Ryan Vlastelica and David Gaffen NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investors in some of the past year's hottest U.S. stocks have been given a savage lesson in the risks of so-called "momentum trading". A group of 24 such companies compiled by Credit Suisse has lost $63 billion in market value, or almost 19 percent, so far in March. One of them, streaming video service Netflix, has declined on 15 of the last 17 trading days, while another, online travel service Priceline, is on pace to for its worst month in nearly two years, while Twitter on Wednesday sank below its November first-day closing price for the first time since December, when the company had publicly traded for less than a month. The sell off may well have further to go, investors warn. Full Story | Top |
| Obamacare enrollment tops six million as deadline looms: White House Friday, Mar 28, 2014 04:03 AM PDT  By Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than 6 million people have now signed up for private insurance plans under President Barack Obama's signature healthcare law known as Obamacare, reflecting a surge in enrollments days before the March 31 deadline, the White House said on Thursday. The milestone gives the White House some ammunition to counter Republican critics, who have described the program as an expensive flop in the build-up to midterm congressional campaigns in November, when Democratic control of the U.S. Senate is at stake. Only 10 days ago, the administration had pegged enrollment at more than 5 million people, and enlisted celebrities and top government officials to try to persuade more uninsured people, particularly the young and healthy, to sign up. The last-minute boost has exceeded the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office's estimate that 6 million people would sign up in the program's first year, down from earlier expectations of 7 million enrollees because of problems with websites used for shopping for insurance. Full Story | Top |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment