Datasets:

glnmario

/

news-qa-summarization

like 19

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The beautifully ornate Catholic church in the nation's capital has seen its share of history and controversy. Cardinal Theodore McCarrick and Chief Justice John Roberts attend Red Mass in 2005. In 1963, the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle was the site of John F. Kennedy's funeral. After the service, on the steps outside, the slain president's young son famously saluted his father's memory. But the church is also the site of an annual Mass that has drawn criticism for what many see as an unhealthy mix of politics, the law and religion. Washington's annual Red Mass, which celebrates the legal profession, will be held this year on Sunday, October 4 -- the day before the Supreme Court begins its new term. Several justices traditionally attend, along with congressional leaders, diplomats, cabinet secretaries and other dignitaries. Past presidents have also attended, though there is no word yet on whether President Obama will appear. It is a Catholic service, but power brokers of other faiths are asked to attend the invitation-only event. Justice Stephen Breyer, who is Jewish, is a regular. The Mass "takes its name from the color of the vestments. ... [It] goes back centuries, to Rome, to France to England," Washington Archbishop Donald Wuerl said. "There was the idea [to] bring all the people who are involved in the law ... once a year so that together, they can simply pray for the wisdom of God." The church, built starting in the 19th century, is considered one of Washington's hidden gems. Tucked between modern office buildings a few blocks from the White House, it is a mix of architectural styles, a hint of ancient Roman style, a splash from the Italian Renaissance and a definite Byzantine flavor. St. Matthew, noted Monsignor Ronald Jameson, was the patron saint of civil servants, appropriate in a city where the federal government dominates the workforce. Five justices attended last year's Red Mass, which was similar in tone to other recent gatherings. Cardinal John Patrick Foley, who has held several prominent positions in the Catholic Church, noted many parts of the Bible "sound very much like American ideals" and reminded the members of the high court to build a society "of justice, of peace and of love." Critics of the service, however, find the attendance of leading decision-makers, including members of the highest court in the land, to be inappropriate. "The truth is, this was set up as a way to basically lecture and give information to the justices," said the Rev. Barry Lynn, president of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "There is no other institution that has this special way to talk to the justices on the Supreme Court." The Red Mass was started in Washington in 1952 by the John Carroll Society, a lay Catholic group of prominent lawyers and professionals. Chief Justice John Roberts' wife, Jane, is an officer of the group. Lynn, an ordained minister with the United Church of Christ, noted the Mass was begun after several high court decisions that were disapproved of by the archdiocese. "They figured if they got all the justices together and chatted them up in a worship service, they might be able to convince them to see the law their way," he said. In 1989, a top church official used the occasion of the Mass to call for a return to "religiously based moral values" and lament the "inviolable, impenetrable and towering wall" between church and state. In 1986, Washington Cardinal James Hickey attacked the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade ruling legalizing abortion. Among those in attendance that year were then-Chief Justice William Rehnquist and Justices Antonin Scalia and William Brennan, both Catholics. One member of the court who no longer attends is Ruth Bader Ginsburg who, like Breyer, is Jewish. Ginsberg said she grew tired of being lectured to by Catholic officials. "I went one year, and I will never go again,

Annual Catholic Mass in Washington celebrates the legal profession . It began in 1952; several Supreme Court justices regularly attend . It is touted as a chance for those involved in law to pray for wisdom . Critic says Mass set up to "lecture and give information to the justices"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The case against a Marine accused of murder in a 2005 incident involving the killings of Iraqi civilians in Haditha "is simply not strong enough to prove against a reasonable doubt," the investigating officer said Thursday. The investigating officer has recommended that Sgt. Frank Wuterich not be tried for murder. Lt. Col. Paul Ware recommended that Sgt. Frank Wuterich face trial for lesser charges of negligent homicide. The case involved allegations that Marines killed up to two dozen Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha, Iraq, in November 2005. Ware said the evidence indicated Wuterich "failed to exercise due care in his own actions in supervising his Marines." "When a Marine fails to exercise due care in a combat environment resulting in the death of innocents, the charge of negligent homicide, not murder, is the appropriate offense," he said in a statement. The recommendation goes to Lt. Gen. James Mattis, the commanding general overseeing the case, who will make the final decision. If the recommendation is accepted, it could mean that no one in the Haditha case will be tried for murder. Four enlisted Marines were initially accused in the case, and charges against two have been dropped. Murder charges remain against Lance Cpl. Stephen Tatum, although Ware has recommended dropping all charges against him. Ware said the evidence is too weak for a court martial. Four officers were later accused of failing to investigate and report the deaths properly. Charges against two of them have been dropped. Haditha, along the Euphrates River, was the target of previous Marine campaigns aimed at rooting out insurgents. Wuterich was leading a patrol through the city on November 19, 2005, when the unit was hit by a roadside bomb that killed one of its members. Twenty-four civilians were killed in what a human rights group and military prosecutors said was a house-to-house rampage by Marines after the bomb exploded. The military began investigating the killings in March 2006, and charges were brought the following December. A statement from the Marine Corps originally blamed the civilian deaths on the roadside bomb, triggering a parallel investigation into how commanders handled the incident. Arrest made in terrorist financing case Earlier Thursday, the U.S. military announced the arrest of a man who smuggled $100 million into Iraq during the past few months to finance terrorist operations. The unidentified man, arrested Tuesday near Baghdad, allegedly employs 40 to 50 extremists at $3,000 per job for al Qaeda in Iraq bomb attacks against coalition forces, using money from supporters outside Iraq, the military said. "The extremist financier is suspected of traveling to foreign countries to acquire financial support for terrorist activities and is suspected of supplying more than $50,000 to al Qaeda each month," the military said. The suspect, captured during a coalition raid in Kindi, operates a network of financing cells across Iraq, the military said. "He is believed to have received $100 million this summer from terrorist supporters who cross the Iraq border illegally or fly into Iraq from Italy, Syria and Egypt," the military said. The $100 million figure is based on intelligence report estimates over several months, a spokesman for Multi-National Corps-Iraq said. The man is also accused of purchasing some of the explosives and weapons used in the 2006 attack on Samarra's al-Askariya mosque, also known as the Golden Mosque, and a second attack on it in 2007. The attacks heightened sectarian tensions between Sunni and Shiite Muslims. During a separate operation in Radwaniya on Tuesday, Iraqi forces detained a suspected al Qaeda in Iraq platoon leader who commands 15 men in attacks on Iraqi and coalition forces with roadside bombs and direct assaults, the military said. Meanwhile, an Iraqi Ministry of Information spokesman said Thursday that Iraq has entered into a "substantial" deal with China to purchase weapons and light military equipment for its police forces, because the Asian nation promised the fastest delivery. Brig. Gen. Abdul Kareem Khalaf told CNN he was unable to confirm that his country was spending $

If advice accepted, it could mean no one in Haditha case will be tried for murder . Iraq to buy weapons from China; $100 million worth, Washington Post says . Pentagon: Detainee financed terror operations across country . Financier allegedly paid $3,000 per roadside bomb operation .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The case of Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" on national television -- and subsequent fines against CBS -- will be re-examined at the order of the Supreme Court. Justin Timberlake and Janet Jackson perform at the Super Bowl just before the infamous "wardrobe malfunction." The justices Monday sent the case back to a federal appeals court in Philadelphia that had thrown out a $550,000 government fine against the broadcast network and its affiliates for airing the incident during halftime of the 2004 Super Bowl. The pop singer's breast was briefly exposed during a performance with singer Justin Timberlake. After viewer complaints and national media attention, the Federal Communications Commission said the Jackson incident was obscene. In addition to CBS Inc., 20 of its affiliates also were fined. Congress quickly reacted at the time to the visual shocker by increasing the limit on indecency fines tenfold, up to $325,000 per violation per network. And it said each local affiliate that aired such incidents also could be punished by the same amount. But the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals concluded the communications commission had acted "arbitrarily and capriciously." The Supreme Court's action marks the second time in recent days that it has dealt with cases involving broadcast standards. Last week, the justices narrowly upheld the authority of the Federal Communications Commission to punish networks for airing profanity. The government clampdown on obscene images and words began in 2003. Enforcement of the law, as well as fines and sanctions for the incidents, have been put on hold while the cases are being argued. The television networks say their scripted shows no longer air nudity, racy images or expletives, even after 10 p.m., when some potentially vulgar words are permitted. They worry, however, about unplanned, often spontaneous indecent or profane incident at live events, such as awards shows and sporting events. Company officials say such programs are often on a five-second delay, and censors are on hand to bleep any offensive language. But some indecent words can slip through, they admit, and they want to be protected from heavy government fines. Critics call that laughable. "This past summer, CBS edited into a show that had to go through multiple reviews, by multiple people in the organization, the F-word," said Tim Winter, who heads the Parents Television Council, and is supporting the FCC's efforts. His group advocates "responsible" programming, and warns parents about questionable program content. The show in question was "Big Brother 10," a taped series. The Jackson incident was not on a five-second delay. CBS issued a statement Monday afternoon it is confident that the appeals court "will again recognize that the Super Bowl incident, while inappropriate and regrettable, was not and could not have been anticipated by CBS." The issue is an important one "for the entire broadcasting industry," it said, "because it recognizes that there are rare instances, particularly during live programming, when despite best efforts it may not be possible to block unfortunate fleeting material." In the case involving profane language, the high court concluded 5-4 that the communications commission has the authority to sanction broadcast TV networks that air isolated incidents of profanity, known as "fleeting expletives." But the justices in that case refused to decide whether the commission's policy violates the First Amendment guarantee of free speech. It ruled only on their enforcement power. The justices ordered the free-speech aspect to be reviewed again by a federal appeals court. The "wardrobe malfunction" case is FCC v. CBS Corp. (08-653).

U.S. Supreme Court has asked that "wardrobe malfunction" case be re-examined . Janet Jackson inadvertently flashed breast during Super Bowl halftime show in 2004 . CBS and several affiliates were fined; appeals court disagreed with decision . Networks have clamped down on nudity, language; still worry some slips through .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The cause of a deadly Washington Metro subway crash last month remains a mystery, with one problem identified by investigators persisting even after engineers replaced a key part that was believed to be faulty, a top Metro official said Tuesday Investigators are shown at the crash scene in Washington. Nine people were killed in the June 22 accident. At a congressional hearing, Jim Graham said Metro replaced a device that was "fluttering," signaling the presence of a train one moment and not the next. "You'd think that that would remedy the issue, that ... we would have solved the problem," said Graham, chairman of Metro's board of directors. "In fact, the new device ... continued the same fluttering as the former device." "We're left with a very compelling mystery as to what is going on here," he said. The National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation, acknowledged that Metro's system of detecting trains continues to have unexplained, intermittent failures. "Sometimes it's working; sometimes it's not, even with those changes," NTSB member Deborah Hersman told a House committee. "We've walked back the cable to see if there might be some cabling issues. There's a lot of challenges here and we're changing out some components and trying to identify what the problem is," she said. Metro has said it will operate the subway trains on manual control until officials have identified and fixed the problem with the automatic train system. Nine people were killed and scores were injured during the June 22 crash just north of the Red Line's Fort Totten station. At Tuesday's hearing, a passenger on one of the trains gave a dramatic description of the accident. Patrick Tuite of Kensington, Maryland, said he had just put down his newspaper and closed his eyes to relax when he heard a screeching sound, someone yelling and "one of the loudest bangs I've ever heard in my life." Tuite said in the impact, he hit the seat in front of him. When Tuite peered into the forward-most car, he saw extensive damage. The floor of the car had collapsed "accordion-like," he said. "We could hear the people at this point in the first car," he said. "And it was pretty chaotic. They were screaming; they were upset," he said. But the collision had jammed the doors between the cars, making it impossible to reach victims in the front car. It wasn't until he got off the train that he realized the first car was thrust into the air, he said. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the District of Columbia's Congressional delegate, chided the NTSB for making prohibitively costly safety recommendations while ignoring cheaper, common sense solutions, such as putting the newer, more robust rail cars at the front and back of trains. "Over and over again, you said, 'Do the impossible,' " Norton, a Democrat, said, referring to NTSB recommendations that Metro replace older cars with sturdier new ones. "Why didn't the transportation board at least recommend this rather low-tech, low-cost step?" Hersman said the NTSB's role is to push for safety improvements. "We do make recommendations, Ms. Norton, and we don't have to pay for them, so we recognize that frustration," she said. "But our charge is not to [consider costs]. Our charge is to recommend what we think is in the best interest of the safety community. We are the conscience and the compass of the transportation industry, and they [transportation providers and regulators] get to decide if and how they implement it," Hersman said.

Unexplained, intermittent failures persist despite repairs, Metro official says . Passenger recalls loud bang, "accordion-like" collapse of floor, screams . Delegate chides NTSB for making high-cost, "impossible" recommendations . 9 people killed, scores injured in June 22 crash near Red Line's Fort Totten station .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The chief executives of Ford and GM joined their Chrysler counterpart Tuesday in agreeing to accept salaries of $1 a year if Congress comes through with a bailout for the automakers. Alan Mulally, chief executive officer of Ford Motor Co., has reversed course and will accept a salary of $1 a year. The statements came as the Big Three automakers turned in financial plans to Congress, hoping to bolster their requests for $25 billion in bridge loans. GM spokesman Steve Harris said CEO Rick Wagoner had agreed to accept a $1 salary. Harris didn't elaborate. Ford Motor Company said the salary of its CEO, Alan Mulally, would be cut to $1 a year if Ford actually borrowed money from the government. When Mulally appeared before the House Financial Services Committee last month, he said he would not agree to a pay cut. In his previous appearance before Congress, Chrysler CEO Bob Nardelli said he would accept a $1-per-year salary if it helped Chrysler obtain its share of the rescue package. GM plans to display some of its new high-tech cars on Capitol Hill this week, a GM source told CNN. About two weeks ago, congressional Democrats ordered executives of the three automakers to show that they have viable financial turnaround plans when they return later this week to Capitol Hill. Watch why the Big Three are not all in same situation » Ford released details of its turnaround plan in a written statement Tuesday. The automaker said that, based on current business planning assumptions, it expects its overall and its North American automotive business pre-tax results to break even or be profitable in 2011. The company also released initial details of an accelerated vehicle electrification plan for a family of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and battery electric vehicles. The plan includes a Ford full-battery electric vehicle (BEV) in a van for commercial fleet use in 2010 and a BEV sedan in 2011, the statement said. Ford said it plans to invest about $14 billion in the United States on advanced technologies and products to improve fuel efficiency during the next seven years. It also said it will sell its corporate aircraft as part of its cash-improvement plan. Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said he would not support a bailout package unless the companies could prove that they would be viable after the bailout. Reid did not commit to holding a vote on the bailout package. "No one is too big to fail," Reid said. "We hope we can work something out with them." One of Reid's aides said the senator had not read the Ford plan yet because he was involved in back-to-back meetings. GM, Ford, and Chrysler already have made sizable cuts in production and staffing throughout the year, with additional cuts expected in the next few months. Their plans were being submitted to the Democratic chairmen of the committees that will hear the automakers' requests -- Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, whose Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee convenes Thursday, and Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, whose House Financial Services Committee meets Friday. Lawmakers asked the automakers to describe how they will restructure their businesses to become more competitive. In general, the automakers have been asked to describe how much money they have, and how much they need to stay viable in the long term. Their plans also must address how the companies will meet health care and pension obligations to workers. After being criticized during their last trip for arriving in Washington in corporate jets, Mulally and Wagoner are driving to the nation's capital in hybrid cars -- Mulally in a Ford Escape and Wagoner in a Chevrolet Malibu. A Ford executive told CNN the company's plan, 20 to 30 pages long, was being e-mailed to Congress. He said the plan put a heavy emphasis on advanced technologies. Ford is worried, however, that even after doing a "bang-up job" on its report, the company may not receive what it needs,

NEW: "No one is too big to fail," top Senate Democrat says . All of the Big Three automaker CEOs say they'll accept salaries of $1 a year . Auto execs return to Capitol Hill this week to offer plans for turnaround . Executives driving to Washington from Detroit in hybrid vehicles .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The commander for NATO forces in Afghanistan said Wednesday that more military presence is "needed as quickly as possible." U.S. troops are seeing an increased threat in Afghanistan, Gen. David McKiernan says. Gen. David McKiernan said the additional military capability is needed because of "an increased number of fighters" coming into Afghanistan from Pakistan's lawless tribal regions. "It's a significant increase from what we saw this time last year," he said at the Pentagon. "We're facing a tougher threat right now, especially in the east where we have the U.S. division," he said. "And so the additional military capability [is] needed as quickly as possible." He said what's necessary includes "boots on the ground" as well as support such as "helicopters, increased intelligence assets, logistics, transportation and so on." Just over a week ago, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that a Marine battalion will head to Afghanistan in November and an Army brigade in January, but no more forces will be available for deployment to Afghanistan until spring or summer of 2009. The week before Gates' announcement, McKiernan had asked for four more brigades -- three more than the one approved to go in January. Three brigades add up to as many as 12,000 troops. The defense secretary, speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee last month, expressed caution about adding too many troops in Afghanistan. "I think we need to think about how heavy a military footprint the U.S. ought to have in Afghanistan," he told the committee. Instead, Gates said, there should be a focus on increasing the size of the Afghan army. McKiernan, who took command of NATO's International Security Assistance Force earlier this year, said his request of an additional 3,500 people to train the Afghan army and police is still under review. McKiernan noted that he is "cautiously optimistic" regarding Pakistan's military operations against Taliban and al Qaeda fighters inside its borders. "What we're seeing is Pakistani leadership taking on a deteriorated militant sanctuary in the tribal areas that has deteriorated over last several years," he said. McKiernan said it is "probably too early" to see if Pakistan's military clampdown in its tribal areas has had any effect on stemming militant activity in Afghanistan. "We're watching those very closely to see if there's a cause and effect with the strength of the insurgency on the Afghan side of the border," he said. "But we think that's a positive step that they are taking on those militant sanctuaries."

More foreign fighters entering Afghanistan from Pakistan, general says . "We're facing a tougher threat," so more troops needed "as quickly as possible" U.S. Gen. David McKiernan commands NATO forces in Afghanistan . McKiernan has sought three more brigades of U.S. troops than one promised .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The commander in chief's priority is preventing another terrorist attack in the United States, President Bush told CNN's "Larry King Live" Tuesday. President Bush and first lady Laura Bush sit down with CNN's Larry King Live on Tuesday. "The most important job I have had -- and the most important job the next president is going to have -- is to protect the American people from another attack," Bush said. Accompanied by first lady Laura Bush and engaging in a wide-ranging conversation with King, Bush also said that his administration has been involved in stopping specific threats against the United States since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. "We've learned a lot of information about al Qaeda that we didn't know before," Bush said of intelligence activities during his tenure as president. "We've stopped some specific threats -- we're decimating [al Qaeda's] leadership." He did not offer specifics, but he did offer a self-assessment of his leadership in national security post-9/11. Watch Bush talk about the aftermath of 9/11 » "I told the American people I wouldn't tire and I wouldn't falter, and I haven't," the outgoing president said. Bush brushed off the low opinion-ratings and declining polls that have marked his waning presidency by saying, "Look, opinion polls are nothing but a shot of yesterday's news." "Opinion polls aren't going to be high when the economy is in the tank," he added. "People aren't happy with the economy. Neither am I. But you can't make decisions based on popularity polls." Bush took that train of thought on to another topic, Iraq. "If the military thinks you're making decisions based on the Gallup poll, they're not going to follow a commander in chief," he said. Asked about inaccurate intelligence reports on alleged weapons of mass destruction that led up to the war in Iraq, Bush refused to criticize the CIA, saying only that he was "disappointed." On Iraq, he maintained that actions taken by his administration were correct. "I don't think Iraq was wrong," Bush said in response to a question from King. "What I was worried about, (was) Iraq going to fail -- not Iraq was wrong," he said. "And the surge has worked and a young democracy in the heart of the Middle East has taken hold. There's more work to be done. But al Qaeda has been denied the base in which they wanted to operate.: When discussing the nation's economic slump, Bush cautioned his successor "not to become an economic forecaster once he gets to be president." King and Bush discussed President-elect Barack Obama's predictions for a bad year ahead for the U.S. economy and King asked Bush, "That's not a good idea to say?" "I don't think so. I think he can say it's going to be a tough period, but to predict what the economy is going to do ... it is going to be bad. How bad? How long?" Bush responded. "What he ought to be saying -- and I know he feels this way -- is he's going to take the steps he thinks are necessary to get us back on the road to recovery and we will recover." Bush said he is looking forward to the inaugurationTuesday, describing it as "a historic moment for the country." Asked by King if he liked Obama, Bush replied, "I do. I do like him. You'd like him, too." But Laura Bush said she took some of Obama's critiques of her husband personally. "Were you angry at it?" King asked. "Yes, sort of. George didn't really even know about it because he didn't really watch it that much," Laura Bush said, laughing. Watch Laura Bush express her disapproval » "So what's

"Most important job ... is to protect the American people," Bush tells CNN's Larry King . Bush agrees rocky times are ahead, but cautions Obama against making predictions . Outgoing president says Obama should talk more about getting on "road to recovery"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The defense secretary will not ban smoking by troops in war zones despite a recommendation to do so by a Pentagon-commissioned study. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says he does not want to compound stress in combat zones by banning smoking. Secretary Robert Gates' decision stems from concern about the stress troops face, said his spokesman. "We are fighting two wars right now, using a force that we are demanding more of than we ever have before. They are under enormous stress and strain, and the secretary does not want to compound that stress by taking away from them one of the few outlets they have to relieve that stress," Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell said Wednesday. A new study commissioned by the Pentagon and the Department of Veterans Affairs recommends a complete ban on tobacco, which would end tobacco sales on military bases and prohibit smoking by anyone in uniform -- including combat troops in the thick of battle. According to the study, tobacco use impairs military readiness in the short term. Over the long term, it can cause serious health problems, including lung cancer and cardiovascular disease. The study also says smokeless tobacco use can lead to oral and pancreatic cancer. Morrell said that Gates has not seen the report and will consider the recommendations to move towards a goal of a smoke-free military. "There may be things we can do to try to move towards that goal. But he has been very clear to me, up front, that one of the things he is not prepared to do is to restrict the use of tobacco products in combat zones," Morrell said. Anti-smoking activist Richard Daynard said Gates' decision was logical. But he predicted that, as smoking is banned on military bases outside combat zones, "then the problem over time will resolve itself, even in combat zones." The founder of the Tobacco Products Liability Project likened the situation to that which prevailed during the 1980s, when smoking aboard U.S. commercial airlines was banned. "There was an exception for the cockpit, at least on some airlines, on the theory that you probably don't want your pilot, if he's hooked on nicotine, to be cold-turkey while he's trying to navigate your plane." But, he said, the exception has been phased out. CNN's Adam Levine and Tom Watkins contributed to this story.

No ban despite recommendation to do so in Pentagon-commissioned study . Spokesman: Secretary does not want to take away outlet to relieve stress . Study recommend banning tobacco sales on bases, prohibit smoking in uniform .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The dramatic drop in violence in Iraq is due in large part to a secret program the U.S. military has used to kill terrorists, according to a new book by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bob Woodward. Bob Woodward's book, "The War Within: Secret White House History 2006-2008," came out Monday. The program -- which Woodward compares to the World War II era Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb -- must remain secret for now or it would "get people killed," Woodward said Monday on CNN's Larry King Live. "It is a wonderful example of American ingenuity solving a problem in war, as we often have," Woodward said. In "The War Within: Secret White House History 2006-2008," Woodward disclosed the existence of secret operational capabilities developed by the military to locate, target and kill leaders of al Qaeda in Iraq and other insurgent leaders. National security adviser Stephen Hadley, in a written statement reacting to Woodward's book, acknowledged the new strategy. Yet he disputed Woodward's conclusion that the "surge" of 30,000 U.S. troops into Iraq was not the primary reason for the decline in violent attacks. "It was the surge that provided more resources and a security context to support newly developed techniques and operations," Hadley wrote. Woodward, associate editor of the Washington Post, wrote that along with the surge and the new covert tactics, two other factors helped reduce the violence. Watch Bob Woodward explain the strategy » One was the decision of militant cleric Muqtada al-Sadr to order a cease-fire by his Mehdi Army. The other was the "Anbar Awakening" movement that saw Sunni tribes aligning with U.S. troops to battle al Qaeda in Iraq. Woodward told Larry King that while there is a debate over how much credit the new secret operations should get for the drop in violence, he concluded it "accounts for a good portion." "I would somewhat compare it to the Manhattan Project in World War II," he said "It's a ski slope right down in a matter of months, cutting the violence in half. This isn't going to happen with the bunch of joint security stations or the surge." The top secret operations, he said, will "some day in history ... be described to people's amazement." While he would not reveal the details, Woodward said the terrorists who have been targeted were already aware of the capabilities. "The enemy has a heads up because they've been getting wiped out and a lot of them have been killed," he said. "It's not news to them. "If you were a member of al Qaeda or the resistance or some extremist militia, you would be wise to get your rear end out of town," Woodward said. "It is very dangerous."

Program likened to WWII-era Manhattan Project that developed the atomic bomb . Author discloses the existence of secret operational capabilities in latest book . National security advisor disputes Woodward's conclusion about the Iraq surge .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The former Halliburton subsidiary KBR has been charged with bribing Nigerian government officials with "tens of millions of dollars" to obtain "billions of dollars in contracts," according to court documents filed late Friday in Houston, Texas. KBR was spun off from its former parent corporation Halliburton in 2007. Justice Department lawyers filed an "information," which is generally associated with an expected plea agreement. The Justice Department had no comment on the filing, but officials familiar with the case said they expected KBR representatives to appear Wednesday in federal court in Houston. The 22-page court document outlines a complex joint venture involving KBR and the Nigeria government-owned National Petroleum Corporation charged with developing the country's oil and gas industry. The contracts involved the design and construction of a natural gas plant. The government documents say the joint venture included payments to international consultants to bribe Nigerian officials. The alleged violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act come after the conviction of Albert Stanley, KBR's former chief executive officer, who pleaded guilty to bribery last fall. "We are not providing comment at this time," said company spokeswoman Heather Browne in an e-mail. She referred CNN to a filing in October that cited a consortium that included KBR called TSKJ. It said, "information has been uncovered suggesting that, commencing at least 10 years ago, members of TSKJ planned payments to Nigerian officials. We have reason to believe, based on the ongoing investigations, that payments may have been made by agents of TSKJ to Nigerian officials. "The government has recently confirmed that it has evidence of such payments. The government has also recently advised Halliburton and KBR that it has evidence of payments to Nigerian officials by another agent in connection with a separate KBR-managed offshore project in Nigeria and possibly evidence of payments in connection with other projects in Nigeria." The company said that in June 2004 it terminated its relationship with Stanley, and noted his guilty plea. "By the plea, Mr. Stanley admitted that he participated in a scheme to bribe Nigerian government officials and that payments were made by agents of TSKJ to Nigerian officials in connection with the construction and expansion by TSKJ of the complex at Bonny Island," it said. KBR, which was spun off from its former parent corporation Halliburton in 2007, has been under fire for its business practices in providing logistical support to the U.S. war effort in Iraq. The Nigerian charges are separate from KBR's contracts in Iraq and Kuwait. CNN Justice Producer Terry Frieden contributed to this story.

Feds: KBR bribed Nigerian government for "billions of dollars in contracts" 22-page document outlines venture to pay international consultants . KBR's chief executive officer was convicted of bribery last fall .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The former judge who last year lost a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against a dry cleaners over a missing pair of pants wants his job back. Roy Pearson sued the owners of this dry cleaning business for $54 million over a missing pair of pants. Roy Pearson was not reappointed after his term expired as an administrative law judge in the District of Columbia. He filed a lawsuit Thursday in federal court accusing city government and others of an "unlawful demotion and subsequent termination." Pearson was taken off the bench in May 2007, during his unsuccessful $54 million lawsuit against a dry cleaning business, which he accused of failing to meet its promise of "satisfaction guaranteed." As an administrative law judge, Pearson would hear cases involving zoning law and certain business disputes. A city panel that decides reappointments had notified Pearson during the controversial lost trousers trial that his status was under review. A source on that panel said at the time that any judge must meet certain standards of conduct "on and off the bench." The source, who was among the members of the panel at the time of Pearson's review, said "a judge is a judge 24/7; whether or not they use good judgment in all aspects of their lives is what we can consider." The civil case, in which Pearson represented himself, sought punitive and compensatory damages against a small family-owned dry cleaners that once posted signs promising "satisfaction guaranteed." A pair of trousers that hung by the witness stand was a featured part of the trial last summer. The owners testified that the pants belonged to Pearson, who denied under oath that they were his. The judge found in favor of the dry cleaners and disagreed with Pearson that the satisfaction promise was unconditional. Pearson petitioned the trial judge for a reconsideration, which was denied. He then filed an appeal with the D.C. Court of Appeals, which will hear his appeal later this year. In court documents made available Friday at U.S. District Court in Washington, Pearson, again acting as his own attorney, relies on what he considers Washington's "Whistleblower Protection" law to try to establish illegal retaliation. The trial over the lost trousers generated a storm of criticism among fairness advocates, who accused Pearson of abusing the system. The latest litigation has begun to produce the same reaction. "He lost his job because he proved he did not have the legal requirements to fill the job, namely a judicial temperament," said Darren McKinney of the American Tort Reform Association. Pearson did not return a message left at home. In his suit seeking to regain his job, he also seeks "compensatory damages in an amount to be determined at trial, in excess of $75,000 from all defendants jointly and severally," as well as an unspecified amount of punitive damages "to be determined at trial." Efforts to seek reaction from the individuals named in the lawsuit were unsuccessful. No initial hearing date has been set in the civil case assigned to U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan. E-mail to a friend

Roy Pearson accuses the city government of an "unlawful demotion" and termination . He sought $54 million from a small family-owned dry cleaners over lost trousers . A judge found in favor of the dry cleaners . Pearson was taken off the bench in May 2007 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The head of Blackwater USA on Sunday rejected a mounting series of reports suggesting the private contractor's security guards opened fire on innocent Iraqi civilians last month. Blackwater CEO Erik Prince said Sunday that guards "definitely" faced insurgent fire September 16. "There was definitely incoming small arms fire from insurgents" in the September 16 incident in Baghdad, founder and CEO Erik Prince told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on "Late Edition." There was no "deliberate violence," committed by Blackwater employees, he added. Still, when asked whether it is possible someone with Blackwater "screwed up" in the incident, Prince replied, "Certainly it's possible." He said he expects the FBI investigation to provide many answers. Meanwhile, U.S. and Iraqi officials continue discussing Baghdad's demand that Blackwater be expelled from Iraq within six months, The Associated Press reported Sunday. American officials are also coming up with ways to fill the security gap if Blackwater is forced to leave, AP reported. Blackwater guards, protecting U.S. officials in Iraq, face dangerous circumstances every day and have navigated the vast majority of those situations without any violence, Prince told CNN. The guards just try to do their jobs, and are "not trying to make any trouble," he said. The Iraqi government accuses Blackwater guards of opening fire without provocation on civilians in a crowded area in Baghdad on September 16, killing 17 and wounding 27. Survivors told FBI investigators Blackwater guards shot at civilians presenting no threat. Watch a Blackwater witness describe his account » The first U.S. soldiers to arrive on the scene after the incident told military investigators they found no evidence contractors were fired upon, a source familiar with a preliminary U.S. military report told CNN. The soldiers found evidence suggesting the guards fired on cars attempting to leave and found weapon casings on the scene matching only those used by U.S. military and contractors, the military source said. But Prince on Sunday told CNN, "In the incident reports I've seen, at least three of our armored vehicles were hit by small arms fire, incoming, and one of them damaged, which actually delayed their departure from the traffic circle while they tried to rig a tow. "So there was definitely incoming small-arms fire from insurgents." He added, "I guarantee our guys weren't shooting at each other." And he said the traffic circle is very big, so those first soldiers on the scene would have needed "almost a battalion to secure that entire area, to do a thorough crime scene type investigation." "So the jury is still out. We'll see what the FBI report comes up with, but I'm confident that the kind of people we have out there are proven military professionals," Prince said. Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh accused Blackwater of "a deliberate crime against civilians," and said the company "should be tried in court, and the victims should be compensated." A Philadelphia law firm has filed suit in federal court against Blackwater on behalf of the families of three Iraqis killed and one wounded in the in the incident, which occurred in and around Baghdad's Nusoor Square. The suit claims Blackwater "created and fostered a culture of lawlessness amongst its employees, encouraging them to act in the company's financial interests at the expense of innocent human life." Prince called the lawsuit "politically motivated" for "media attention," and rejected the depictions of his company. "In Baghdad, the most dangerous city in the world, to say that it was a callous, rampant, evil action, you know, when the guys get it right 99 out of 100 times and don't have to use any force or any violence at all, I think they are doing very well," he said. E-mail to a friend

Erik Prince: "There was definitely incoming small arms fire from insurgents" There was "no deliberate violence," he said, during September 16 shooting . Iraqi government says Blackwater guards killed 17, fired without provocation . AP: Blackwater may be expelled from Iraq within six months .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The illegal export of U.S. military technology to Iran and China poses a growing threat, the Justice Department said Thursday as it announced plans to combat the practice. Iran is the only country still flying the F-14 Tomcat. The department said the United States will tighten monitoring of export licenses and increase export restrictions on technologies that could have both civilian and military applications and could pose a danger to U.S. national security in the hands of terrorists or potential enemies. "China and Iran pose particular U.S. export control concerns," the Justice Department said in a statement issued Thursday. "Recent prosecutions have highlighted illegal exports of stealth missile technology, military aircraft components, naval warship data, night vision equipment, and other restricted technology destined for China or Iran." Representatives of more than a half dozen federal agencies will jointly announce their plans at a Justice Department news conference Thursday. Officials plan to highlight two recent cases. In the past week a Pittsburgh company, SparesGlobal Inc., was sentenced for lying about an illegal export of products that can be used in nuclear reactions and in the nose cones of ballistic missiles. The products ended up in Pakistan after being routed from the United Arab Emirates. In Utah, two men were charged last week with attempting to illegally export restricted components for F-4 and F-14 fighter jets. F-14 components are widely sought by Iran, which is the only military in the world that still flies the jet. E-mail to a friend CNN's Terry Frieden contributed to this report.

Illegal exports to Iran, China an increasing problem, Justice Department says . Pittsburgh company cited for export of products with nuclear applications . Utah men charged with attempting to illegally export jet fighter parts .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The inspector-general of the House of Representatives will investigate recent allegations of sexual misconduct among congressional pages, the Democratic and Republican leaders of the chamber announced. The House page program came under scrutiny after the Mark Foley scandal last year. Two pages -- usually high school juniors who serve Congress as messengers -- have been dismissed for allegedly having oral sex in public areas of their Capitol Hill dormitory. "It wasn't kissing and hugging -- let me put it that way," said Rep. Ginny Brown-Waite, R-Florida, last week. "It did go beyond that. There were not only a young male and female involved, but there were also observers and other page participants who were, let's say, enablers." To protest what they called lax oversight, Brown-Waite has resigned from the House Page Board, along with Republican Rep. Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia. Watch more on alleged page misconduct » Brown-Waite said her resignation was meant "to send a loud and clear message" to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other Democratic leaders. Pelosi, a California Democrat, and Republican Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio issued a joint statement on the matter Wednesday. "We expect the inspector-general to gather the facts and recommend the appropriate and necessary corrective actions to be taken by the House," it said. In 2006, Florida GOP Rep. Mark Foley was forced to resign after his sexually suggestive e-mails to male pages were made public. The House Ethics Committee later found that some people who knew about Foley's questionable communications chose to "remain willfully ignorant" rather than confront the matter. Then-House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois, promised an overhaul of the program, which Pelosi pledged to pursue after Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives in the 2006 elections. "Apparently Democrats didn't learn from the Mark Foley incident that pages need better supervision," Brown-Waite said. "Apparently they haven't learned anything." No members of Congress are involved in the current controversy, and House Clerk Lorraine Miller, who administers the programs, said the students involved were dismissed. E-mail to a friend

Two pages fired for alleged oral sex in public areas of Capitol Hill dorm . Male, female involved as were pages who were "enablers," says lawmaker . Two GOP lawmakers quit House Page Board in protest . Inspector-general tasked with investigation, recommending "corrective actions"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The longest-serving Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee told CNN Radio on Thursday that, barring any surprises, Sonia Sotomayor is headed for a Supreme Court confirmation. Judge Sonia Sotomayor would be the first Hispanic on the U.S. Supreme Court. "If there are no otherwise disqualifying matters here, it appears to me she will probably be confirmed," Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah said. Hatch was acknowledging the current Senate political landscape. Sotomayor was nominated by a Democrat president, and Democrats could have 60 votes in the 100-member chamber if Minnesota's Al Franken is seated. They now hold 12 of the 19 seats on the Senate Judiciary Committee that will first consider Sotomayor's nomination. Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, said Thursday he does not plan to vote to confirm Sotomayor, becoming the first Republican to explicitly state his opposition. "She has made statements on the role of the appeals court I think is improper and incorrect," Roberts said. "I think that we should be judging people not on race and gender, or background or ethnicity or a very compelling story." Hatch -- who unlike Roberts voted in favor of Sotomayor's 1998 nomination to the federal appeals court -- also revealed one of the first Republican battle lines on the nomination: the schedule. See Sotomayor's key rulings » President Obama and other Sotomayor supporters say they want her confirmed before the Senate goes on its August recess, so that she can be well-situated for the start of the next Supreme Court session in October. Hatch and fellow Judiciary Committee Republicans Jon Kyl of Arizona and John Cornyn of Texas are pushing for a longer timeframe. They say it is almost impossible to review Sotomayor's extensive record, debate her nomination and hold a Senate vote by August. "If the Democrats don't overplay their hand and don't try to rush this too much, the process will go well, they'll be better off, she'll get confirmed," Hatch said, again adding that his prediction is based on no new concerns coming to light. The opposition party usually fights for extensive time to try to find hidden issues in a Supreme Court nominee's record. Hatch said senators need three months to consider Sotomayor and that a vote should come in September, after the Senate's August break. A September vote would crunch Sotomayor's preparation time for setting up her office before the high court's next term begins. It also would complicate Democratic fights on health care and energy that could reach a critical point at that time. See whom Sotomayor would sit alongside if she's confirmed » Hatch insisted a September Senate vote would get Sotomayor on the bench in time for the new Supreme Court session. "If they do it the right way," he said of Senate Democrats, "and there is no otherwise disqualifying feature to this, it is highly likely she is going to be confirmed as the ninth justice on the Supreme Court in time to sit on the court on the first Monday of October." Meetings on the timetable have begun. On Thursday, White House staffers met with aides to Democrats on the Judiciary Committee to go over this and their strategies for Sotomayor's confirmation, according to a Senate Democratic aide involved in the confirmation process. Sotomayor will go to Capitol Hill as early as Tuesday to meet with senators who will vote on her confirmation. The Judiciary Committee has not announced when the confirmation hearings will begin. Democrats were relieved Wednesday when Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Alabama, and the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee, said he did not think Republicans would block the nomination with a filibuster. But prominent conservatives still are trying to stir public opinion against Sotomayor. Radio host Rush Limbaugh and former Republican House Speaker Newt Gingrich have called her racist, pointing to an October 2001 speech at the University of California, Berkeley. During that speech, she said: "I would hope that a wise Latina woman, with the richness of her experiences, would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that

Sen. Orrin Hatch: Sotomayor confirmation likely if "disqualifying matters" don't appear . Sotomayor could meet with some senators Tuesday . Hatch, other Republicans want to wait until September for vote . Sen. Pat Roberts is first Republican to say publicly he won't vote for nominee .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The man who authorities allege carried out the 2001 anthrax mailings that killed five people sent himself an e-mail saying he knew the attacker's identity, according to court documents released Wednesday. Former biodefense researcher Bruce Ivins killed himself in July, authorities say. Bruce Ivins, who authorities say killed himself in July as the Justice Department prepared to charge him in the anthrax case, is alleged to have sent the e-mail to himself last September. An FBI agent quotes the message in an affidavit accompanying applications for search warrants for Ivins' e-mail accounts. "Yes! Yes! Yes!!!!!!! I finally know who mailed the anthrax letters in the fall of 2001. I've pieced it together! Now we can finally get this over and done with," the e-mail reads. In it, the former biodefense researcher says he plans on turning information over to his lawyer and that his lawyer would then give it to authorities. The e-mail does not say who Ivins believed was responsible. "I'm not looking forward to everybody getting dragged through the mud, but at least it will be over," the e-mail reads. "Finally! I should have it TOTALLY nailed down within the month. I should have been a private eye!!!!" The documents -- which the Justice Department says are the last Ivins-related search warrants that had yet to be released to the public -- also contain new details about allegations that Ivins wanted to kill his co-workers. The details are in an account of a July 9 group therapy session during which Ivins allegedly said he was a suspect in the anthrax investigation. According to an FBI agent's account, Ivins was "angry at the investigators, the government, and the system in general." "He said he was not going to face the death penalty, but instead had a plan to kill co-workers and other individuals who wronged him," the account reads. "He said he had a bullet-proof vest, and a list of co-workers, and added he was going to obtain a Glock firearm from his son within the next day, because federal agents are watching him and he could not obtain a weapon on his own." The FBI agent also alleges that Ivins said during the session that he had walked around the "ghetto" areas of Frederick, Maryland, near his home, late at night "hoping that someone would try to hurt him so that he could stab them with a sharp pen." That description is similar to something Ivins allegedly wrote on YouTube referencing a winner of the television game show "The Mole." Authorities said Ivins' YouTube message read: "The least someone could do would be to take a sharp ballpoint pin or letter opener and put her eyes out, to complete the task of making her a true mole!" General details of the therapy session have previously been reported. After the meeting, social worker Jean Duley contacted authorities and Ivins was taken into custody. He was released after being evaluated at two hospitals. Notes allegedly written by Ivins at the time of his hospitalization were found in the trash at his home after his death. According to the FBI, he wrote about the stresses in his life and the possibility of facing prison time. Ivins' attorney, Paul Kemp, maintains Ivins didn't carry out the attacks and says the new documents prove nothing. "There is simply nothing new here, nothing that is proof against Dr. Ivins," Kemp said Wednesday. The anthrax probe continues, Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd said. "We are working to close the investigation soon," Boyd said, adding that "investigative efforts" and "administrative measures" need to be finished. The anthrax attacks occurred less than a month after the September 11, 2001, suicide attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. Letters filled with bacterial spores were sent to Senate Democratic leaders and news organizations. Those

"I finally know who mailed the anthrax letters," Bruce Ivins allegedly wrote to himself . Court documents reveal more details about allegations he threatened co-workers . Ivins' attorney: Documents prove nothing . Authorities say Ivins mailed anthrax letters that killed five people in 2001 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The mother of the co-pilot who died in a plane crash near Buffalo, New York, in February, said Thursday that her daughter and the pilot were "being used as a scapegoat." Lynn Morris says she was shocked at how her daughter, the plane's co-pilot, was portrayed in the NTSB hearings. Lynn Morris' daughter, First Officer Rebecca Shaw, was among the 50 people killed in the crash of the plane, operated by Colgan Air. Morris made the comments on the final day of investigative hearings held by the National Transportation Safety Board. "I think I walked out of the hearings in shock, because I truly felt that both she and the captain were being used as a scapegoat," Morris said. Testimony from the hearings, which began Tuesday, revealed that fatigue may have contributed to the failure of Shaw and Colgan Air Capt. Marvin Renslow to save the plane as it approached Buffalo Niagara International Airport. Testimony on Wednesday indicated that crews on a number of airlines could be suffering from lack of sleep. Many crews live far from their base of operations, causing them to come to work already tired from travel, NTSB investigators said. Renslow had nearly a full day off before assuming command of Continental Connection Flight 3407. Yet the NTSB investigation found he slept in the Newark Airport crew lounge -- against Colgan Air regulations. The airline, though, appears not to have been enforcing that rule. "Nobody argues that the human body needs to have its rest, and sometimes it doesn't gel with the schedules of an airline," testified Capt. Rory Kay, executive air safety chairman for the Air Line Pilots Association. Watch hearing address issues of crew fatigue » NTSB board member Kitty Higgins said the Colgan policy "is that they're not to sleep in the crew room, but it turns out they are sleeping in the crew room." Daniel Morgan, Colgan's vice president for flight safety, said, "People can come in between their flights to take a nap." Asked if napping was considered sleeping, he replied, "That's a definition I'm probably not prepared to answer." A nap of about 10 to 20 minutes can be restorative for most people, Dr. Michael Silber, a co-director of the Center for Sleep Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, told the clinic's monthly "Women's HealthSource" publication last year. However, a longer nap can make people feel groggy, Silber said for the publication's October issue. Shaw had three days off before the flight. She commuted through the night from Seattle, Washington, catching rides on connecting Fed Ex flights to get to Newark, New Jersey, where the Colgan flight originated. "It is shocking. It's hard to believe that it is allowed to go on," said Kathy Johnson, whose husband, Kevin, died in the crash. She said Wednesday she was furious that the crew may have been functioning on little sleep. Watch family members question pilot training standards » The NTSB, which has not issued its report on the February 12 crash, said it scheduled the hearings to gather information. The plane plunged into a house in Clarence Center, New York, killing everyone on board and a man on the ground. The NTSB's preliminary investigation determined there was some ice accumulation on the Bombardier Dash 8-Q400 aircraft, but the "icing had a minimal impact on the stall speed of the airplane." On Thursday, safety board member Deborah Hersman questioned why Renslow and Shaw apparently didn't notice, as they approached the Buffalo airport, that the plane's speed had abruptly dropped from 207 mph to 150 mph (from 180 to 130 knots). She asked R. Key Dismukes, chief scientist for the NASA division that focuses on human-centered design and operations, whether this was a period in every flight that is a time of high workload for the crew, meaning their attention may have been diverted. Dismukes noted that there was a lot going on, including conversations between Renslow and

NEW: "I think I walked out of the hearings in shock," co-pilot's mother says . Panel is investigating February crash near Buffalo, New York, that killed 50 . Pilot slept in lounge before flight, co-pilot commuted all night, safety board hears . Relative of passenger says she's furious crew may have had little sleep .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The parent company of a security contractor said Thursday it is "fully cooperating" in the investigation of allegations that the contractor allowed mistreatment, sexual activity and intimidation within the ranks of private guards hired to protect the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan. A spokeswoman for a watchdog group says hazing at a camp for security guards went "well beyond partying." The allegations came to light earlier this week when the watchdog group Project On Government Oversight sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and briefed reporters on its findings, which it said were based on e-mails and interviews with more than a dozen guards who have worked at the U.S. compound in Kabul. The company, ArmorGroup, North America, has a security contract with the State Department to provide services through July 2010. Wackenhut Services Inc., the corporate parent of ArmorGroup, e-mailed a statement on Thursday in response to questions about ArmorGroup's private guards in Kabul. "Our contract with the Department of State requires us to refer all questions to the Department of State, director of public affairs. We are fully cooperating with the DOS in the investigation of the recent incidents referred to in the letter from" Project On Government Oversight, said the statement, sent by Wackenhut Services spokeswoman Susan Pitcher. On Wednesday, the U.S. Embassy said it was taking the allegations very seriously. "Nothing is more important to us than the safety and security of all Embassy personnel -- Americans and Afghan -- and respect for the cultural and religious values of all Afghans," the embassy said. "We have taken immediate steps to review all local guard force policies and procedures and have taken all possible measures to ensure our security is sound." The watchdog group said it began receiving whistleblower-style e-mails two weeks ago, some with graphic images and videos, that are said to document problems taking place at a nonmilitary camp for the guards near the U.S. diplomatic compound in Kabul. "This is well beyond partying," Danielle Brian, executive director of Project On Government Oversight, told reporters earlier this week after showing a video of a man with a bare backside and another man apparently drinking a liquid that had been poured down the man's lower back. She said that ranking supervisors were "facilitating this kind of deviant hazing and humiliation, and requiring people to do things that made them feel really disgusted." In the letter Project On Government Oversight sent to Clinton, Brian wrote that the problems are "posing a significant threat to the security of the embassy and its personnel." Among the recommendations from the group: immediate military supervision of the private security guards, a review of whether the contract should be revoked and consideration as to whether government forces should replace private security in a combat zone. CNN's Charley Keyes contributed to this report.

ArmorGroup's private guards accused of mistreatment, sexual activity, intimidation . ArmorGroup contracts to protect the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan . Watchdog group reports problems at nonmilitary camp for the embassy guards . Wackenhut says it is "fully cooperating" with embassy investigation .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The pilot of a doomed plane that crashed, killing 50 people, said "Jesus Christ" and "We're down," seconds before the plane hurtled from the night sky into a house outside Buffalo, New York, in February. An investigator walks past the wreckage from a plane crash in Clarence Center, New York, in February. The last sounds heard in the cockpit were First Officer Rebecca Shaw saying "We're" and then screaming at 10:16 p.m. on February 12, according to a transcript of the cockpit recording. Seconds earlier, the pilot, Capt. Marvin Renslow, said, "Jesus Christ," as a sound "similar to stick shaker" was heard, the transcript said. Renslow said, "We're down," and a thump was heard before Shaw said, "We're" and screamed. The National Transportation Safety Board released the transcript of the cockpit recording on Tuesday as it began a three-day hearing in Washington on the crash. See how crash of Flight 3407 unfolded » Continental Connection Flight 3407, operated by regional carrier Colgan Air, plunged into a house in Clarence Center, New York, killing all 49 people on board and one man in the house. About five minutes before the crash, Shaw had shared with Renslow her fear of flying in icy conditions, according to the transcript. "I don't want to have to experience that and make those kinds of calls. You know I'dve freaked out. I'dve [sic] had like seen this much ice and thought, 'oh my gosh, we were going to crash," Shaw told Renslow. The NTSB's preliminary investigation determined there was some ice accumulation on the Bombardier Dash 8-Q400 aircraft, but that "icing had a minimal impact on the stall speed of the airplane." Watch more on the NTSB investigation » In a story Monday, the Wall Street Journal cited investigators as saying the crash resulted from pilot Marvin Renslow's incorrect response to the plane's precarious drop in speed: He overrode an emergency system known as a "stick pusher," which sends the plane into a dive so it can regain speed and avoid a stall. Colgan Air, the operator of Continental Connection flights, said Monday that Renslow had never trained in a flight simulator with the safety system that activated just before the plane went down. Colgan said there is no regulatory requirement that it provide hands-on training with the "stick pusher." "A stick pusher demonstrated in an aircraft simulator is not required by the FAA," the airline said in a statement. "And thus was not included in Colgan's Q400 training program." The Federal Aviation Administration said its standards do not require hands-on practice with the safety system. "That's a significant problem," veteran pilot Douglas Moss told CNN. Moss, an expert in stall recovery, believes flight simulator practice with a stick pusher should be mandatory for aspiring pilots. "It's similar to picking up and throwing a groundball in baseball. You can study it academically all you want to but you really need to develop the proficiency, the skill, the muscle memory required to do that," said Moss. Renslow had failed five pilot tests, known as "check rides," three of which occurred before he joined the airline, Colgan Air said. Renslow had revealed only one of those failures to the airline, according to Colgan. NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker said Tuesday that the board's hearing will not address who is to blame for the accident. "Over the course of this hearing, we will continue to collect information that will assist the safety board in its examination of safety issues arising from this accident," he said. He said those issues are: airplane performance, cold weather operations, a sterile cockpit, flight crew training and performance, and fatigue management. CNN's Allan Chernoff contributed to this report.

NEW: First officer talked to pilot about fear of crashing, transcript shows . Safety board releases transcript from cockpit of plane's final moments . February crash near Buffalo, New York, killed all 49 on plane and one on ground . Monday report cited pilot's training; airline says training met FAA requirements .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The pirate suspect arrested in the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama was all smiles on arriving in New York City late Monday, escorted by a phalanx of law enforcement officers. The unidentified pirate suspect arrested in the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama arrived in the U.S. late Monday. None of the officers would confirm his identity, but his arrival for trial in the United States had been widely expected. The suspect arrived at the Jacob K. Javits Federal Office Building in Manhattan, which is linked to a federal detention facility where he was expected to be held pending an appearance in federal court. The timing of that appearance was not immediately available. He was walked through the rain, surrounded by media, as well as officers from federal and New York City law enforcement agencies. The suspect wore a dark jumpsuit and handcuffs, and what appeared to be a bandage on his left hand. Members of the media urged him to comment, but it was not clear whether he understood. He smiled broadly and laughed. He had been handed over to federal authorities by the U.S. military in Djibouti, defense officials said. The suspect, known in official documents as "Pirate Defendant," was brought to Djibouti aboard the USNS Walter S. Diehl, a refueling ship that was with the warship USS Bainbridge at the scene of the failed hijacking on April 8 that turned into a hostage ordeal 350 miles off Somalia. Three pirates who were holding the Maersk Alabama's captain in the ship's lifeboat were killed by Navy SEALs four days later. The survivor had surrendered and was aboard the Bainbridge when the captain, Richard Phillips, was rescued, officials have said. From the Bainbridge, he was transferred to the USS Boxer for medical treatment. See an interactive map of 2009 pirate attacks off the Horn of Africa » The surviving pirate was wounded when crew members of the Maersk Alabama took him hostage in the early hours of the pirate attack on the cargo ship, according to the military. The crew members had hoped to exchange him for their captain, but the pirates did not release Phillips when the crew returned their captive. "I'm mad because, you know, I could have been dead right now," Ken Quinn, the Maersk Alabama's navigation officer, told CNN Radio on Monday. "But at the same time he's just a little skinny guy, you know, from Somalia where they're all starving and stuff." Quinn said he wasn't angry at the single alleged pirate, noting that piracy in the region is fueled by the urge to survive hardship and poverty. He said the suspect told him that he wanted to go the United States, and asked whether Quinn could help him get there. "I said, 'Yeah, you'll probably going to go anyway. I don't think you're going to need my help,'" Quinn said. "If he goes to jail here, it will be a whole lot better than living in Somalia." CNN's Mike Mount, Emily Anderson, Jennifer Rizzo and Steve Kastenbaum contributed to this report.

Alleged pirate known in official documents as "Pirate Defendant" Alleged pirate brought to Djibouti aboard the USNS Walter S. Diehl, a refueling ship . Handed over to federal authorities by the U.S. military in Djibouti, officials said . Diehl was with the warship USS Bainbridge at the scene of a failed hijacking .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The power of women hit the State Department on Wednesday when first lady Michelle Obama joined Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to celebrate champions of women's rights around the world. Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton present the State Department Women of Courage Awards. The event was to celebrate the State Department Women of Courage Awards, but highlighted how both the current and former first ladies have made women's rights a signature issue. Since calling women's rights a human rights issue at a women's conference in Beijing in 1995, Clinton has made it a personal mission to champion the rights of women. Her first two trips as secretary of state have been packed with events promoting the importance of women's rights. "These personal experiences have informed my work, and I will continue to fight for human rights as secretary of state in traditional and especially nontraditional ways and venues," Clinton told the audience. You "can't solve problems of financial crisis, climate change, disease and poverty if half of the population is left behind," Clinton said. The rights of women will "always be central to our foreign policy." In a commentary published Monday in honor of International Women's Day, Clinton warned that "women still comprise the majority of the world's poor, unfed and unschooled." "Global problems are too big and too complex to be solved without the full participation of women," she wrote in the article, which ran in more than 50 newspapers around the world. "Strengthening women's rights is not only a continuing moral obligation -- it is also a necessity as we face a global economic crisis, the spread of terrorism and nuclear weapons, regional conflicts that threaten families and communities, and climate change and the dangers it presents to the world's health and security." Ambiga Sreenevasan, a Malaysian lawyer who won an award Wednesday for her work on behalf of justice for women, called Clinton "a woman of courage who has encouraged woman around the world." Clinton's speech declaring that women's rights are human rights, Sreenevasan said, has "resonated with a lot of us here." Clinton also heaped praise on the current first lady, saying that in a very short time, Michelle Obama "through her grace and her wisdom [has] become an inspiration to women and girls, not only in the United States, but around the world." Obama spoke about the importance of proper health care, education and justice for women in ensuring strong families and communities. "The difference between a broken community and a thriving one is the presence of women who are valued, where relationships among women and between women and men are based upon mutual respect," Obama said. Obama said the work done by the honorees has not just changed their own circumstances, but by inspiring hope and motivating others to act, that work also has changed women's lives around the world. "This is how real change occurs, one determined woman at a time. And change is coming," she said. "The women we honor today teach us three very important lessons. One, that as women, we must stand up for ourselves. The second, as women we must stand up for each other. And finally, as women we must stand up for justice for all." On Wednesday, President Obama created a White House Council on Women and Girls, charged with devising a coordinated federal response to various challenges faced by American women. The council, which will be led by senior presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett and which will include most members of the president's Cabinet, will be charged with ensuring that all governmental agencies take the needs of women into account. The president said the council will also help ensure a more coordinated federal response on a range of issues, including equal pay, family leave and child care. He also nominated Melanne Verveer, Clinton's chief of staff when she was first lady, as ambassador-at-large for global women's issues. In addition to Sreenevasan, the Women of Courage honorees make

First lady, secretary of state honor champions of women's rights . Event celebrates State Department Women of Courage Awards . Clinton: Rights of women will "always be central to our foreign policy" Obama: "As women we must stand up for justice for all"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The rules governing air traffic over New York's Hudson River need to be rewritten to prevent another mishap like this month's fatal collision of a small plane and a sightseeing helicopter, federal safety investigators said Thursday. The wreckage of a plane that collided with a helicopter is lifted this month from the Hudson River. The recommendation comes three weeks after nine people were killed when the two aircraft collided in the congested airspace bordering Manhattan. The recommendation is noteworthy both because of its sweeping nature and its timing. Ordinarily, the National Transportation Safety Board makes recommendations at the conclusion of its investigation, which typically take a year. But in a letter to FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt, NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman said that based on preliminary findings, the safety board is concerned about the "safety of flight" over the Hudson River. She outlined a series of changes, among them requiring that helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft fly at different altitudes over the river. She made specific reference to "the performance of air traffic controllers" at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, who were monitoring the plane's flight during the August 8 collision. "The NTSB is concerned with the complacency and inattention to duty evidenced by the actions of the [Teterboro] controller and the supervisor during the events surrounding this accident," Hersman wrote. Hersman said the pilot of the aircraft requested permission to climb to 3,500 feet minutes before the crash. But because there was no coordination between controllers at Teterboro and Newark airports, controllers did not grant the request, increasing the risk of a collision in Hudson River low-altitude airspace known as the "exclusionary zone," she said. Pilots in the exclusionary zone are not separated by air traffic controllers, and instead use visual "see and avoid" tactics. The Teterboro controller was making a personal phone call and "was not fully engaged in his duties" in the minutes leading up to the accident, Hersman said. His supervisor, meanwhile, had left the building on a personal errand without informing the controller. The air traffic controller's inappropriate phone call "likely would not have been permitted" if the supervisor had been in the tower, Hersman said. The FAA on Thursday did not comment on the NTSB recommendation, but said a task force studying flight operations above the Hudson River will soon submit its findings. And the air traffic controllers union defended its member, saying he had handed off the plane's pilot to another radar tower before the helicopter appeared on his radar scope. "The NTSB again has rushed to wrongly blame the air traffic controller in this incident," said Patrick Forrey, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. "The bottom line here is that the controller is not responsible for contributing to this tragic accident. ... We cannot provide traffic advisories to aircraft we are not talking to, cannot see on radar or are not a factor at all." Forrey said the NTSB "inexplicably" made its recommendations before the FAA task force had finished its job. "The task force is due to release its report next week. So why the rush?" Forrey said. In its letter, the NTSB asks the FAA to establish a special flight rules area, or SFRA, for the class B exclusion areas near New York City; require vertical separation between helicopters and airplanes in these SFRAs; require pilots to complete specific training on the SFRA requirements before flight within the area; and conduct a review of other airspace configurations where specific pilot training and familiarization would improve safety.

NTSB advises rule changes over Hudson River after August 8 crash . Nine people were killed when helicopter, small plane collided . One proposal: Make helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft fly at different altitudes over river . NTSB makes recommendation before end of crash probe -- a rare move .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The then-senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee urged the CIA in 2003 not to destroy videotapes it had made of the interrogations of terrorist detainees, according to the newly declassified letter. Lawyers for several Guantanamo detainees say the government has defied orders to preserve evidence. Rep. Jane Harman wrote in a letter dated February 10, 2003, that destruction of the tapes would "reflect badly on the agency." The Democrat from California released the letter Thursday. Last month, the CIA acknowledged videotapes were made in 2002 of two terrorist detainees but were destroyed in 2005. Some of the tapes showed the harsh interrogations of Abu Zubaydah and Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri. In the case of Zubaydah, the tactics captured on videotape included waterboarding, which simulates drowning, a controversial technique that critics consider a form of torture. Shortly after becoming the ranking member of the Intelligence Committee in 2003, Harman was briefed on the CIA's interrogation and detention program, and the existence of the videotapes. She was told of the intention to destroy the tapes once an internal inquiry into the program was complete. Harman wrote her letter to the CIA's chief lawyer urging the agency to reconsider its plan. "Even if the videotape does not constitute an official record that must be preserved under the law, the videotape would be the best proof that the written record is accurate, if such record is called into question in the future," she wrote. The release of the letter comes a day after the Justice Department announced there is enough evidence to warrant a criminal investigation into the destruction of the CIA tapes. The inquiry will look into whether the CIA or other government officials committed crimes in the handling of the tapes. Congressional oversight committees are independently investigating the tape destruction. The House Intelligence Committee has subpoenaed Jose Rodriguez, the former head of the CIA covert service who sources say ordered the destruction of the tapes, to testify before the panel January 16. CIA General Counsel John Rizzo, who opposed the tape destruction, has agreed to voluntarily appear before the committee. E-mail to a friend

Letter: Rep. Jane Harman said destroying tapes would "reflect badly on" CIA . Last month, the CIA acknowledged videotapes were made in 2002 . Tapes showed the harsh interrogations of two terrorist suspects . In one instance, a tape shows detainee undergoing waterboarding .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan is expected to ask the Obama administration for additional troops and equipment, according to a senior U.S. military official familiar with Gen. Stanley McChrystal's thinking. Gen. Stanley McChrystal's report on the war's status will be delivered in August, the source says. The request will be for troops and equipment for conducting intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as more assets to deal with roadside bombs and explosives, said the official, who declined to be identified because McChrystal's request has not been formally transmitted to the Pentagon. The request could be made in coming weeks after McChrystal completes a "troop-to-task review" to calculate whether there are enough U.S. troops in Afghanistan -- and the right mix of troops -- to carry out the military's war plan at an acceptable level of risk, the official said. The review could also lead to a request for additional troops for either combat or training of Afghan forces, but the official emphasized McChrystal has not made a decision on that. The military already has tasked an additional 4,000 troops to train Afghan forces. The official said McChrystal is likely to submit his recommendations to Defense Secretary Robert Gates as a series of options, with each option having a level of risk attached to it. "This will start the discussion" within the highest levels of the administration about whether to send a significant number of additional troops, the official said. Gates has signaled he would be open to sending more troops if it could be demonstrated they are needed. But he also has expressed caution that the United States not send so many troops that it has too heavy a footprint in the country. The troop-to-task review will follow McChrystal's assessment of the war, due 60 days after he took command in mid-June. That report is expected to be sent to Gates and NATO's secretary general by August 14, the official said. It will discuss a detailed strategy for success of the counterinsurgency mission, such as the need for U.S. and Afghan forces to conduct more integrated operations and the need to focus on population centers. It is also expected to call for an increase in the number of Afghan security forces. "This will be a really frank and honest discussion of how things are, and what it takes to get the job done," the official said.

Gen. Stanley McChrystal also will ask for equipment, source says . Request will involve intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, source says . More assets to deal with roadside bombs, explosives sought, source says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The top military and civilian leaders of the U.S. Air Force were forced out Thursday over the handling of nuclear weapons, the Defense Department secretary said. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Michael Moseley, left, and Secretary Michael Wynne have stepped down. Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley and Secretary Michael W. Wynne resigned over the department's concern over two incidents, including the August flight of a B-52 bomber that flew across the country with nuclear weapons. "Focus of the Air Force leadership has drifted" in terms of handling nuclear weapons and equipment, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said. In August, a B-52 bomber flew from North Dakota to Louisiana with the crew unaware that six nuclear-tipped missiles were on board. Four officers were relieved of duty afterward, including three colonels. Gates also cited this year's discovery that components designed to arm and fuse nuclear warheads were accidentally shipped to Taiwan in 2006. Watch Gates talk about the firings » Critics also cite last month's news that the Air Force's 5th Bomb Wing failed a defense "nuclear surety" inspection -- despite having months to prepare and being under close scrutiny after the previous incidents. The inspection found deficiencies in the wing's ability to protect its part of the nation's nuclear stockpile. The resignations come after a report on a Navy admiral's investigation that criticized the Air Force's reactions to the incidents. Gates said the report "depicts a pattern of poor performance" in which Air Force brass didn't act to improve security after mishaps and Air Force personnel handling nuclear weapons consistently failed to follow existing rules. Air Force leaders "not only fell short in terms of specific acts, they failed to recognize systemic problems, to address those problems or, when beyond their authority to act, to call the attention of superiors to those problems," Gates said. The investigation found that although the Taiwan incident didn't compromise the integrity of the U.S. nuclear force, it represented "a significant failure" by the Air Force to ensure sensitive military components, Gates said. Gates said the report concluded that erosion in the branch's command and oversight standards helped lead to the incidents, and that they could have been prevented if the oversight programs had functioned correctly. He said he asked for the resignations after consulting President Bush. Sen. Carl Levin, the Democratic chairman of the Senate Armed Service committee, welcomed Gates' decision. "Secretary Gates' focus on accountability is essential and had been absent from the office of the Secretary of Defense for too long," Levin said. "The safety and security of America's nuclear weapons must receive the highest priority, just as it must in other countries." Rep. Edward J. Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat and a senior member of the House Homeland Security Committee, also welcomed the resignations. Markey said he's long been concerned about what he called a series of dangerous Air Force missteps in handling nuclear weapons. "The magnitude and frequency of these errors indicate a deep-seated problem within Air Force culture, practice and training," Markey said. "The entire Department of Defense should immediately recommit itself to ensuring the safety and security of our nuclear stockpile before one of these mistakes has lethal consequences." A senior military source said the August nuclear weapons incident was the straw that broke the camel's back but that other leadership issues also factored into Moseley's and Wynne's resignations. A previous investigation into the B-52 flight uncovered a "lackadaisical" attention to detail in day-to-day operations at the air bases involved, an Air Force official said in October. Maj. Gen. Dick Newton, assistant deputy chief of staff for operations, said the investigation found "a failure to follow procedures" by "a limited number of airmen" at the two bases. Newton defended the procedures themselves. Wynne is not the first secretary of a military branch to resign since Gates became Defense secretary. In March 2007, Gates announced the resignation of Army Secretary Francis J. Harvey in the wake of reports of substandard conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical

"Leadership has drifted" regarding nuclear weapons, Defense secretary says . Resignations come after report criticizing bomber flight, mistaken device shipment . Report criticizes U.S. Air Force's reactions to incidents .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The world's population is forecast to hit 7 billion in 2011, the vast majority of its growth coming in developing and, in many cases, the poorest nations, a report released Wednesday said. Riders cram into a train last month in New Delhi, India. India's population is expected to be 1.7 billion by 2050. A staggering 97 percent of global growth over the next 40 years will happen in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the Population Reference Bureau's 2009 World Population Data Sheet. "The great bulk of today's 1.2 billion youth -- nearly 90 percent -- are in developing countries," said Carl Haub, a co-author of the report. Eight in 10 of those youth live in Africa and Asia. "During the next few decades, these young people will most likely continue the current trend of moving from rural areas to cities in search of education and training opportunities, gainful employment, and adequate health care," Haub continued, calling it one of the major social questions of the next few decades. In the developed world, the United States and Canada will account for most of the growth -- half from immigration and half from a natural increase in the population -- births minus deaths, according to the report. High fertility rates and a young population base in the developing world will fuel most of the growth, especially in Africa, where women often give birth to six or seven children over a lifetime, the report says. The number is about two in the United States and 1.5 in Canada. A stark contrast can be drawn between Uganda and Canada, which currently have about 34 million and 31 million residents, respectively. By 2050, Canada's population is projected to be 42 million, while Uganda's is expected to soar to 96 million, more than tripling. "Even with declining fertility rates in many countries, world population is still growing at a rapid rate," said Bill Butz, president of the bureau. "The increase from 6 billion to 7 billion is likely to take 12 years, as did the increase from 5 billion to 6 billion. Both events are unprecedented in world history." By 2050, India is projected to be the world's most populous nation at 1.7 billion, overtaking current leader China, which is forecast to hit 1.4 billion. The United States is expected to reach 439 million for No. 3 on the list.

Global population to reach 7 billion in two years, research institute projects . Most growth is occurring in developing and poor nations, study finds . Uganda's population expected to almost triple by 2050 . India projected to overtake China as most populous country .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The world's tropical forests are disappearing, and one reason is simple economics: People, companies and governments earn more by logging, mining or farming places such as the Amazon jungle than by conserving them. Global climate change treaty, scheduled for completion in December, is designed to protect tropical forests. Efforts to halt rain forest destruction date back decades, but they so far have failed to tackle the issue on a scale commensurate with the challenge. Now there may be a remedy, and the reason is climate change. Increased awareness of the threat from global warming has prompted unprecedented international focus on how to combat it, as well as new appreciation for the vital role of tropical forests in the climate change equation. On Tuesday, world leaders gather at the United Nations for a special climate change summit, intended to build momentum for a new global climate change treaty being negotiated by almost 200 countries. The new treaty is scheduled to be completed in December in Copenhagen, Denmark. If eventually enacted, the treaty will include a revolutionary but little-known provision intended to protect remaining tropical forests. Known as Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation in developing countries, or REDD, the provision is based on the knowledge that destroying tropical forests contributes to global warming. Rain forests absorb and store huge amounts of carbon dioxide, the most prevalent of the greenhouse gases that cause climate change. Burning or clearing the forests returns that stored CO2 to the atmosphere, where it can trap heat and gradually increase temperatures. Every year, tropical forests equal to an area the size of England are destroyed, contributing about 20 percent of total annual greenhouse gas emissions -- more than all the world's cars, trucks and airplanes combined. The idea of the proposed provision is to make the stored carbon dioxide in the forests a commodity that can be bought and sold on the global market. Polluters in the developing world would be able to offset their emissions by buying credits for stored forest carbon dioxide. The money from those purchases would go to developing world governments, international organizations, local communities and others involved in forest protection programs. For the first time, tropical forests would be worth money for simply existing. That could create an economic incentive to protect tropical forests, which also have biological value as the planet's richest storehouses of land species and spiritual worth as pristine natural landscapes. To longtime defenders of tropical forests, the proposal represents the final stage of a long and halting journey from the fringes of the environmental movement toward the mainstream of international policy. "Done properly, this is our No. 1 hope," said Randall Hayes, who founded the Rainforest Action Network in 1985 with the goal of halting tropical deforestation. "Other strategies have been heroic but insufficient." The system would let nations and industries that are the biggest greenhouse-gas emitters buy carbon credits in tropical forests in South and Central America, Africa, Southeast Asia and other equatorial regions. At the same time, investors could speculate on the price of carbon dioxide through credit trading. Private and public funds could invest in projects that protect forests to generate credits. Final details of the plan remain uncertain, such as how forest carbon credits would be verified and how the money paid for them would be handled and distributed. For developing countries, the idea represents a potential new revenue source. President Bharrat Jagdeo of Guyana, a leading proponent of the plan, has made trading carbon credits a central element of his Low-Carbon Development Strategy. The strategy "is more about development than about the environment and it will help us to accelerate infrastructural development and fill the budget gap," Jagdeo said in an August 29 speech. The World Bank and partners have set up funds to help developing countries prepare for REDD and finance forest-protection initiatives. However, both funds are not fully capitalized, pending the successful conclusion of negotiations on the new global climate change treaty. "Right now everybody is in a wait-and-see mode," said Benoit Bosquet, the World Bank's lead carbon finance specialist. "Everybody

World leaders gather at the United Nations for special climate change summit . Treaty based on finding that destroying tropical forests adds to global warming . With proposed provision, stored carbon dioxide in forests could be bought and sold . Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation provision has critics .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- There are likely to be two hot-button issues in Judge Sonia Sotomayor's Supreme Court confirmation hearings as senators gauge not only her positions but also some controversial comments she has made. Judge Sonia Sotomayor would be the first Hispanic woman to serve on the Supreme Court. Issue No. 1: Abortion. It is the traditional hot-button issue in Supreme Court confirmation hearings. In a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll taken May 14-17, 68 percent of Americans say they don't want the court's Roe vs. Wade decision giving constitutional protection to abortion rights overturned. The margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points. Sotomayor was raised Catholic. If she is confirmed, six out of the nine justices on the high court will be from the faith. Catholics make up about 25 percent of the U.S. population. Of the 110 people who have served on the Supreme Court, 11 have been Catholic. Five of those justices -- Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Chief Justice John Roberts -- are currently on the court. Read more about the justices on the court » Barbara Perry, a government professor at Sweetbriar College, said she sees Catholics as swing voters with a base of socially conservative principles, and therefore attractive for Republican presidents. Catholic League President Bill Donohue said Catholics have conservative credentials on issues such as abortion, without the political baggage of terms such as the "religious right" or "evangelicals." "Is it safer to nominate a Catholic as opposed to an evangelical to get votes? I think the answer is decidedly yes." Court observers wonder what, if anything, six Catholic justices would mean for Supreme Court decisions. The five Catholics on the bench concurred in a 2007 decision, Gonzales v. Carhart, which upheld a state ban on late-term abortions. Sotomayor has faced few abortion cases, and no tests on issues such as gay rights or the death penalty. However, Donohue expects a Justice Sotomayor to lean more left than her fellow Catholics on the court. Watch more on the issues confronting Sotomayor » "I think she's more reliably liberal," Donohue said. Issue No. 2: Same-sex marriage. Four states -- Connecticut, Iowa, Maine and Massachusetts -- allow same-sex couples to wed. New Hampshire could soon follow with legislation pending before the state Legislature. Vermont has also legalized same-sex marriage. Same-sex couples in California, however, suffered a defeat Tuesday when California's Supreme Court upheld the Proposition 8 ballot initiative in 2009 that outlawed same-sex marriage. The state had previously allowed such marriages after the same court ruled that, "An individual's sexual orientation -- like a person's race or gender -- does not constitute a legitimate basis upon which to deny or withhold legal rights." On Tuesday the court said: "Our role is limited to interpreting and applying the principles and rules embodied in the California Constitution, setting aside our own personal beliefs and values.'' Recent CNN polling has shown that a majority of Americans are against legal recognition of same-sex marriage. Fifty-four percent of Americans questioned in an April 23-26 CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll said marriages between gay or lesbian couples should not be recognized as valid, while 44 percent said they should be considered legal. But there was a gap between the opinions of younger and older people, with younger people far more likely to approve of same-sex marriage. In fact, 58 percent of people age 18 to 34 said same-sex marriages should be legal. Among people ages 35 to 49, 42 percent agreed, as did 41 percent of 50- to 64-year-olds. Twenty-four percent of people 65 and older agreed. The survey's sampling error was plus or minus 3 percentage points. But is marriage a right under the federal Constitution? The federal courts have not ruled on that. "That's an issue that may well come up within the federal courts ... almost certain to do so

Judge Sonia Sotomayor nominated to be the next Supreme Court Justice . Sotomayor likely to face hot-button issues in Senate confirmation hearings . She has also come under fire for controversial statements, rulings .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- There are no immediate plans to commit more U.S. troops to the ongoing war in Afghanistan, President Obama said Wednesday. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, left, and President Obama meet in Washington on Wednesday. Speaking to reporters alongside Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Obama said he would consult with U.S. allies before determining a strategy in Afghanistan after last month's elections there. "I'm going to take a very deliberate process in making those decisions," Obama said. "There is no immediate decision pending on resources, because one of the things that I'm absolutely clear about is you have to get the strategy right and then make a determination about resources." The United States has about 62,000 U.S. troops in the country, and NATO allies -- including Canada -- have another 35,000. The Pentagon is planning to add 6,000 troops by the end of the year. There have been indications that Obama soon could be asked to commit even more American troops. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, however, has signaled he would like to gauge the impact of the 6,000-troop increase before considering whether to send more. Support in the United States for the war in Afghanistan has dipped to an all-time low. Just 39 percent of Americans favor the war, while 58 percent oppose it, according to a national CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Tuesday. Recent polling suggests that the increasing violence and slow pace of progress are also taking a toll on support for the war in Canada. Obama thanked Harper for his country's commitment to Afghanistan, where more than 2,800 Canadian troops and dozens of civilians are stationed. "They have fought; they have had staying power; they have absorbed losses that we all grieve for," he said. Watch Obama and Harper meet » Most of the Canadian forces are based in the southern Kandahar province, home to some of the worst violence and instability. At least 130 Canadian troops have been killed in the war. Last year, after a national debate, the Canadian government extended the mission -- which was to end this February -- until the end of 2011. Harper said Wednesday that "Canada is not leaving Afghanistan" but is "transitioning from a predominately military mission to a mission that will be a civilian humanitarian mission after 2011." The two leaders also discussed economic issues, issuing a joint statement after their meeting saying in part that "open trade and investment are essential for competitiveness and sustainable growth in North America and globally." Obama acknowledged that the "Buy American" clause in the economic stimulus package has been a "source of irritation" between Canada and the United States and is something Harper has repeatedly brought to his attention. The clause is a provision in the $787 billion stimulus package enacted in February that states only American goods can be used in stimulus projects. But it stipulates that the measure would not override existing U.S. trade treaties such as the North American Free Trade Agreement. Harper said Canada's concerns about the clause are "important irritants ... but relatively small" when compared with the overall U.S.-Canadian trade relationship.

U.S. already planning to send 6,000 more troops to Afghanistan this year . No immediate plans for deployment beyond that, Obama says . Remarks follow meeting with PM of Canada, which has 2,800 troops in Afghanistan . Polling shows support for Afghanistan war dropping in both U.S. and Canada .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- There is "no remaining hope" of finding six men trapped for almost a month in a Utah coal mine alive, a federal official said Saturday. Isaac Arellano holds a candle and sings during a fundraiser for miners Tuesday in Price, Utah. "Over the past 25 days, the Mine Safety and Health Administration has exhausted all known options in our attempt to reach the six miners," Richard Stickler, head of the agency, said in a statement. "The thoughts and prayers of the dedicated professionals at MSHA are with the families." Sympathy for the failed efforts also came Saturday from the White House. "Last night, a difficult decision was made to end the search," President Bush said in a statement. "Laura and I are deeply saddened by this tragedy and continue to pray for the families of these men." Labor Secretary Elaine Chao called the ordeal "heartbreaking." "The grueling around-the-clock rescue operation that claimed three lives and injured six others has also taken a tremendous toll on the many brave rescuers and the local community, and our thoughts and prayers are with them all," Chao said in a statement. After drilling seven holes into mine tunnels from the mountaintop above, there has been no sign of the miners -- and microphones have picked up no sound from the men. See a timeline of rescue efforts » Tests showed underground oxygen levels were too low to sustain human life. "We basically told the families that at this point in time we've run out of options," Stickler said at a news conference late Friday. "We've consulted with the people that we have here, we've consulted with the technical support in Pittsburgh and we've consulted with private consultants in terms of where we can go," he said. "And basically, through all the information we've gleaned over the past nearly four weeks in terms of the conditions we found, in terms of the air readings we found down there and ... everything else, we just don't know where else we can put a hole to get any other information." See photos of the rescue mission » There were no public statements Saturday from Bob Murray, president and CEO of Murray Mining, co-owner of the Crandall Canyon Mine, who was the outspoken face of the rescue operation for the first three weeks, then largely disappeared from public view. Federal officials became the spokesmen. No one from Murray Mining was present at Friday's news conference. "They are done. It's finished," the attorney for the families said, according to the Saturday edition of The Salt Lake Tribune. "It's a hard and bitter pill for our families, and there were quite a few tears shed," the newspaper quotes Colin King as saying. The men were trapped during a collapse on August 6, and it is not known whether they survived the cave-in. Efforts to reach them were suspended 10 days later when two rescuers and a federal mining official were killed, and six people were injured in a second collapse as they tried to tunnel horizontally toward the area where the men had been working. Murray said last week that the search effort would stop if no signs of life were found at the sixth hole. Under pressure from the families, however, he agreed to try one more time. Families wanted officials to drill a hole large enough to send down a rescue capsule. The effort to lower the robotic device down a seventh hole had been called "a long shot" by an official. MSHA's Stickler said that hole was drilled into the Crandall Canyon Mine on Thursday, but there were problems with a robotic camera that teams were trying to lower into it. Work resumed Friday, this time at the fourth hole, but the camera could only descend about 7 feet, he said. "Basically, what it saw was really not that much. There was quite a bit of mud in there, water coming down the hole. It really

NEW: President Bush says he and first lady are deeply saddened by the tragedy . Mine Safety and Health Administration chief: We've run out of options. The six men have been trapped underground since August 6 . Seven bore holes drilled into the mountain have found no signs of life .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- There was no shortage of superstars in Washington this week, including the middle school students of Atlanta, Georgia's Ron Clark Academy. Ron Clark Academy students singing their newest song, "Dear Obama," in Washington this week. "There are those Obama kids!" "Those are the kids from TV!" "Sing for us!" The middle schoolers' ode to the political process, "You Can Vote However You Like," set to the tune of rapper T.I.'s "Whatever You Like," has garnered exhilarating fame nationwide. Invited to perform at inauguration events, the boys and girls were stopped along every block in the capital by people who asked them to sing and pose for a picture. "I have a sleepy energy," sixth-grader Kennedy Guest Pritchett said. "I feed off of the crowd and their cheers." The students' new song, "Dear Obama," which they have performed this week, offers advice to the president on energy, taxes, financial regulation and al Qaeda and urges him to "control Ahmadinejad." "Dear Obama hear us sing/We're ready for the change that you will bring/Gonna shine the light for the world to see/to spread peace hope and democracy. ... Fight for health care for the young so that coverage is available to everyone/It's time to find a renewable way to fuel our needs so we don't end up depending on Chavez and the Middle East." Watch the students sing "Dear Obama" » The kids will perform Tuesday at the Africa and International Friends Inaugural Ball, sharing a stage with Usher and Patti LaBelle, one of many events in their packed schedule highlighted by a luncheon gala Monday to honor the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. "I want to do good every song we perform. When the crowd cheers, I feel like we did a good job," said Willie Thornton, a seventh-grader. "I feel a lot of adrenaline afterwards." The students have met the Kenyan Boys Choir, who told their American counterparts what kind of animals they might see when the Ron Clark students travel to Kenya on a school trip in June. At another luncheon, the sixth- and seventh-graders were thrilled to catch a glimpse of actor Ed Norton, the man who played the Incredible Hulk. But he didn't compare to singer Beyonce, who closed Sunday's star-studded Lincoln Memorial concert and drew giggles and shouts. The kids gained notoriety just before the election when they appeared on CNN, singing "You Can Vote However You Like." They became media favorites overnight, appearing on several networks and shows. Dressed neatly in their school uniform of khaki pants, light blue shirts and navy blue blazers, they discussed the Iraq war, the economy and taxes with the composure of adults. Their teacher, Ron Clark, known for his innovation, has used pop music to teach his students. He once changed the words of Rihanna's infectious hit "Umbrella" to teach geography. "You have to give students something they can identify with, something that catches their enthusiasm and spirit," he said. "I'm so proud of them all. They've taught me a lot." Before founding his school in the rough neighborhood of South Atlanta, Clark taught in Harlem, where he penned "The Essential 55," a rule-book for educators that caught Oprah Winfrey's eye. She talked about it on her show, and it soon became a New York Times bestseller. This past Christmas, Clark received another gift from the talk show host: $365,000. Winfrey donated $1,000 for each day of the year. Clark has said that the money will help provide scholarships for a year. The teacher said he plans to incorporate Barack Obama's inauguration into lessons throughout the rest of the school year. "Our school is about politics and world issues and helping the kids understand that they have an important role in all of that," he said. CNN's

Singing Atlanta schoolkids perform at inauguration festivities . "I have a sleepy energy," one 6th-grader says of the group's packed schedule . Ron Clark Academy singers gained fame for their "Vote However You Like" song . They have written another song, "Dear Obama," which offers advice to the president .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Thousands of Americans learn a painful lesson in banking every day: Waiting for a check to clear and then getting access to the money from a bank doesn't mean the check has really cleared. When Harry Smith, of New York, responded to an ad on Craigslist for an office assistant, a woman e-mailed him and said her British company was starting to sell its product in the United States, but was having trouble with dealing with checks from customers. Smith said the woman needed someone to collect the checks and then send the money to her company. It was a commission job -- deposit the checks, wait for the funds to become available at his bank, then send cash to her, minus 10 percent for Smith. After Smith checked out what seemed like a legitimate company on the Internet, he started receiving checks totaling several thousand dollars and deposited them in his account. When his bank released the funds, he sent cash to an address outside the country. But after a few weeks, Smith's bank notified him the checks he had deposited had actually been returned, and that he owed the bank all the money he had withdrawn. Smith has not heard from his business partner since and doesn't even know who she really is. He still owes his bank money, is unemployed and doesn't know what action the bank might take against him. What happened to Smith is one example of a wide range of fake check scams carried out in the United States every year. A Consumer Federation of America survey estimates that 1.3 million Americans have been the victim of a fake check scam, with an average loss of $3,000 to $4,000 per consumer. The most common scams are fake sweepstakes or lotteries, phony government sponsored grants and fraudulent work-at-home opportunities, the survey says. The scams follow the pattern of the so-called Nigerian Internet scams, which often involve accepting transfers of money that become obviously phony when it's too late. On Wednesday, the Consumer Federation launched a campaign to combat check scams. Many consumers don't know they are responsible if they deposit a bad check, said Susan Grant, the federation's director of consumer protection. Grant said its survey shows an alarming level of misinformation among consumers, and the problem includes money orders and cashier's checks. Fifty-nine percent of respondents in the survey incorrectly thought that, when you deposit a check or money order, your bank confirms it is good before allowing you to withdraw the money. That number goes up to 70 percent among adults age 18 to 24. More than 40 percent of those surveyed also incorrectly think that the person who gave you the bad check must pay back the bank. American consumers are mostly unfamiliar with the time needed to process checks and money orders, say consumer watchdogs. Government banking rules mandate that money from deposits become available within one to five days. However, it can take weeks, especially with foreign checks or money orders, for the originating institutions to get the checks or money orders back and determine that they are counterfeit. When that happens, scam victims are in for a rude surprise. Publishers Clearing House, which runs legitimate sweepstakes, warns consumers that scammers might claim that you are being given an advance on a prize, but that some fee, tax or other payment needs to be sent before you get the jackpot. That's the heart of the scam, and it's something that a real sweepstakes will never ask for, say legitimate companies. Consumer protection groups, state attorney generals, the Federal Trade Commission and government bank regulators warn consumers that the number of fake checks, money orders and even cashier's checks being used to scam victims is increasing. The bottom line: "There's no legitimate reason why anyone who wants to give you a check or money order for something would ever ask you to send money anywhere in return. It's as simple as that," said Grant of the Consumer Federation of America. Smith said he suspected that his part-time job was not on the up-

More than 1 million Americans have been victim of fake check scams, study finds . Experts warn not to accept checks from someone seeking money in return . Survey: Most American consumers unfamiliar with time needed to process checks .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Thousands of visitors lined Constitution Avenue in Washington on Saturday morning for the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival Parade. The annual two-week National Cherry Blossom Festival runs through April 12. "Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek served as the parade's grand marshal, waving to crowds from the back of a convertible. "American Idol" finalist Kimberly Locke, the cast of the musical "Chicago" and D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton were among the parade's stars. The cherry blossom trees were a gift of friendship to the U.S. government from Japan in 1912, according to the National Park Service. Their blooming has come to represent the definitive beginning of springtime in the nation's capital. The parade is part of the annual two-week National Cherry Blossom Festival, which is timed around the projected peak bloom period of the famous trees. This year, the trees reached their peak bloom this week, according to the park service. Many high school groups and marching bands also participated in the parade. Near the National Mall, large crowds mingled under the branches of the blossoming trees that line the Tidal Basin. On an unusually blustery day, the delicate pink and white blossoms blew from their branches like snowflakes. "It's like being in a fairy tale," said Maria Podonyi, a visiting professor from Hungary. Podonyi brought her parents, who are visiting the United States from Hungary, to the festival. "They haven't seen anything like this before," she said. "It's wonderful. The festival is scheduled to run through April 12.

"Jeopardy!" host Alex Trebek serves as parade's grand marshal . Cherry blossom trees were a gift to U.S. government from Japan in 1912 . National Cherry Blossom Festival marks the arrival of spring .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Three Chinese nationals accused of importing thousands of counterfeit luxury handbags in the United States have been arrested in the past two days, federal authorities announced Thursday. Shoppers sort through counterfeit brand name luxury bags and wallets on a Hong Kong street. "This was a sophisticated criminal conspiracy that trafficked millions of dollars of counterfeit goods from China, profiting off the backs of legitimate companies and their hard-working employees," said Assistant Attorney General Alice Fisher. Authorities call it one of the largest counterfeit operations ever discovered, involving about 300,000 bags and wallets with names like Burberry, Gucci and Coach. For customers who bought the knockoffs, it seemed like a deal. They paid a total of about $16 million for what would have been more than $100 million in handbags, purses and wallets in legitimate retail sales. The alleged leaders of the counterfeit operations are three Chinese citizens living in New York. Chong Lam, 49, and Joyce Chan, 39, were arrested there Wednesday. Eric Yuen, 39, was arrested Thursday in Las Vegas, Nevada. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents who made the arrests began investigating the alleged scheme five years ago, after raids turned up counterfeit goods. The indictment was secretly returned in Richmond, Virginia, in October. The charges were unsealed when the alleged conspirators were taken into custody. Authorities seized and froze 29 bank accounts and three New York properties. The Chinese defendants will be taken to Richmond, where they will be arraigned at a later date, officials said. E-mail to a friend

Authorities call it one of the largest counterfeit operations ever discovered . Official: Scheme profited "off the backs of legitimate companies" Counterfeit operation allegedly involved 300,000 high-end bags and wallets . The alleged leaders are three Chinese citizens living in New York .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Three U.S. Navy aviators are missing at sea after a command and control plane crashed over the Atlantic on Wednesday night, Navy officials said Thursday. The E-2C Hawkeye is a command and control aircraft. The E-2C Hawkeye was conducting exercises off the Virginia-North Carolina coast. The plane crashed after it launched from the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman about 11 p.m. Wednesday, Navy officials said. Navy officials said they do not know what caused the plane to crash, and search and rescue missions are under way from units on the Truman, the carrier USS Eisenhower and the Coast Guard. The twin-engine plane usually carries a crew of five, but had only three aboard during the flight. The plane was part of a training squadron, VAW 120, and is based at the Naval Station Norfolk in southern Virginia. E-mail to a friend CNN's Mike Mount contributed to this report.

Plane crashed over Atlantic Ocean off Virginia-North Carolina coast . Search under way for three missing crew members . Command and control plane flew off carrier USS Truman .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Throughout her career, singer-songwriter Cyndi Lauper has promoted gay and lesbian rights. She has a personal connection to this cause -- her sister is a lesbian -- but she also believes it's a matter of fairness. Cyndi Lauper worked with Cathy Nelson of the Human Rights Campaign to raise awareness of LGBT issues. "It's always wrong to discriminate," the Grammy Award winner said. "I grew up in the civil rights movement. It was wrong then, and it is wrong now." With her 2007 and 2008 "True Colors" tours, Lauper has helped raise awareness about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights around the country. She said fellow LGBT activist Cathy Nelson especially motivates her. Nelson worked at the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a national LGBT civil rights organization, and her dedication to those issues runs deep. Fighting for fairness and equality, she said, drives her. "I'm a lesbian, and I see the issues very personally," Nelson said. "When it deep-down resonates that you don't have the same rights and responsibilities, or people don't view you the same, it can be demoralizing and empowering at the same time." Nelson's passion for the cause has enabled her to inspire thousands of people across the country to get involved. When she was growing up in rural Illinois, Nelson said, she hadn't imagined following this path. She trained to be a teacher, but on a whim, became a flight attendant with Eastern Airlines to fulfill her "intense desire to travel." In the 1980s, she became involved with labor issues through her flight attendant union. That led to working on women's issues with the National Organization of Women in Washington. In 1989, she started working for the HRC. Since then, she has helped bring LGBT rights out of the closet and onto the national stage. Hired to increase the group's membership, Nelson built a strong volunteer network in communities across the nation. HRC had just 12,000 members when Nelson started. Today it has more than 725,000, making it the largest gay and lesbian rights organization in the country. "Part of my job is getting people to be vocal," Nelson said. "It's important that everyone has an understanding that discrimination is happening every single day against a certain segment of society. And that's just wrong." In 2007, when Lauper worked with HRC for the "True Colors" tour, she and Nelson teamed up to bring gay and straight audiences together on fairness and equality issues. Nelson realized it was also an opportunity to shine the spotlight on an issue she'd worked on for almost a decade -- the passage of a hate crimes bill that would make attacks based on sexual orientation, disability, or gender a federal crime. For Nelson, crimes against LGBT people -- such as the murder of Matthew Shepard -- represent the darkest side of ignorance on these issues. In 2006, more than one in six hate crimes were committed against LGBT individuals, an 18 percent rise over the previous year, according to the FBI. "I learned from Cathy that hate crimes send fear through a community," Lauper said. "You could die just because of who you are." Watch Lauper and Nelson talk about the "True Colors" tour to raise awareness » At every concert, Lauper spoke passionately about the need to pass the bill, and her song, "True Colors," was used in a public service announcement about the legislation. HRC volunteers distributed information at each venue and had postcards on hand for people to send to their legislators. In the end, more than 15,000 people signed postcards, and both houses of Congress passed the bill by wide margins. Although President Bush never signed the bill, Nelson and Lauper have high hopes for it to soon become law. For Nelson, getting so many people engaged was a key achievement. "The biggest reward for me is when I've played some part in empowering someone to

Lauper and Cathy Nelson campaigned together for gay and lesbian rights . Nelson helped the Human Rights Campaign go from 12,000 members to 725,000 . Lauper and Nelson lobbied to expand federal hate crimes laws .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Tim Geithner may be the latest political piñata in Washington these days, but -- policy aside -- there may be another reason he is the one fellow everyone is picking on at Treasury: He's there alone. President Obama's ethics code requires that no lobbyist can work for an agency he may have lobbied. Believe it or not, Geithner is the only confirmed official at his department. Some top nominees, even those who have served in government before, have decided to withdraw. Others are still pending as they go through arduous background checks that one pro-Obama Democrat calls "maddening vetting hell." Sure, this is about extensive scrutiny to make sure no one has a tax problem after Geithner's own embarrassing unpaid tax bill. But the staffing problem is not just at Treasury, and it goes way beyond the time-consuming nature of extensive background checks. It's also about overreaching anti-lobbyist rules. Consider Tom Malinowski. He's the advocacy director for Human Rights Watch, an expert on genocide and torture. But when it came time for a top human rights job at the State Department, he was turned away. Why? "Because he lobbied against torture," says one incredulous administration official. "It's crazy." But the rules are the rules: The ethics code requires that no lobbyist can be hired to work for an agency he may have lobbied. So, just to clarify: Someone like Malinowski who lobbied against torture and is a widely acknowledged expert on international human rights law is, er, blackballed. More to the point, he was shown the door precisely because he tried to influence Congress on an issue that both he and the administration agree, and care deeply about. (Malinowski won't comment.) Only in the Alice-in-Wonderland world of Washington would this make any sense. And it still doesn't. It's just a prime instance of the problems that can arise when great-sounding (theoretical) campaign one-liners rub up against the (real) difficulties of trying to staff a government. In other words, the short-term interest in demonizing all lobbyists has led to some very difficult staffing problems. So, if you're an environmental expert and lobbyist, forget about the Environmental Protection Agency. But you might want to think about some work in the health field. That is, unless someone says you're a lucky exception! They're rare, but William Lynn is one. He's a top defense department appointee who once worked as a lobbyist for Raytheon, a military contractor. The White House says that (a) it hasn't had much trouble staffing the government and (b) is willing to make reasonable exceptions. So far we have only seen a handful. The problem has made it difficult to operate at every department. "A lot of good people just can't go into government," says one administration official. "It's a huge departure from the spirit of what they wanted." Indeed, he adds, here's an unintended consequence: "We're setting up a system where the only people who qualify to work in government are the ones who never actually left government." Oh, great. So instead of getting the best and the brightest from finance and elsewhere, we're recycling some folks from Capitol Hill. Not that they're unqualified, but the administration needs input from multiple sources -- outside of Washington. On top of that, the Treasury has another public relations problem: The appointment of anyone with any tie to a bank that has been bailed out or any institution that is tied to the mortgage mess is a non-starter. No wonder it's hard to find the experts. Yet much of this problem is self-inflicted. The no-lobbyist rule could have been "softened" to exclude nonprofit lobbyists. The administration decided against that, one senior official tells me. "We didn't want to label people as 'good lobbyists' or 'bad lobbyists.' " Besides, he adds,

Obama's overreaching anti-lobbyist rules interfere with governing, Gloria Borger says . Short-term interest in demonizing all lobbyists leads to staffing problems, she says . "A lot of good people just can't get into government," says one administration official . Administration needs all hands on deck during this financial crisis, Borger says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Top Democrats have expressed concern over President Obama's plan to draw down nearly two-thirds of U.S. forces in Iraq by August 2010, while some key Republicans are offering praise. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier this week questioned the need to keep 50,000 troops in Iraq until 2011. At issue: Obama plans to leave between 35,000 to 50,000 residual forces in the war-torn country, serving in a training or advisory role to the Iraqi military. All U.S. troops have to be out of Iraq by December 31, 2011, under an agreement the Bush administration signed with the Iraqi government last year. There are currently 142,000 U.S. troops in Iraq. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, indicated earlier this week that the residual force Obama is planning to leave in Iraq is too large. Pelosi on Wednesday told MSNBC's Rachel Maddow: "I don't know what the justification is for 50,000, a presence of 50,000 troops in Iraq. ... I do think that there's a need for some. I don't know that all of them have to be in [the] country." Pelosi clarified her concerns after Obama announced the plan at an event Friday at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. iReport.com: Do you think troops should be pulled, or should numbers increase? "As President Obama's Iraq policy is implemented, the remaining missions given to our remaining forces must be clearly defined and narrowly focused so that the number of troops needed to perform them is as small as possible," Pelosi said in a press release. "The president's decision means that the time has come at last for Iraq's own security forces to have the prime responsibility for Iraq's security." Rep. Lynn Woolsey, D-California, co-founder of the Out of Iraq House Caucus, was critical of the plan. "I am deeply troubled by the suggestion that a force of 50,000 troops could remain in Iraq beyond this time frame," she said in a statement Friday. "Call such a troop level what you will, but such a large number can only be viewed by the Iraqi public as an enduring occupation force. This is unacceptable." Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, said that while he supports Obama's "step in the right direction," the new troop plan does not "go far enough." "You cannot leave combat troops in a foreign country to conduct combat operations and call it the end of the war. You can't be in and out at the same time," Kucinich said in a release Friday. And top Senate Democrats echoed some of their House colleagues' skepticism. "That's a little higher number than I expected," Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said Thursday. The third-ranking Senate Democrat, Sen. Charles Schumer of New York, said, "It has to be done responsibly, we all agree. But 50,000 is more than I would have thought." On Thursday afternoon, the president briefed bipartisan leaders from the House of Representatives and Senate -- including Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, at the White House about the troop plan. Sen. Carl Levin, D-Michigan, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that 50,000 is "somewhat larger" than what he expected. However, he said he has always believed "a few tens of thousands" of troops would be needed for noncombat missions such as training and fighting terrorism. Watch Obama announce the new Iraq plan » Before the White House meeting, Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Senate Democrat and a close Obama ally, said he was anxious to get the troops home. But he defended the administration, saying it is "trying to strike the right balance" between ending the war and maintaining stability in Iraq. Rep. John McHugh of New York, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee, said later that Obama assured him the plan to withdraw all combat forces will be revisited if conditions on the ground in Iraq deteriorate.

President Obama announces drawdown of combat troops in Iraq by August 2010 . Some Democrats question size of residual force to remain in Iraq . Democratic Rep. Dennis Kucinich says new troop plan does not "go far enough" Sen. John McCain offers praise, calling Obama's plan "reasonable"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Top Obama administration officials outlined several new initiatives to safeguard the country's food supply Tuesday, saying the recent spate of food-borne illnesses is unacceptable. Recent salmonella outbreaks, including one at Nestle, were called unacceptable by federal officials Tuesday. The FDA intends to issue new guidance over the next three months regarding steps the entire food industry can take to more quickly detect contamination sources and remove the unsafe products from stores. A new position at the agency -- deputy commissioner for foods -- will be created for the sole purpose of overseeing food protection. The commissioner will be part of a "unified incident command system" established to address contamination outbreaks and facilitate responses at the federal, state, and local levels, officials said. In addition, they said, food safety information will be more effectively communicated to the public through a revamped Web site: www.foodsafety.gov. The announcement was made near the White House by Vice President Joe Biden, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. "There are few responsibilities more basic or more important ... for the government than making sure our families in America eat food that is not contaminated," Biden said. Dozens of people have become sick in recent weeks due to a nationwide E. coli outbreak linked to tainted Nestle cookie dough. Spinach, peanut products, pistachios, peppers, mushrooms, alfalfa sprouts, have also been recent culprits, noted Sebelius. An estimated 5,000 Americans die annually after consuming contaminated food and tens of millions fall ill, she said. J.D. Hanson, a policy analyst for the Center for Food Safety, called the initiatives a good first step. "They are the kinds of things we have been calling on previous administrations to do, and we're glad this administration is moving fairly quickly on these issues," he told CNN. Hanson praised the creation of the position of deputy commissioner for foods at the FDA, saying it should have happened long ago. "You'd think an agency called 'Food and Drug' would have made food a priority a long time ago. They didn't until today." But he said the government still isn't tough enough with the food industry. "Their goal of 90 percent compliance with their new guidelines is not good enough. It needs to be very close to 100 percent compliance." And he said bureaucracy stands in the way of improvement. "Right now there are 13 federal agencies that deal with food safety. We would pull all of those functions into one agency." Making eggs safer New safeguards to protect against salmonella contamination of eggs alone should cut the number of food-borne illnesses every year by roughly 80,000, and generate an annual savings of over $1 billion, according to Sebelius. "Salmonella enteritidis is a major cause of food-borne illness in the United States and eggs are a significant source," Dr. Margaret A. Hamburg, commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, told reporters in a telephone conference call. The $81 million program will translate into less than a penny per dozen eggs and will yield $1.4 billion in annual public health benefits, the agency said. In all, more than 79,000 of the 142,000 cases of sickness and 30 deaths associated with tainted eggs each year will be prevented, it predicted. Under the rule, egg producers must buy their chickens and hens from producers who monitor for salmonella bacteria, said Dr. Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the Food and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. If salmonella bacteria or its derivatives are detected, a sample of eggs from the facility must be tested over eight weeks, he said. If any test positive, the producer must process the eggs to destroy the bacteria or divert the eggs to non-food uses. In addition, henhouses must be tested and those that test positive must be cleaned and disinfected, he said. Under current law, eggs do not have to be refrigerated until they are packed for the ultimate consumer, said Nancy Bufano, a food technologist at the agency. "What

Department wants better control of salmonella in eggs, turkey and poultry . Control E. coli outbreaks by issuing new instructions regarding beef production . FDA will release new safety standards to help prevent the contamination of produce . Salmonella safeguards in eggs alone to cut food-borne illnesses by 80,000 a year .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Two Supreme Court justices engaged in a late-night exchange of harsh words before the execution early Wednesday of a convicted Tennessee killer who had been sitting on death row for nearly three decades. Justices John Paul Stevens and Clarence Thomas disagreed over whether to grant a stay of execution for Cecil Johnson Jr. The stay eventually was denied, and about an hour later, at 2:34 a.m., Johnson was put to death by lethal injection at a Nashville, Tennessee, prison. The 53-year-old inmate had been convicted of murder in a 1980 shooting spree at a convenience store near the state capital. The victims included 12-year-old Bobby Bell Jr., son of the store owner, who was wounded. Two other men sitting in a nearby taxicab also were shot to death. Stevens, who was initially presented the last-minute appeal by Johnson's lawyers, would have granted the stay, along with Justice Stephen Breyer. Stevens was concerned that too much time had elapsed between sentencing and the planned execution, amounting perhaps to cruel and unusual punishment. "Johnson bears little, if any, responsibility for this delay," said Stevens, who said procedural hurdles at the appellate stage for capital defendants created what he called "underlying evils of intolerable delay." "The delay itself subjects death row inmates to decades of especially severe, dehumanizing conditions of confinement." It is an issue that the 89-year-old justice has long urged his colleagues to address, with little success. In his early years on the high court in the mid-1970s he had supported the resumption of the death penalty after a four-year moratorium imposed by the Supreme Court. But in recent years, he has voiced his opposition to capital punishment, particularly in cases involving inmates asserting their right to challenge their sentences. Thomas reacted strongly to Stevens' statement. The conservative jurist said the inmate had challenged his conviction and sentence for nearly 29 years and "now contends that the very proceedings he used to contest his sentence should prohibit the state from carrying it out." "In Justice Stevens' view, it seems the state can never get the timing just right. The reason, he has said, is that the death penalty itself is wrong." Thomas said. "As long as our system affords capital defendants the procedural safeguards this court has long endorsed, defendants who avail themselves of these procedures will face the delays Justice Stevens laments." Then Thomas goes on to say there are "alternatives," citing the custom in England centuries ago to carry out an execution the day after a conviction. "I have no doubt that such a system would avoid the diminishing justification problem Justice Stevens identifies, but I am equally confident it would find little support from this court." The high court had been presented with Johnson's emergency appeal early Tuesday afternoon, but apparently the time needed to produce the Stevens and Thomas statements delayed the high court from issuing its denial of a stay until 1:38 a.m. Wednesday. The execution was carried out as scheduled, with no problems reported by corrections officials.

John Paul Stevens, Clarence Thomas disagreed over whether to grant a stay of execution . Stay was denied, Cecil Johnson Jr. was put to death by legal injection in Tennessee . Stevens was concerned too much time elapsed between sentencing, scheduled execution . Thomas: Inmate challenged conviction, sentence for nearly 29 years, which led to delay .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Two Supreme Court justices on opposite sides of the ideological aisle exchanged tough words Monday over the fate of a Florida murderer who has been on death row for 32 years. Siding with the court's majority, Justice Clarence Thomas described brutal details of a Florida slaying. The high court has refused to hear the appeal of William Thompson, who had plead guilty twice in the March 1976 kidnapping and torture-murder of a woman. His case and subsequent appeals have been litigated since, but a new execution date has not been set. A key part of his request to be spared lethal injection is that three decades as a capital inmate constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. "Our experience during the past three decades has demonstrated that delays in state-sponsored killings are inescapable and that executing defendants after such is unacceptably cruel," said Justice John Paul Stevens, who disagreed with the court's decision to allow the execution to proceed. He was supported by Justice Stephen Breyer in his objection to the court's ruling on Monday in the case, Thompson v. McNeil (08-7369). But Justice Clarence Thomas took issue with his colleagues' conclusions. "It is the crime and not the punishment imposed by the jury or the delay in execution that was 'unacceptably cruel,'" he responded. Thomas took time in his concurrence to detail the graphic crime that led to the conviction of Thompson and his co-defendant. The men had held Sally Ivester and another woman in a motel room and were demanding money from the victim's families. Ivester had promised she could raise hundreds of dollars but was only able to secure $25. That enraged the men who savagely beat the woman with a belt, chair leg and nightstick, causing internal injuries. She was also burned with cigarettes. The other woman witnessed the murder and said she feared for her life if she tried to leave. Thompson and his co-defendant both pleaded guilty but the state's high court initially tossed out Thompson's sentence. The man's lawyer had told the defendant if he accepted responsibility for the crime, he would not get the death penalty, a crucial mistake. Thompson later pleaded guilty a second time and again received a capital sentence. Then he began a series of appeals, claiming ineffective counsel, trial errors, limited mental capacity and a dysfunctional childhood. All those factors were ultimately rejected by state and federal courts. Stevens noted that during a third penalty hearing, five members of a state advisory jury recommended against lethal injection, but the court again imposed death. The circumstances of his current imprisonment, said Stevens, no longer justify such a sentence. "As he awaits execution, petitioner has endured especially severe conditions of confinement," said Stevens, "spending up to 23 hours per day in isolation in a 6- by 9-foot cell. Two death warrants have been signed against him and stayed only shortly before he was scheduled to die. The dehumanizing effects of such treatment are undeniable." But Thomas said all such inmates are subjected to a "restricted confinement" because of the security risks they pose. And the prisoner had only himself to blame for his prolonged imprisonment on death row. Quoting his conclusions from a similar 1999 capital case, Thomas said, "I remain unaware of any support in the American constitutional tradition of this Court's precedence for the proposition that a defendant can avail himself of the panoply of appellate and collateral procedures and then complain when his execution is delayed." Thomas has long backed the right of states to impose death sentences. Stevens, who as a newly seated justice cast a key 1976 vote upholding the death penalty, has since grown increasingly frustrated with how it its carried out. Last April, he declared his open opposition to it. "I have relied on my own experience in reaching the conclusion that the imposition of the death penalty represents the pointless and needless extinction of life with only marginal contributions to any discernible social or public purposes," he wrote. "A penalty with such negligible returns to the state (is) patently excessive and cruel

Florida killer says 32 years on death row is cruel and unusual punishment . William Thompson faces execution for 1976 torture killing . Justice Clarence Thomas cites details of brutal crime . Court rejects Thompson's appeal .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Two U.S. Air Force F-15s escorted two Russian Bear long-range bombers out of an air exclusion zone off the coast of Alaska, U.S. military officials said Wednesday. Two U.S. Air Force F-15s were dispatched to meet the Russian bombers. U.S. radar picked up the Russian turbo-prop Tupolev-95 planes about 500 miles off the Alaska coast. The U.S. fighters from Elmendorf Air Force Base were dispatched to meet the bombers and escorted them out of the area without incident, the officials said. The United States maintains the air exclusion zone off the coast of Alaska, barring unidentified aircraft or aircraft that don't file flight plans inside that area. The last case of Russian aircraft approaching the U.S. coastline or ships in the Pacific was in February. Then, four Bear bombers flew near the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, with one of them flying about 2,000 feet from the Nimitz's deck. Russia's Defense Ministry said at the time there was no violation of flight regulations during the incident. A ministry official described the flights as standard operating procedure for air force training. Meanwhile, U.S. military officials say the incidents are not a concern. They say it's the Russian military flexing its ability and presence. E-mail to a friend

U.S. radar picks up the Russian planes about 500 miles off the Alaska coast . The Russians entered an air exclusion zone . They are escorted out of the area without incident . Russian planes last came near the U.S. coastline in February .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Army ground commanders in Afghanistan say they need help, fast. That's not a request for more troops, but a request from commanders who say the current camouflage uniform is not blending well in the diverse countryside. U.S. Army commanders in Afghanistan say the current uniform does not blend well in the countryside. In response, the Army later this month will field-test two new camouflage color schemes and patterns on about 1,000 soldiers in Afghanistan, where the terrain is extremely varied. Commanders have had problems there because of the numerous changes in environments a soldier can move in and out of in a short period of time -- from woodland to desert to alpine, and to rocky and snowy mountain tops. The current uniform, known as the Army Combat Uniform or ACU, has lighter shades of green and tan, which some commanders have complained does not blend well if soldiers need to stay motionless on a mission, as snipers or reconnaissance troops must. The effort by the Army was recently accelerated, according to Army officials, after U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, told the Army he had a number of complaints from soldiers in Afghanistan who said the current camouflage pattern was not effective in the mountainous regions. Two yet-to-be-identified battalions -- a battalion has about 500 troops -- will test the two patterns, with initial results being turned into Army researchers by the end of October. While deployed, all 1,000 soldiers will have their regularly issued ACUs. In addition, one battalion will also get one of the new camouflage uniforms with a test pattern known as "MultiCam." The pattern is made up of numerous blobs of white, brown, tan, black and greens for a more woodland look, and is already being worn by snipers and special operations forces. The other brigade will test a similar pattern to the ACU, called the Universal Cammo Pattern-Delta or "UCP-Delta." While the pattern is the same, a series of "digitized" blocks of green and tan, the test uniform adds what he Army calls "coyote brown" and a slight color darkening all around to the greens and tans. The look is also designed to blend in the woods. Both battalions will be based in eastern Afghanistan where the terrain is the most rugged and diverse, Army officials said. The Army hopes to have the field input and a decision on what pattern is best by the end of January 2010 and the fielding of the new uniform as early as June 2010. Troops will still keep the existing ACU, and commanders will be able to decide mission by mission what the soldiers should wear, according to Army officials. The testing is part of the Army's long-term development of a permanent alternative to the current ACU, according to Army officials.

Commanders say current uniform doesn't blend well in Afghanistan's countryside . Army this month will field-test two new camouflage patterns in Afghanistan . Army hopes to have decision on new pattern by the end of January 2010 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Coast Guard planes and ships were searching Friday for a Japanese balloonist who disappeared off the Alaska coast while flying from Japan to the west coast United States. Missing Japanese balloonist Michio Kanda (R) with Naoki Ishikawa. Friends of balloonist Michio Kanda, who was on a solo flight, last heard from him via satellite phone at 9 a.m. Alaska time (6 p.m. GMT) Thursday, said USCG Petty Officer Levi Read. When he missed three subsequent scheduled calls over the next six hours, they called the Coast Guard, Read said. Read said two Coast Guard C130 Hercules planes conducted searches Thursday 435 miles south of Adak, Alaska, the balloonist's last known position. The searches continued Friday and are ongoing, Read said. Two Coast Guard cutters are also headed for the area, but both are at least a day away, he said. Read said the balloonist, who was heading for Portland, Oregon, is equipped with provisions and a survival suit. Kanda holds the world record for the longest-duration balloon flight, with a time of 50 hours and 38 minutes, according to the World Air Sports Federation. In that January 1997 flight, he and Hirosuke Takezawa flew from the Canadian provionce of Alberta to the U.S. state of Montana, according to the federation. E-mail to a friend

Balloonist Michio Kanda missing on flight from Japan to U.S. U.S. Coast Guard searching area around his last known position . Kanda holds the world record for the longest-duration balloon flight .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has signed a deployment order to move an additional 3,000 troops to Afghanistan next year, according to U.S. military officials. Helicopters are the main transportation of the U.S. military in Afghanistan, with its high mountain terrain. The troops will be part of a combat aviation brigade, the latest approved by Gates for the expected build-up of U.S. troops in Afghanistan throughout next year. Earlier this year, the U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. David McKiernan, requested at least 20,000 additional troops be sent there to fight the increasing violence by the resurgent Taliban forces in the southern and eastern parts of the country. The officials could not say what units are being tapped to go because those units are now being told of their deployment and the announcement has not yet been made public. The aviation brigade will send a number of much-needed helicopters to the region. Helicopters are the main transportation of the U.S. military in Afghanistan, where high mountain roads and passes make it difficult for large transport vehicles to move troops and supplies around the country. There are more than 30,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Meanwhile, a Dutch soldier was killed Friday in southern Afghanistan, the NATO command confirmed. The soldier died in an improvised explosive device strike, according to a news release from NATO's International Security Assistance Force. "Our sincere condolences and sympathies are with the family and friends of this brave soldier, especially during this holiday season," said ISAF spokesman Capt. Mark Windsor Royal Navy. "This soldier's death is an irreplaceable loss to all of us who fight for the peace and stability of Afghanistan. ISAF will continue to fight for the cause for which this brave soldier gave his life." Eighteen Dutch troops have died in the Afghan conflict, according to a CNN count of casualty figures.

Troops will be part of a combat aviation brigade; transport helicopters to be sent . They are latest to be approved for expected build-up of U.S. troops next year . Dutch soldier has been killed in southern Afghanistan, NATO confirms . Soldier died in an improved explosive device strike .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Sen. David Vitter returned from a week-long absence from Congress Tuesday, a day after he made a public apology for "a serious sin" as investigators probe an alleged prostitution ring that operated in the nation's capital. Vitter vanished from public view last week after his phone number turned up among those kept by a reputed "D.C. Madam" in records that have become part of her upcoming criminal trial. The Louisiana conservative apologized privately to his fellow Republican senators at their weekly policy lunch Tuesday, senators who attended the lunch said. One described Vitter's his apology as "humble" and "short and to the point." The senator said Vitter was met with a great deal of "empathy" by the senators in the room. Watch Vitter apologize for his "past failings" » Tuesday morning, Vitter did not visit his Senate office, where the media had camped out in anticipation of his return. He also was not seen at a residential address near the Supreme Court building. He eventually emerged at a scheduled Senate hearing taking place near his office building. He arrived nearly 30 minutes late for the start of the panel, which heard testimony regarding commercial airline service to outlying parts of the United States. At first, only CNN and a local camera crew had learned of his whereabouts. But as word spread among media outlets, Senate officials had to urge order among the gaggle of newspaper writers, photographers and other television crews that began making noisy entrances to record Vitter's return. The senator left the hearing early and tried to ignore shouted questions and camera lights in the hallway. He then turned and stopped. Vitter referred to comments he made Monday evening near New Orleans, Louisiana, then said, "I look forward today to be back at work, really focused on a lot of important issues for the people of Louisiana. I'll leave it at that." Last week, Vitter acknowledged in a statement that his number had turned up in the telephone records of accused "D.C. Madam" Deborah Jeane Palfrey. Vitter, 46, said those calls were made prior to his election to the Senate in 2004, and he and his wife had already dealt with what he termed a "serious sin" privately, through marriage counseling and confession to a Roman Catholic priest. On Monday, Vitter and his wife Wendy spoke to reporters in the New Orleans suburb of Metairie, where he lives. "I know this has hurt the relationship of trust I've enjoyed with so many of you and that I have a lot of work to do to rebuild that trust," the senator said. Palfrey is facing money laundering and racketeering charges stemming from her alleged prostitution operation. She had denied the charges, saying her business was a legitimate, legal escort service. At first she tried to sell the phone records to raise money for her defense. After a judge imposed restrictions on the records, Palfrey distributed the records without charge, hoping media outlets would help track down clients who her lawyer believes may help in her defense. Vitter is the first lawmaker entangled in the case, although State Department official Randall Tobias resigned in May after confirming he patronized Palfrey's business. Larry Flynt's Hustler magazine claimed credit for exposing Vitter's connection to Palfrey, saying he came clean only after a journalist working as a paid consultant for the magazine discovered the senator's number in her phone records. E-mail to a friend

NEW: Sen. David Vitter resumes work on Capitol Hill . NEW: Linked to "D.C. Madam," he tries to keep low profile . NEW: Conservative apologizes to fellow Republicans at lunch . NEW: Journalists seeking Vitter cause disruption in Senate committee meeting .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor said Monday that her hotly disputed judicial philosophy is, in fact, quite simple: Remain faithful to the law. Judge Sonia Sotomayor speaks Monday to the Senate panel considering her nomination to the Supreme Court. "In the past month, many senators have asked me about my judicial philosophy," Sotomayor told members of the Senate Judiciary Committee during her opening statement at her confirmation hearings. "It is simple: fidelity to the law. The task of a judge is not to make law, it is to apply the law. And it is clear, I believe, that my record ... reflects my rigorous commitment to interpreting the Constitution according to its terms, interpreting statutes according to their terms and Congress's intent and hewing faithfully to precedents established by the Supreme Court and by my Circuit Court. In each case I have heard, I have applied the law to the facts at hand." Sotomayor said the "process of judging is enhanced when the arguments and concerns of the parties to the litigation are understood and acknowledged." That, she noted, "is why I generally structure my opinions by setting out what the law requires and then explaining why a contrary position, sympathetic or not, is accepted or rejected. That is how I seek to strengthen both the rule of law and faith in the impartiality of our judicial system." Watch Sotomayor talk about her judicial philosophy » Sotomayor argued that her "personal and professional experiences help [her] listen and understand, with the law always commanding the result in every case." Watch Sotomayor's remarks to the Senators » Some of Sotomayor's critics have argued that she has allowed her rulings to be swayed by factors such as ethnicity and race. Sotomayor, a federal appellate judge, would be the first Hispanic justice on the Supreme Court if her nomination is approved by the Judiciary Committee and the full Senate. She would be the 111th person to sit on the nation's highest court, and the third woman justice. Watch Sotomayor take the oath » Sotomayor, her foot in a cast from breaking her ankle a week after President Obama nominated her in May, sat impassively as senators detailed a deep divide between majority Democrats and minority Republicans on whether she is the best choice to fill the vacancy left by Justice David Souter's retirement. In an emotional moment in the beginning of her remarks, Sotomayor singled out her mother, who attended the hearing. "I am here today because of her aspirations and sacrifices," she said. "Mom, I love that we are sharing this together." Watch Sotomayor credit her mother » The first Supreme Court confirmation hearing of the Obama presidency began Monday with leading Democrats and Republicans signaling a fierce ideological debate over Sotomayor's qualifications to sit on the high court. It attracted a packed gallery and was disrupted three times by protesters shouting anti-abortion sentiments. Democrats praised Sotomayor's extensive experience as a judge, which they called the most by any Supreme Court nominee in a century. They insisted her record showed she has been a modest jurist who consistently applied the rule of law. "Judge Sotomayor's journey to this hearing room is a truly American story," committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, said after gaveling the first session to order. "Let no one demean this extraordinary woman." Leahy also ripped conservative "ideological pressure groups" for "distorting" Sotomayor's record and opposing a woman who "will be a justice for all Americans." He noted she was first nominated to the federal bench by a Republican president, George H.W. Bush. Watch Leahy praise Sotomayor » However, Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the committee's ranking Republican, said Sotomayor represents the kind of activist judge that threatens the traditional foundation of the U.S. legal system. Sessions, a former attorney general in his home state, challenged the attribute of empathy cited by President Obama in nominating Sotomayor. "Call it empathy, call it prejudice, call it sympathy -- whatever it is, it is not

NEW: Judge's role "not to make law, it is to apply the law," Sotomayor tells panel . Democrats praise Sonia Sotomayor's experience and dedication to rule of law . Republicans say she's the kind of activist judge that threatens legal traditions . Sotomayor's journey "a truly American story," committee chairman says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. border officers found a wire between two fences along the U.S.-Mexican border that, when stretched taut, could have seriously harmed or even decapitated Border Patrol agents, Congress was told Wednesday. The wire was about 4 feet high when pulled tight, or about neck level for an agent on an ATV, officials say. "It was configured in a way so that, if it was pulled, it would take off the head of a Border Patrol agent riding in an open car," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said at a House budget hearing. The wire was discovered Saturday when authorities monitoring a surveillance camera saw two people on the north side of the border east of the San Ysidro Port of Entry, in the San Diego sector. Border Patrol agents sent to the area found a thick metal wire tied to a secondary fence. The wire stretched across the border road and led into Mexico through a hole in the primary fence, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. When pulled tight, the wire would be about 4 feet high -- about neck level for an agent riding on an all-terrain vehicle, CBP said. Officials said they suspected that drug or illegal immigrant smugglers were involved. No arrests were made on either side of the border. The wire was removed, and no injuries or damage took place, CBP said. E-mail to a friend

The thick metal wire stretched across the border road and led into Mexico . Agents discovered it Saturday after a surveillance camera spotted suspicious activity . Officials say they suspect that drug or illegal immigrant smugglers are involved . No arrests have been made on either side of the border .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. officials are downplaying any imminent threat of a North Korean missile strike or confrontation between the two countries at sea. A U.S. official says North Korean leader Kim Jong Il seems to be "testing the new administration." The U.S. intelligence community does not believe North Korea intends to launch a long-range missile in the near future, a U.S. intelligence official told CNN, despite reports in Japanese media citing intelligence that the North Korean regime intends to fire a missile toward Hawaii on July 4. Shortly after that report, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he was deploying defensive measures around Hawaii. But a recent warning to mariners issued by North Korea suggests the country only intends short- and medium-range missile tests, according to one U.S. intelligence official. The North Korean government issued a warning to mariners to avoid an area in the Sea of Japan at certain times between June 24 and July 9 because of a "military firing exercise," according to a U.S. military communication about the warning provided to CNN. The North Koreans had issued a similar warning prior to testing a long-range missile in April, but that warning indicated two potential danger areas more indicative of a long-range missile test. The official said that these shorter-range missiles can be "rolled out on a dime," but the U.S. intelligence community sees no "readily observable" indication of an imminent long-range missile launch. Vehicular activity had been spotted around a long-range missile site in late May, U.S. Defense Department officials told CNN at the time. But the officials said the activity was very preliminary, with no missile parts seen, and any launch would take a lot more time to prepare. The U.S. intelligence official said there is always concern that a shorter-range test "could go wrong," but for the most part the North Koreans have short and medium missile tests "down pat," and those missiles are "pretty accurate." The official added, "It's not particularly difficult to fire off" short- and medium-range missiles. North Korea recently threatened to "wipe out" the United States if provoked. Watch the Pentagon reaction to the threat » The official said the United States "assumes" North Korea will "continue its provocations." The official acknowledged this phase of the usual ebb and flow of North Korean behavior seems to be lasting longer. This has been a "protracted period," said the official, with the change in U.S. leadership being a "big factor." The North Korean leadership seems to be "testing the new administration." Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell defended Gates' decision to deploy defensive measures around Hawaii. "Previous long-range ballistic missile tests by the North have been failures. But they obviously are intent on developing that capability, and so long as they are, we need to do responsible, prudent things," Morrell said at a news conference Wednesday. "And in this case [Gates] thinks the responsible, prudent thing is to deploy those assets." The U.S. military has positioned its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system and its X-band radar system in the event a missile were to be launched toward Hawaii. Morrell said that no additional defenses were being deployed in the region because the defenses in place are sufficient. "I think we're perfectly comfortable with the assets that are in place," he said. "This threat that is posed by North Korea is not a new one, so we have adjusted our assets that are normally in that area some time ago." Separately, the United States has not yet decided to seek permission to board and inspect a North Korean vessel it suspects of carrying illicit weapons or technology in violation of U.N. sanctions against that country, despite a recent promise by President Obama that North Korean violations would "be met with significant, serious enforcement of sanctions." Morrell told reporters that while the United States is "interested" in the Kang Nam -- a North Korean-flagged vessel believed by officials

U.S. does not believe North Korea intends to launch long-range missile soon . Sea of Japan mariners warned to be clear due to "military firing exercise" Japanese media reported North Korea may fire a missile at Hawaii on July 4 . North Korea recently threatened to "wipe out" the U.S. if provoked .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. schoolchildren still have work to do when it comes to mathematics, the secretary of education said Wednesday. Education Secretary Arne Duncan says U.S. schools need to be better equipped to teach math. Arne Duncan, releasing a report on the Department of Education's latest examination of how well American children are doing in mathematics, said no one should be satisfied with what it found. "Today's results are evidence that we must better equip our schools to improve the knowledge and skills of America's students in mathematics," he said. "More must be done to narrow the troubling achievement gap that has persisted in mathematics, and to ensure that America's students make greater gains toward becoming competitive with their peers in other countries." Fourth- and eighth-grade students from more than 7,000 public and private schools nationwide were tested by the National Assessment of Educational Progress for the report, titled "The Nation's Report Card: Mathematics 2009." Massachusetts students had the highest marks at both grade levels. Other high-performing states were Minnesota, Vermont, New Hampshire and New Jersey. The area with the lowest marks in both grades was the District of Columbia, though the report showed that the district -- along with Nevada, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont -- had improved its scores since the last tests were taken in 2007. The average scores were categorized at each grade level into four groups: below basic, basic, proficient, and advanced. According to the Department of Education, some of the skills required to achieve a basic level of understanding of mathematics at the fourth-grade level include performing simple computations with whole numbers; showing understanding of fractions and decimals; and solving simple real-world problems. To achieve a basic level of understanding at the eighth-grade level, students must be able work with whole numbers, decimals, fractions and percentages; be able to solve word problems and use diagrams, charts and graphs; and be able to solve simple algebra and geometry problems. Scores were slightly higher in the 2009 report than they were in 2007, but Duncan said more needs to be done. "Our students need to graduate high school ready to succeed in college and the workplace," he said. The National Assessment of Educational Progress results "are a call to action to reform the teaching and learning of mathematics and other related subjects in order to prepare our students to compete in the global economy."

Department of Education takes look at how American kids are doing in mathematics . Fourth- and eighth-grade students from more than 7,000 U.S. schools assessed . Massachusetts, Minnesota, Vermont, New Hampshire, New Jersey ranked high . District of Columbia had lowest marks in both grades, but its scores are up since '07 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. troops routinely face the threat of roadside bombs while fighting insurgencies in Afghanistan. They need the most protective clothing the market can bear, and they're getting it -- for now. North Carolina State University College of Textiles tests the flammability of different materials at this facility. Back home, a battle is brewing in Congress over the next lucrative contract for military uniforms. The issue boils down to the raw fiber used in their construction. Current uniforms are made in the United States, in Georgia, using a fabric called Defender M made by the TenCate company. It is favored by the military for its fire-resistant and breathable properties. But the fabric is made with a type of rayon imported from Austria, which normally would violate the military's buy-American requirement. This specific rayon cannot be produced in the United States for environmental reasons, so Congress passed an amendment allowing it to be temporarily imported. The extension expires, or "sunsets," in 2013, but that year's defense budget is being determined now. The idea of the sunset is to give U.S. manufacturers time to come up with a comparable product. At stake: a defense contract worth hundreds of millions of dollars. American competitors have submitted alternatives, but after independent testing at North Carolina State University College of Textiles, the Defense Department concluded that TenCate's Defender M -- with its foreign-made fibers -- is the most flame-resistant. Dr. Roger Barker, who specializes in clothing flammability at the College of Textiles, conducted a demonstration for CNN. Based on his testing, the Army says Defender M resists fire the longest of other fabrics. "What the new heat-resistant materials are able to do is add seconds of protection, so that seconds of protection can be the difference between a severe burn or a survival burn," Barker said. "Life and death," echoes Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Georgia, regarding those extra seconds of fire protection. He asked the Senate to extend the waiver. "So long as it's the best available in the world to protect our soldiers, we absolutely ought to maximize the use," Isakson told CNN. "There is no American competitor that can meet or exceed it," Isakson said on the Senate floor. "Obviously if there were, then that waiver would go away." The U.S. Army's uniform procurer says soldiers prefer TenCate's product. "They have consistently exceeded our expectations. This has proven to be a valuable fabric and well-received by our soldiers," Jeff Myhre told CNN. In a letter to CNN, a top military official said the ability to procure the foreign rayon "a valuable authority." "Our periodic review of rayon requirements within the Military Services and testing of alternative items that are available domestically continue to support the determination that satisfactory quality and sufficient quantity of rayon yarn conforming to the domestic source requirements cannot be procured as needed," wrote Ashton Carter, undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology & logistics. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, opposed Isakson's amendment, debating on the Senate floor that it "permanently extends this waiver and will end all efforts to produce a domestic material to make military uniforms." Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, agrees with Graham that U.S. companies won't have an incentive to invest in research and development. He says the exception was supposed to be temporary, and "favors foreign suppliers of rayon over our own American companies." He argued on the Senate floor that in due time, U.S. companies would be able to demonstrate an ability to manufacture materials that meet Army requirements. He's also worried about jobs. "Some companies, like DuPont, for example, have already lost hundreds of jobs owing to their inability to compete for Army contracts," he said. The Senate voted, and the nays had it. No extension, no more imports of this fabric as of 2013. What next? The House of Representatives is expected to take up the bill when

Uniforms made in Georgia by TenCate company, using a fabric called Defender M . It is favored by the military for its fire-resistant and breathable properties . Fabric uses rayon from Austria, which normally violates buy-American requirement . Amendment at issue would continue to allow special rayon to be imported .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S., Turkish and Iraqi leaders all held talks Monday about Kurdish rebels using northern Iraq as a launchpad for cross-border attacks into Turkey. Turkish troops patrol near the border with Iraq on Monday. President Bush chatted by phone with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, while separately two senior Iraq national government figures met with the head of the country's Kurdish region. The diplomatic moves came after Turkish warplanes pounded Kurdish separatist targets in northern Iraq on Saturday and Sunday as well as last week. Bush and Erdogan talked about the dangers of the Kurdish separatist rebels along the Turkish-Iraqi border, the White House confirmed. National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said they discussed their common efforts to fight terrorism, and the importance of the United States, Turkey and Iraq working together to confront the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK. Bush has vowed to help Turkey fight PKK rebels. The PKK has spent two decades fighting for autonomy for Kurds in southeastern Turkey, with some of its attacks launched from inside northern Iraq. The United States and European Union consider the group a terrorist organization. Last week, Turkey's ambassador to the United States, Nabi Sensoy, said his country's maneuvers against Kurdish militant targets in northern Iraq were based on intelligence provided by the United States. In the Kurdish Iraq city of Sulaimaniya, Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, who is Kurdish, and Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi, who is Sunni Arab, met with Kurdish Regional Government President Massoud Barzani. Iraqi Kurdish officials, while critical of the PKK, have denounced the Turkish bombing campaign. Last week, Barzani snubbed visiting U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in protest of the attacks. "We have vehemently condemned the bombardment. The bombing targeted safe and secure areas and innocent people. Several people were either killed or wounded," Barzani said on Monday at a press conference with the others. "We held consultations with President Jalal Talabani and we will continue our consultations with other concerned parties to put an end to these aggressions and put to an end the shelling of villages." The three Iraqi officials also dealt with national unity. They signed a "memorandum of understanding" to deepen relations further with their three parties: Talabani's Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, Barzani's Kurdistan Democratic Party and al-Hashimi's Iraqi Islamic Party, a Sunni Arab entity. E-mail to a friend CNN's Kathleen Koch, Talia Kayali and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report

Bush: U.S., Turkey and Iraq must unite against PKK Kurdish separatists . Iraqi Kurds are critical of both PKK and air attacks against them . Turkey bombed alleged PKK sites in northern Iraq over the weekend . PKK has spent 20 years fighting for autonomy in Turkey; uses Iraq as a base .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- United States accident investigators are probing two recent failures of airspeed and altitude indications aboard Airbus A330s -- the same type of plane that crashed into the Atlantic nearly a month ago. Investigators are looking into incidents aboard two other Airbus A330s. The planes landed safely and there were no injuries or damage, the National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday. One flight was between the United States and Brazil in May and the other between Hong Kong and Japan in June. The probes were launched in the aftermath of the June 1 crash in the Atlantic Ocean -- when Air France Flight 447 was flying to Paris, France, from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. All 228 people on board the plane, an A330, were killed. Investigators are looking at the possible role of airspeed sensors known as pitot tubes, among other factors, as a possible cause of the Flight 447 crash. That flight sent 24 automated error messages in the four minutes before it crashed, the head of the French accident investigation board, Paul-Louis Arslanian, has said. The error messages all indicate there were problems with on-board information about the plane's speed, which can cause some of the plane's instruments to stop functioning, Arslanian said. Search teams are looking for the bulk of the plane's wreckage and for its flight data recorders. The first of the two incidents being investigated by the NTSB happened May 21, when a TAM Airlines flight from Miami, Florida, to Sao Paulo, Brazil, experienced a loss of primary speed and altitude information while in flight, the NTSB said. "Initial reports indicate that the flight crew noted an abrupt drop in indicated outside air temperature, followed by the loss of the Air Data Reference System and disconnections of the autopilot and autothrust, along with the loss of speed and altitude information," the NTSB said. The flight crew used backup instruments and the primary data was restored in about five minutes, the NTSB said. Another "possibly similar" incident happened June 23 on a Northwest Airlines flight between Hong Kong and Tokyo, Japan, the NTSB said. Investigators from the NTSB are gathering data recorder information, monitoring system messages, crew statements and weather information, the NTSB said.

Probe involves two failures of airspeed and altitude indications aboard A330s . On June 1, an Air France A330 crashed into the Atlantic . Investigators are looking at the possible role of airspeed sensors in that crash . The planes involved in the other two incidents landed safely .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Up to 80,000 items at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library are unaccounted for, probably because of haphazard record-keeping and inventory procedures, officials said Thursday. An audit found "significant breakdown in internal controls" at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. An audit completed last month by the National Archives and Records Administration's inspector general looked at the management of presidential artifacts at six presidential libraries. It "cites particular issues at the Ronald Reagan Library. ... We acknowledge that problems exist in inventory control at the Reagan library," said a statement from Allen Weinstein, national archivist. Inspector General Paul Brachfield was more blunt. A "significant breakdown in internal controls" was found at the Reagan library, in Simi Valley, California, he said in a statement Thursday. The audit results prompted the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation to urge the National Archives -- which is responsible for maintaining the artifacts -- to move quickly to fix the problems. The chairman of the board of trustees has contacted Weinstein "to express the serious concerns and disappointment on behalf of the Reagan Foundation and Mrs. Reagan," the foundation said. Library officials told auditors that "the collection contained approximately 100,000 items, yet the library systems only had information to locate and account for approximately 20,000 items," Brachfield said. "This does not automatically mean the approximately 80,000 remaining items are missing. The vast majority may very well be safely located within the library's storage facilities. ... Some of these items may be missing or stolen, or none of these items may be missing or stolen." Control deficiencies at the library created an environment that could potentially have been exploited, Brachfield said. Although Congress has a copy of the audit, it has not yet been made public because of the ongoing investigation into the whereabouts of the items. The count of 100,000 was an estimate taken from the original Reagan White House Gift Unit database, Weinstein said Thursday, but was never meant to be used as a concrete inventory control number. The Reagan library has already begun implementing recommendations from the audit, he said. It has upgraded its management inventory software, is hiring additional trained museum staff, has begun a comprehensive inventory and is addressing storage issues by reshelving artifacts and taking steps to protect artifacts in case of an earthquake. "Like all of the presidential libraries, the Reagan library stores their gifts in a locked vault, which is protected by a security camera," Weinstein said. The audit examined management of artifacts at the Reagan library; the Franklin D. Roosevelt library; the John F. Kennedy library; the Gerald R. Ford library; the George Bush library; and the William J. Clinton library, Weinstein said. "Early collections of artifacts came to presidential libraries with few controls and incomplete information relating to the collections," he said. E-mail to a friend

Of 100,000 items, library systems are able to locate about 20,000 . Inspector general: This does not mean the remaining items are missing . Inspector general: Items may "be safely located within the library's storage" Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation expresses "serious concerns"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Veterans groups are warning President Barack Obama against going ahead with a possible administration move to charge veterans' private health care for service-related injuries. Veterans groups say it's "wholly unacceptable" to charge their private insurance for service injuries. In a letter sent by 11 of the most prominent veterans organizations, the groups warned that the idea "is wholly unacceptable and a total abrogation of our government's moral and legal responsibility to the men and women who have sacrificed so much." CNN obtained a copy of the letter sent to the White House last Friday by groups including The American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, Military Order of the Purple Heart, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. Read the letter (PDF) A White House spokesman would neither confirm nor deny the option is being considered. "The details of specific proposals will be transmitted with the full submission in April. The president has made it clear that meeting the needs of veterans is one of his priorities, and as a result has requested an 11 percent increase in discretionary funding for 2010, and the administration is actively working with the veterans community to ensure we get the details of this budget right," said White House spokesman Nick Shapiro. In the letter, the groups said they have been told by sources on Capitol Hill and at the VA that the idea under consideration would allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to bill health insurance for a treatment of a disability or injury that was a result of military service. The argument for the proposal is that it frees up money for the VA by charging the private insurers, allowing the VA to spend on more services, said Joe Violante, legislative director for Disabled American Veterans, who opposes the idea. While there could be savings, Violante warned it also could lead to an increase in premiums for veterans with private coverage. ""We cannot and would not agree to any proposal that would expand this concept any further," the heads of the 11 groups wrote in the letter. "While we understand the fiscal difficulties this country faces right now, placing the burden of those fiscal problems on the men and women who have already sacrificed a great deal for this country is unconscionable." Currently, veterans' private insurance is only charged when they receive health care from the VA for medical issues that are not related to service injuries, like getting the flu. Charging for service-related injuries would violate "a sacred trust," said Veterans of Foreign Wars spokesman Joe Davis. Davis said the move would risk private health care for veterans and their families by potentially maxing out benefits paying for costly war injury treatments. It could also make it harder for veterans to get private insurance if the companies decide to reject them for pre-existing conditions, rather than be billed for service-connected injuries, Davis said. "This seems like bad politics and bad policy," said IAVA Policy Director Vanessa Williamson, noting that every veterans group opposes it and warns it will adversely affect veterans. "I don't see this as a tenable option."

Possible change in billing angers veterans groups . White House would neither confirm nor deny the option is being considered . Argument for the proposal would be to free up more money for VA . Spokesman: Charging for service-related injuries would violate "a sacred trust"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Vice President Dick Cheney will serve as acting president briefly Saturday while President Bush is anesthetized for a routine colonoscopy, White House spokesman Tony Snow said Friday. Bush is scheduled to have the medical procedure, expected to take about 2 1/2 hours, at the presidential retreat at Camp David, Maryland, Snow said. Bush's last colonoscopy was in June 2002, and no abnormalities were found, Snow said. The president's doctor had recommended a repeat procedure in about five years. The procedure will be supervised by Dr. Richard Tubb and conducted by a multidisciplinary team from the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, Snow said. A colonoscopy is the most sensitive test for colon cancer, rectal cancer and polyps, small clumps of cells that can become cancerous, according to the Mayo Clinic. Small polyps may be removed during the procedure. Snow said that was the case when Bush had colonoscopies before becoming president. Snow himself is undergoing chemotherapy for cancer that began in his colon and spread to his liver. Snow told reporters he had a chemo session scheduled later Friday. Watch Snow talk about Bush's procedure and his own colon cancer » "The president wants to encourage everybody to use surveillance," Snow said. The American Cancer Society recommends that people without high-risk factors or symptoms begin getting screened for signs of colorectal cancer at age 50. E-mail to a friend

President Bush will have a routine colonoscopy Saturday . While he's anesthetized, his powers will be transferred to the vice president . Bush had last colonoscopy in 2002, which found no problems .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Vice President Joe Biden brushed aside recent criticism by predecessor Dick Cheney that moves by the Obama administration had put the United States at risk, telling CNN on Tuesday that the former vice president was "dead wrong." Vice President Joe Biden sits down for an interview with CNN's Gloria Borger and Wolf Blitzer on Tuesday. "I don't think [Cheney] is out of line, but he is dead wrong," he told CNN's Wolf Blitzer. "This administration -- the last administration left us in a weaker posture than we've been any time since World War II: less regarded in the world, stretched more thinly than we ever have been in the past, two wars under way, virtually no respect in entire parts of the world. "... I guarantee you we are safer today, our interests are more secure today than they were any time during the eight years" of the Bush administration. In an interview with CNN's John King last month, Cheney said President Obama had been "making some choices that in my mind will raise the risk to the American people of another attack." Biden said former President Bush had not been fully aware of the country's position in the world. Watch Biden lash out on Bush and Cheney » "I remember President Bush saying to me one time in the Oval Office, and he was a great guy, enjoyed being with him. He said to me, he said, 'Well, Joe,' he said, 'I'm a leader.' And I said, 'Mr. President, turn around and look behind you. No one's following.' People are beginning to follow the United States again as a consequence of our administration." "... I think the biggest thing we're doing is, I'm operating in concert with the president," he said. "There are not -- there are -- look, everybody talks about how powerful Cheney was. His power weakened America, in my view." But he did not deny reports of disagreement within the Obama administration as well, over the president's plan to widen involvement in Afghanistan. A report last week said Biden had warned about the possibility of getting into a quagmire, while military advisers pushed for more troops. Watch more on Obama's Afghanistan plan » "Well, look. Without commenting specifically on who took what position, there was a healthy debate. There is a healthy debate within our administration." The vice president said that he condemned a new Afghan law that would allow men to rape their wives, but that those issues were not the focus of the U.S. presence in that nation. "I am not prepared to send American troops to die for that," he said. As the president made an unannounced visit to Baghdad, Iraq, on Tuesday, Biden said that he had no concerns that a recent uptick in violence in Iraq might affect plans to withdraw most U.S. troops from that country by the summer of 2010. "I'm not worried about that at all. We will draw down along the timeline we suggested," the vice president said. Watch the full interview » Also not a concern for Biden: the possibility of an Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear facilities. The vice president said he was not worried that Israel's new government, under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, would order such an attack. "I don't believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu would do that. I think he would be ill-advised to do that. And so my level of concern is no different than it was a year ago." A day after North Korea's rocket test sparked alarm from world leaders, Biden called for a tougher response from Moscow and Beijing. "What I'd like to see is a strong condemnation and a united effort on the part of the Chinese, Russians in the six-party talks to say, 'enough is enough, there will be greater sanctions, we will squeeze down even harder on North Korea,' "

VP Biden speaks Tuesday with CNN's Wolf Blitzer and Gloria Borger . Biden says recent criticism from former vice president Cheney is "dead wrong" He says Bush administration left the country in weakest shape since WW II . Biden calls for tougher response from Moscow and Beijing on N. Korea rocket launch .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Video showing Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl, captured by the Taliban in Afghanistan, is just another example of how captors use the medium for psychological warfare. U.S. Army Spc. Shoshana Johnson, who was held by insurgents in Iraq, prepares to enter a plane to safety. The latest video shows Bergdahl, of Ketchum, Idaho, looking comfortable and eating food. While he expresses concern about not seeing his family and girlfriend again, he does appear to speak calmly and has no visible signs of abuse. "I have a very, very good family that I love back home in America, and I miss them every day that I'm gone," he says in a 28-minute video released by his captors. "I miss them, and I'm afraid I might never see them again and that I'll never be able to tell them I love them again. I'll never be able to hug them." But that is in stark contrast to the well-publicized captures of U.S. servicemen and women in conflicts past. Vietnam Sen. John McCain, whose plane was shot down during a combat mission over Vietnam in 1967, is considered one of the most famous prisoners of war. He was captured by the Communist Viet Cong and spent nearly six years in a prisoner of war camp, where he was often tortured. A grainy black-and-white film released by his captors showed a severely injured McCain talking on camera in the so-called "Hanoi Hilton." McCain later refused to be released before other prisoners. He eventually returned to the United States in 1973. "During the years, we were kept in solitary confinement or two or three to a cell because they didn't want us to see each other. We'd spend all our time tapping on the walls to each other and encouraging each other and organizing, organizing, organizing with our chain of command. The days and hours go by," McCain told CNN's John King last year. Iraq And most recently, in 2003, video from Iraq painted a picture of an unruly and chaotic terror organization holding U.S. soldiers captured in the Iraq military theater. Army Spc. Shoshana Johnson was shown on videotape being interrogated -- with five other soldiers including Pfc. Jessica Lynch, who was badly wounded and was held prisoner at a separate location. Nine of their fellow soldiers were killed when their convoy was ambushed. Johnson appeared frightened, with her eyes darting quickly left and right. "I was terrified. I didn't know what was going to happen to me," Johnson said in a past CNN interview. "And I was in a lot of pain." Lynch's videotaped rescue made her a celebrity, and she was used by the Pentagon to put a face on the men and women who were fighting the war against the regime of Saddam Hussein. Johnson and the other POWs spent 22 days as prisoners until Marines rescued them. Chris Voss, a former lead international kidnapping coordinator for the FBI, says that as a lesson from the Johnson video, the Taliban may have learned to try to appear more political than radical. "They're hoping that ... this gets to other media outlets that will make them appear so that they are a reasonable political force," he says. "There is very much a lack of overthreat in the [Bergdahl] video, and they clearly thought this through ... specifically strategic for these purposes." Somalia Army Chief Warrant Officer 3 Michael Durant, a Black Hawk helicopter pilot, was shot down in 1993 during a combat mission in Mogadishu, Somalia. The body of one of his fellow pilots being dragged through the streets was captured on video. After the crash, he was captured by a mob and held for 11 days. Durant suffered several serious injuries, including a broken back and face and leg wounds. He was later released. His bloodied and bruised face was splashed on the covers of several national magazines, including Time and Newsweek, and on TV networks. His story later inspired Mark Bowden's

Army Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl was captured nearly three weeks ago in Afghanistan . Sen. John McCain is considered one of the most famous prisoners of war . Video of captured soldiers in Iraq painted a picture of rogue captors .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Virginia hasn't backed a Democrat for president in 44 years, but economic concerns and changing demographics are giving Sen. Barack Obama a chance to steal the once reliably red state from Republicans. Sen. Barack Obama waves as rain falls on a rally in Fredericksburg, Virginia, in late September. Polls earlier this year showed Sen. John McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, leading Obama, his Democratic rival, in Virginia by a healthy margin. A Virginia Commonwealth University poll taken May 12-18 had McCain leading 47 percent to 39 percent. But as the financial crisis has shaken voters' confidence in the economy, Obama has begun to open a lead in the state, as he has done in other battleground states. The latest CNN poll of polls has Obama leading McCain 49 percent to 45 percent. A CNN/TIME/Opinion Research Corporation poll conducted September 28-30 shows Obama with an even bigger lead over McCain, 53 percent to 44 percent. The CNN poll's margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points. Polls show that voters have more confidence in Obama to handle the economic crisis than they do in McCain, and are more likely to blame Republicans for the recent turmoil than Democrats. Beside an advantage on the economy, Obama is also benefiting from a demographic shift that has reshaped Virginia politics. For the last 10 presidential elections, Republicans have been able to bank on Virginia delivering its 13 electoral votes to the GOP. President Bush won Virginia by 8 percentage points in both 2000 and 2004, and President Bill Clinton was never able to capture the state when he ran in 1992 and 1996. But the explosive growth of Northern Virginia in the last decade has changed the state's electorate. Drawn by government jobs in nearby Washington and high-tech jobs in the Dulles corridor, the growing population in Northern Virginia is more liberal than the mostly rural southern portion of the state, which has remained reliably Republican. In 2000, Bush carried Northern Virginia 49 percent to 47 percent, but in 2004, Sen. John Kerry, the Democratic presidential nominee, carried the area 51 percent to 48 percent. Virginia "is not as red as people think," said Doc Thompson, a conservative talk show host for WRVA radio. "A third of the population in Northern Virginia is pretty liberal. A lot of people are buying into [Obama's] notion of change." Virginia Democrats have been able to exploit the changes in the electorate into statewide electoral success after years in which the Republicans had a virtual lock on the state. In fact, Virginia Republicans have not won a statewide race since Mark Warner, a former mobile phone company executive, captured the governorship for the Democrats in 2001 by emphasizing economic growth. Democrat Tim Kaine, who was Warner's lieutenant governor, succeeded Warner in 2005. And in what may have been the most surprising result of the 2006 election cycle, Democrat Jim Webb defeated the incumbent Republican George Allen in the race for one of Virginia's seats in the U.S. Senate. The trend favoring the Democrats is expected to continue this year, which is expected to help drive Virginia Democrats to the polls. The extremely popular Warner is almost certain to win this year's race against another former governor, Republican Jim Gilmore, to replace Virginia's long-standing Republican senator, John Warner, who is retiring. (The two Warners are not related, and John Warner was unopposed in 2002.) A Washington Post-ABC News poll conducted in late September found Warner leading Gilmore by 30 points, and Warner's victory would give Democrats control of both of Virginia's seats in the U.S. Senate for the first time since 1970. While conservatives may be demoralized by Gilmore's poor showing, McCain may also face eroding support from Virginia conservatives for his recent proposals for the government to become heavily involved in the U.S. economy, said Thompson, the radio talk show host. During Tuesday night's presidential debate, McCain suggested that the government directly buy up to $300 billion in home mortgages to help homeowners facing foreclosure. Thompson said

Poll of polls has Sen. Obama leading Sen. McCain 49 percent to 45 percent . Rapid growth of suburbs around Washington has made Virginia more liberal . Conservatives angered by McCain's support for bailout, mortgage buyouts .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Virginia prosecutors are asking a state court to set a November 9 execution date for John Allen Muhammad, convicted in a series of sniper-style shootings that terrorized the Washington area in 2002. John Allen Muhammad was sentenced to death for the slaying of Dean Harold Meyers. In a letter dated Wednesday, Senior Assistant Attorney General Katherine B. Burnett said the November date "has been carefully coordinated with the governor's office to insure his availability for any clemency petition Muhammad may wish to pursue." Burnett enclosed a copy of a proposed execution order "for the court's convenience." Muhammad's attorney said he will file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court, and will ask the governor for clemency. During a three-week period in October 2002, police say, Muhammad and his young protege, Lee Boyd Malvo, shot 13 people, killing 10. The two also are suspected in other shootings and murders in Tacoma, Washington, Montgomery, Alabama, and the Washington, D.C., area. Muhammad, now 48, was convicted of murder in the death of Dean Harold Meyers at a Manassas, Virginia, filling station. Meyers was killed by a single bullet, which became the signature of the two-person sniper team. Ultimately, Muhammad was convicted of the Meyers' killing and of one Maryland murder, which prosecutors there said was "insurance" in case the Virginia conviction was overturned. Malvo was convicted of one Virginia shooting and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Muhammad's attorney, Jon Sheldon, released the prosecutor's letter Friday. The letter, addressed to the chief judge of the Prince William County Circuit Court, says the court must hold a hearing within 10 days of receiving the letter, and must set an execution date no later than 60 days after the hearing. Since Muhammad is not required to be at the hearing, Burnett asks that the court conduct the hearing by means of a conference call.

Execution date proposed for convicted D.C. sniper John Allen Muhammad . Police say Muhammad, Lee Boyd Malvo shot 13 people, killing 10 . Muhammad's lawyer says he will seek clemency .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Washington police told the mother of slain congressional intern Chandra Levy that an arrest is imminent in her daughter's 2001 death, Susan Levy told CNN on Saturday. Washington intern Chandra Levy's body was found a year after she disappeared in 2001. "I got a call from the Washington police department, just to give me a heads up that there's a warrant out for the arrest," Levy said. Police Chief Cathy Lanier of the Metropolitan Police Department did not reveal the suspect's name when she contacted the parents on Friday, Levy said. She said police told her they have "enough evidence to convict somebody." A source close to the investigation told CNN the suspect was Ingmar Guandique, who is serving a 10-year prison sentence for two assaults in Washington's Rock Creek Park that occurred around the time of Levy's disappearance. Levy's remains were found in the park. View a timeline of her disappearance » The source would not speak on the record because the investigation is ongoing and the arrest warrant had not been finalized. A California native working as an intern for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, Levy, 24, disappeared May 1, 2001. Her remains were found in May 2002 by a man walking his dog in a remote area of the park. The source said authorities are working to finalize the arrest warrant. Asked about reports that Guandique, a laborer from El Salvador, told a fellow inmate he killed Levy, the source said Guandique "was running his mouth." Guandique has been imprisoned at the Federal Correctional Institution - Victorville, a medium-security facility north of San Bernardino, California, an official there confirmed to CNN on Saturday. Watch CNN's Mike Brooks discuss Guandique's background » He has denied any involvement in her death, the Washington Post reported Saturday. Guandique was mentioned last year in a Washington Post article about the killing. "It's a bittersweet situation for me as the mother of a daughter who is no longer here. I want justice. I want to know that the person who did it is in jail and will not do it to anybody else," Levy said. "Every day the elephant is there. Every day you get a knot in your stomach. It doesn't go away. It's a life sentence for the families and relatives that miss their loved ones. We have a life sentence of hurt." Referring to the impending arrest, Chandra's father told CNN affiliate KXTV that Lanier didn't say when an announcement would be made, but "she said it would be really soon." "She didn't say the name yet, but we think we know who it is. I don't want to say until it's official, though," the father said. The search for Levy and massive publicity that accompanied it stemmed largely from her connection to Rep. Gary Condit, D-California. Condit and Levy, who was from Condit's district, had an affair, and police questioned Condit many times in connection with her disappearance. Police never named Condit as a suspect. Condit, a member of Congress since 1989, lost the 2002 Democratic primary and left office at the end of his term. He later reportedly moved to Arizona. "For the Levy family, we are glad they are finally getting the answers they deserve. For my family, I am glad that their years of standing together in the face of such adversity have finally led to the truth," Condit told WJLA on Saturday. Condit's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, blamed police and media attention on Condit for delays in the arrest. Police never named him as a suspect. "It is a tragedy that the police and media obsession with former Congressman Condit delayed this result for eight years, and caused needless pain and harm to the families involved," Lowell said. "This should give the Levys the answer and closure they deserve, and remove the unfair cloud that has hung over the Condits for too long." CNN's Carol Cratty,

NEW: Chandra Levy's death is a "life sentence" for family, Susan Levy says . Source tells CNN that inmate Ingmar Guandique "was running his mouth" in prison . Guandique is serving time for attacks in park where Chandra Levy's remains found . Chandra Levy went missing May 1, 2001; her remains were found May 22, 2002 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Wendell Potter knows a little something about the health care industry's practices and is not afraid of to speak out as the health care reform debate heats up around the country. Wendell Potter once was a vice president in the public relations department for insurance giant Cigna. The former vice president of corporate communications at insurance giant Cigna, who left his post, says the industry is playing "dirty tricks" in an effort to manipulate public opinion. "Words matter, and the insurance industry is a master at linguistics and using the hot words, buzzwords, buzz expressions that they know will get people upset," he told CNN Wednesday. Now a senior fellow on health care for the watchdog group Center for Media and Democracy, Potter writes a blog on health care reform. He is focusing on efforts to defeat legislation supporting a government health care plan -- something he supports. In early July, Potter testified before the Senate Commerce Committee, telling senators that "I know from personal experience that members of Congress and the public have good reason to question the honesty and trustworthiness of the insurance industry." Potter described how underwriters at his former company would drive small businesses with expensive insurance claims to dump their Cigna policies. Industry executives refer to the practice as "purging," Potter said. "When that business comes up for renewal, the underwriters jack the rates up so much, the employer has no choice but to drop insurance," Potter had said. In an e-mail to CNN, Cigna spokesman Chris Curran denied the company engages in purging. "We do not practice that. We will offer rates that are reflective of the competitive group health insurance market. We always encourage our clients to compare our proposed rates to those available from other carriers," Curran wrote. But now, Potter is back in Washington at the invitation from Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-New York. He is questioning insurance companies' public relations tactics -- and says some of the questions from town hall meetings are familiar. Watch more on the health care reform debate » "People talk about the government takeover of the system ... that's a buzz term that comes straight out of the insurance industry," he said. A Cigna spokesman would not comment directly on Potter's accusations. Instead, the company released a written statement saying officials agree that health care reform is needed. But the statement went on to say that officials don't see how a government-sponsored plan can accomplish that. But Potter's concerns fall right in line with the Democrats' strategy of hitting insurance companies hard this summer. Republicans argue that insurance companies aren't solely to blame for the health care crisis, noting that many of their constituents are perfectly happy with the current system. The Democratic Party is also dealing with a group of fiscally conservative members known as "Blue Dogs" who are worried over the high costs of the health care plans being bandied about. Slaughter says that the concerns over a government option may be set up to "try and protect one industry" -- referring to the health insurance industry. Potter insists he has no agenda -- just a deep passion for the issue. "This is hard to do. It's scary to do something like this. I don't think I'm any more courageous than anybody but I feel I had to do this." Potter also has said he decided to resign in 2007 after Cigna's controversial handling of an insurance claim made by the family of a California teenager, Nataline Sarkysian. The Sarkysian family made repeated appeals at news conferences for Cigna to approve a liver transplant for the 17-year-old, who had leukemia. Cigna initially declined to cover the operation, then reversed its decision. Sarkysian died hours after the company's reversal. CNN's Jim Acosta and Bonnie Knapp contributed to this report.

Wendell Potter is a former vice president at insurance giant Cigna . Potter says insurance companies use key buzzwords as scare tactics . Potter also testified on his company's practice of 'purging' Cigna spokesman denies claims that the company engages in patient purging .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- When Gregg Wenzel died six years ago in Ethiopia, the obituaries said he was a U.S. Foreign Service officer killed by a drunken driver on the streets of Addis Ababa. CIA Director Leon Panetta spoke Monday at a ceremony commemorating fallen CIA officers. Monday the public learned the State Department job was a cover for his real occupation: CIA spy. At a ceremony commemorating those who died in the line of duty, CIA Director Leon Panetta revealed Wenzel's affiliation with the agency and noted Wenzel was a member of the first clandestine service class to graduate after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. "He helped unite the class and kept its spirits high in the toughest moments," Panetta said. Wenzel left his job as an attorney to join the agency. He was 33 years old when the car he was riding in was hit by a drunken driver who to this day remains a fugitive. There are now 90 stars prominently displayed on the memorial wall in the spacious atrium of CIA headquarters, each commemorating an officer, like Wenzel, who died while serving the country. The 90th star was added recently, but as with most of the victims, the person's name and nature of service will remain unknown to the public so as not to compromise secret operations. At the annual memorial service attended by hundreds of employees, retirees and family members, Panetta paid homage to those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. "Their patriotism and leadership, courage and decency are models for all of us," said the director, adding, "their work is our work now. And their spirit abides with us." Panetta also announced the beginning of a new tradition. Family members of the fallen officers will receive a replica of the star from the wall. The first star was given to the brothers of Douglas Mackiernan, the first CIA operations officer killed in the line of duty, shot to death in Tibet after fleeing China in 1950.

Gregg Wenzel died six years ago in Ethiopia . Obituaries said he was a U.S. Foreign Service officer killed by a drunken driver . At ceremony for fallen CIA officers, CIA Director revealed Wenzel was a CIA spy .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- When Washington manicurist Lidia Schaefer returned to her native village in Ethiopia, she was troubled by what she saw: children walking three hours each way to attend classes held not in a school, but under a tree. Lidia Schaefer sold her house and car and set aside tips and part of her salary to raise money for the school. When she learned in 1998 that one of the girls she'd met -- Medhine -- had been attacked and killed by a hyena after falling behind other children during the long trek home from school, Schaefer knew she had to act. She began setting aside a third of her salary and all of her tips, and later sold her house and car, to raise enough money to build a school for the village. "She's definitely not your average manicurist," says Denise Abrahams, a longtime client. "This is the kind of thing that you hear about Oprah Winfrey doing." Do you know a hero? Nominations are open at CNN.com/Heroes For Schaefer, it was simply a matter of doing what felt right. "I don't work with my head," she says. "I really work with my heart." Watch Schaefer's clients and colleagues discuss her efforts » Born in Feres Mai, a large village in northern Ethiopia, Schaefer moved to the United States in the mid-1970s when civil war broke out at home. During her troubling visit back home in the '90s, she recalls, "I promised the children I was going to open a school for them." But she had no idea how to tackle such a big project, especially while raising her own two children and working 12-hour days, six days a week. Watch Schaefer speak with CNN's Larry King » The motivation to fulfill her promise came with the news of Medhine's death. "That really pushed me to do it," she says, "to build a school so that wouldn't happen again." Schaefer lobbied the Ethiopian government to donate land in a central location so the school could serve children from several nearby villages. The decision was made to build a secondary school, since the nearest one was more than 18 miles away. Back in Washington, Schaefer began setting aside money for construction of the school. "I was working two days for the school, four days for me," she recalls. Her clients and co-workers rallied to help, holding raffles and making contributions. Several clients bought individual doors or windows for the school. Watch Schaefer talk about the school » But Schaefer realized it wouldn't be enough. To finish the school, she needed to do something drastic. In 2002, she gave up her symbols of the American dream, selling her home and car. It's a sacrifice that still stuns her colleagues and friends. "I couldn't believe it," remembers salon manager Patty Gonzalez. But Schaefer saw nothing remarkable about her decision. "I don't feel like I [gave] up a lot," she says. "I want [the children] to learn, to get something out of their life." Schaefer ultimately raised more than $250,000 for the school, which was completed in 2006. When she went back for the dedication, Schaefer was honored with an elaborate procession through the village. For her, it was gratifying to see what she'd accomplished. "I was so happy, I can't even describe it," she recalls. Today, nearly 1,500 students are educated in the school, which boasts an eight-building campus with 16 classrooms, a science lab and library. "It's simple, but it's nice," Schaefer says. Though she'd hoped to name the school in memory of Medhine, the government -- which runs the school -- instead named it the Lidia Secondary School, telling Schaefer, "We want it to be your name so that more people [will] be like you." Schaefer has indeed inspired many others to follow her example. When Ethiopian

D.C. manicurist raised more than $250,000 to build school in native Ethiopia . Inspiration came after seeing children walk three hours to classes held under tree . Girl killed by hyena while walking home motivated Lidia Schaefer to fulfill promise . Do you know a hero? Nominations are open at CNN.com/Heroes .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- When then-President-elect Barack Obama first asked Hillary Clinton to be his top diplomat, she turned him down and recommended others for the job, the secretary of state said in an interview broadcast Sunday. Hillary Clinton meets with South Korean Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan on Friday to discuss North Korea. Speaking to ABC's "This Week," Clinton also said the president has answered the central question she raised about him when she was his chief rival for the Democratic nomination last year. In her famous "3 a.m." ad, she questioned whether Obama was the right candidate to handle a middle-of-the-night international crisis. "Has the president answered it for you?" host George Stephanopoulos asked. "Absolutely," Clinton replied. "And, you know, the president, in his public actions and demeanor, and certainly in private with me and with the national security team, has been strong, thoughtful, decisive, I think he is doing a terrific job. And it's an honor to serve with him." The former senator from New York and former first lady revealed details of how she came to accept the role. Watch analysts dissect the Clinton-Obama relationship » "I never had any dream, let alone inkling, that I would end up in President Obama's cabinet," she said. "When I left the presidential race after getting some sleep and taking some deep breaths, I immediately went to work for him in the general election. ... And I was looking forward to going back to the Senate and, frankly, going back to my life and representing New York, which I love. And I had no idea that he had a different plan in mind." When her name was mentioned in the media as a possible member of Obama's cabinet, Clinton said, she found the idea "absurd." "And then when he called and asked me to come see him, and we had our first conversation, I said, 'You know, I really don't think I'm the person to do this, I want to go back to my life. I really feel like I owe it to the people of New York.' And I gave him a bunch of other names of people who I thought would be great secretaries of state." But Obama "was quite persistent and very persuasive," Clinton said. She added, "Ultimately, it came down to my feeling that, number one, when your president asks you to do something for your country, you really need a good reason not to do it. Number two, if I had won and I had asked him to please help me serve our country, I would have hoped he would say yes. And finally, I looked around our world and I thought, you know, we are in just so many deep holes that everybody had better grab a shovel and start digging out." Some analysts have raised questions about how much power Clinton actually has in the administration, given that Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have done a great deal of international outreach themselves. The president has also appointed special envoys to focus on several key regions. But Clinton said she wanted the envoys appointed "because we were inheriting so many hot spot problems that I knew you could never have one person possibly address all of that." One of the biggest is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Clinton and the president have called on Israel to halt construction at settlements in the West Bank. Asked whether there is any room for compromise on that issue, Clinton said the administration would not "prejudge the effort." She said the administration is committed to Israel's security. "We see historical, demographic, political, technological trends that are very troubling as to Israel's future. At the same time, there is a legitimate aspiration of the Palestinian people that needs to be addressed." On the nuclear standoff with Iran, Clinton said a diplomatic process in which U.S. representatives sit down with Iran's authorized

Clinton says she was looking forward to going back to Senate after the election . She suggested to President Obama a list of other people for top diplomat post . Clinton reconsidered when Obama was "quite persistent and very persuasive" Clinton was recently in South Korea for discussions on North Korea .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Where were you on the night of July 15? You may not even remember, but for me it was an extraordinary evening, an evening of unimaginable triumph and unbearable tragedy. Andrew Kinard testifies before a Senate Armed Services subcommittee on April 29, 2009. But I would not actually know everything that happened until the night was long over. A couple of weeks before July 15, a friend who works with injured troops emailed me to say it was time for Andrew's going away party. Andrew Kinard is a young Marine I first met a few years ago at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington where he was recovering from a devastating IED attack in Iraq. He had stepped on the roadside bomb and lost his entire body below the hips. The party being arranged was Andrew's farewell to D.C. Andrew is off to the rigors of Harvard Law School. He's says he's itching to get into a courtroom. You need to remember the name Andrew Kinard. Many of his friends believe Andrew is such an amazing man that he will become president of the United States. If I had to bet, I'd say it could happen. I wouldn't have missed the party for the world. I was touched that this tight-knit community of wounded warriors had included me in this very special, very intimate evening. There was a display of photos of Andrew serving in Iraq. I suddenly realized I never knew how tall he was before the war. There were a few sniffles and wiping of eyes in the room for a Marine whose dream of service to his country ended within a few months of getting to Iraq. But sniffles didn't last long and the evening became one of hugs, laughter and good wishes (and more than a few beers) for a young Marine who had triumphed over what the war had dealt him. But my warm feelings didn't last long. The next day another source in the wounded troop community came to me in the Pentagon hallway with another tale. "You have to do something about the story of Ray Rivas," he said. In the very hours we were celebrating Andrew in Washington, tragedy was unfolding in Texas. Lt. Col. Raymond Rivas, a 53-year old civil affairs officer who had dedicated his career to rebuilding war torn countries, was found dead in his car in the parking lot of Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio Texas. Colleagues of Ray's said prescription pills and notes he wrote to his family and wife, Colleen, were found. A military source told me all indications are Ray took his own life. His devastated family understandably declined to talk publicly, and the military won't discuss the case citing privacy concerns. But friends and colleagues I spoke to confirmed that Ray had suffered multiple blast injuries to his brain from bomb attacks during several deployments over the years. Watch Ray Rivas's struggle with his brain injuries » In October 2006, Ray survived an attack in Iraq that rendered him briefly unconscious. He was transferred to Europe but somehow talked the doctors into sending him back to the war zone. A week later, ill and confused, he was sent back to the United States. A close associate tells me that at first, despite being diagnosed with traumatic brain injury in Iraq, some doctors thought Ray might be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. They didn't realize he had all the symptoms of traumatic brain injury. He had trouble talking, reasoning and remembering. He was sent to Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio so he could be near his family, but for the first few months he just sat in his room. Fellow soldiers helped him with his bathing, dressing and eating. Finally, Ray was assigned a case manager, and things began to move rapidly. He got therapy and was able to go home. But by all accounts from his friends, Ray had become seriously debilitated by the injuries to his brain. A private email shown to CNN revealed that Ray had been diagnosed with rapidly emerging Alzheimer's disease. The cumulative impact

CNN's Barbara Starr celebrated a victory and mourned a loss on July 15 . An injured Marine was celebrating getting into Harvard Law School . On same night, a warrior with a traumatic brain injury was found dead in his car . Men's stories are linked -- both pleaded with the government to aid injured soldiers .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- While a government-run public health care option irks conservatives, and even some fiscally minded Democrats, the idea of health care cooperatives has emerged as an option in the reform debate. Democratic Sen. Kent Conrad, of North Dakota, says a public option plan might not make it through Congress. Small health care cooperatives have worked in a couple of markets. But whether the idea can be applied on a national scale is debatable. Sen. Kent Conrad, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, is pushing the co-op idea as an alternative to a government-sponsored insurance program that would compete with private insurers. He doesn't think a government option will pass in the Senate. Conrad, a North Dakota Democrat, told CNN's "American Morning" on Tuesday that his model could attract 12 million members and "be the third-largest insurer in the country and be a very effective competitor [with private insurance companies]." "If you believe competition helps drive down costs, then they would certainly contribute to holding down costs," Conrad said. But Tim Jost, a professor at Washington and Lee University, said that Conrad is not offering concrete statistics on how the plan will help reform health care. "I have not seen anything, other than Sen. Conrad's statements to the press, explaining how this is going to work," he said. "He put out a couple of one-pagers early on, but he is talking about this actuarial data. Let's make it public, let's find out who the actuaries are." Co-ops are nonprofit organizations that aim to provide better coverage at a lower cost for their members. They put profits back into the system, so any money that is earned is used on patients and other costs. In addition, patients elect a governing board. Cooperatives are already established in cities such as Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Seattle, Washington. In order for a co-op to have reduced costs, analysts say, it needs to have tens of thousands of members. That could be a hard slog for the nonprofits because start-up costs would probably be in the millions. That may be where the federal government steps in -- by adding seed money for the program. That government infusion of money probably would put Democrats at odds with Republicans, who are worried about the rising federal deficit and an expanded role of government in health care. Watch two members of the House discuss reform » And the costs of a cooperative might not allow enough people to sign up, meaning that some of the nearly 46 million uninsured Americans wouldn't be able to buy into the program. Other health reform alternatives, such as the public option, cost less for participants. "Let's see how they [Conrad and others] explain that they are going to get to 10 to 12 million members. ... I can't see how that's going to happen," Jost said. Probably the biggest barrier, Jost said, is entering a new market and trying to establish a network. "You have to go out there, you have to contract with hospitals, doctors, other providers of care. Well, the private insurers have their networks in place, and they often have what they call 'most favored nations' clauses, which provide that a provider cannot [offer] a lower rate than it does to the dominant insurer." The idea of co-ops appears to have received some support from the Obama administration. A top White House aide told Bloomberg Television's "Conversations with Judy Woodruff" that President Obama may accept nonprofit health insurance cooperatives in place of a new government-run plan. "We would be interested in that" if certain conditions are met, said Nancy-Ann DeParle, director of the White House Office of Health Reform. And the idea has gotten support from a key Republican senator. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Alabama, said on "Fox News Sunday" that co-ops are "a step in the right direction."

Democratic Sen. Kent Conrad favors health care cooperatives . Co-ops are run by nonprofits, and patients elect members to their boards . One key Republican senator seems to be on board with the idea . Skeptics question start-up costs, whether all the uninsured would be covered .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- White House communications director Anita Dunn fired back at criticism from TV commentator Glenn Beck on Friday, saying that a Mao Tse-tung quote Beck took issue with was picked up from legendary GOP strategist Lee Atwater. White House communications director Anita Dunn she picked up Mao Tse-tung from a legendary Republican. "The Mao quote is one I picked up from the late Republican strategist Lee Atwater from something I read in the late 1980s, so I hope I don't get my progressive friends mad at me," Dunn told CNN. As for Beck's criticism: "The use of the phrase 'favorite political philosophers' was intended as irony, but clearly the effort fell flat -- at least with a certain Fox commentator whose sense of irony may be missing." On Thursday night's program, Beck showed exclusive video of Dunn discussing the communist leader, who was responsible for a cultural revolution in 1966 that included re-education camps and setting the army and students on witch hunts against his opponents. Millions of Chinese suffered or died, most notably teachers, writers, political opponents or anyone deemed a "reactionary." Dunn, taped in a speech in what appears to be a church, said the leader's philosophies were a guidepost for her own strategy on politics. She also praised the philosophy used by religious icon Mother Teresa. "The third lesson and tip actually comes from two of my favorite political philosophers: Mao Tse-tung and Mother Theresa -- not often coupled with each other, but the two people I turn to most to basically deliver a simple point which is 'you're going to make choices; you're going to challenge; you're going to say why not; you're going to figure out how to do things that have never been done before." The comments set Beck into a tirade. "It's insanity. This is her hero's work," he said. "She thinks of this man's work all the time? "It would be like me saying to you, 'you know who my favorite political philosopher is? Adolf Hitler.' Have you read Mein Kampf? [She wants to] fight your fight like Hitler did," Beck said. Dunn recently blasted Fox News saying that the cable news organization often operates as either "the research arm or the communications arm of the Republican Party." "When he [Obama] goes on Fox, he understands that he's not really going on it as a news network at this point. He's going to debate the opposition. And that's fine. He never minds doing that. "They're widely viewed as a part of the Republican Party. Take [the GOP's] talking points, put them on the air, take [the GOP's] opposition research, put them on the air," Dunn said. Fox News in a statement to CNN said its programming was comparable to the editorial page of a newspaper. Still, Beck wasted no time Thursday in using Dunn's comments to blast the Obama administration for promoting what he deems a radical agenda. "America, how many radicals is it going to take? How many radicals surrounding our president before you understand that when the president said he wants to transform the country, he wants to transform it all right," Beck said. Dunn pointed out that during his presidential campaign and since being elected President Obama has been interviewed by Fox News and will be again in the future. Watch more of Dunn's comments » "He'll go on Fox because he engages with ideological opponents," Dunn said. "He has done that before, and he'll do it again." But it's not just Dunn, a Democrat, who has used Mao as someone she reads. Media Matters for America, a liberal media watchdog group, points out that former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, also a Fox News contributor, quoted Mao in a 1995 Roll Call profile. "War is politics with blood; politics is war without

Dunn says she got Mao quote from GOP strategist Lee Atwater . Fox News host Glenn Beck showed video of Dunn quoting Mao . Beck: "It's insanity. This is her hero's work" Other Republicans have quoted Mao in the past .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- White House press secretary Tony Snow, who is undergoing treatment for cancer, will step down from his post September 14 and be replaced by deputy press secretary Dana Perino, the White House announced Friday. White House press secretary Tony Snow will step down from his post on September 14. President Bush told reporters Friday that he will "sadly accept" Snow's resignation. Flanked by Snow and Perino in the White House press room, the president spoke warmly of his departing press secretary. "It's been a joy to watch him spar with you," Bush told reporters. Watch the announcement about Snow leaving » Bush said he was certain of two things in regard to Snow. "He'll battle cancer and win," Bush said, "and he'll be a solid contributor to society." Turning to Snow, the president then said: "I love you, and I wish you all the best." Snow, speaking after Bush at the start of the daily White House news conference, said he was leaving to earn more money. He took a big pay cut, he said, when he left his previous jobs as anchor and political analyst for Fox News. According to The Washington Post, Snow makes $168,000 as the White House spokesman. His family took out a loan when he started the job, "and that loan is now gone." "This job has really been a dream for me, a blast. I've had an enormous amount of fun and satisfaction," Snow said. He said he would continue to speak out on issues, and would do "some radio, some TV, but I don't anticipate full-time anchor duties." Snow said he's received great satisfaction from talking to people about his illness. Snow's cancer was diagnosed for the first time in February 2005. His colon was removed, and after six months of treatment, doctors said the cancer was in remission. Perino announced March 27 that Snow's cancer had recurred, and that doctors had removed a growth from his abdomen the day before. Sources told CNN two weeks ago that Snow was planning to leave his job, possibly as early as September. Bush tapped Snow to replace Scott McClellan in April 2006. Snow had been an anchor for "Fox News Sunday" and a political analyst for the Fox News Channel, which he joined in 1996. He also hosted "The Tony Snow Show" on Fox News Radio. On Thursday, Snow told CNN his health is improving, citing two medical tests this month that found the cancer has not spread. "The tumors are stable -- they are not growing," Snow said of the results from an MRI and a CAT scan. "And there are no new growths. The health is good." The press secretary, whose hair has turned gray during chemotherapy treatment, said his black hair is expected to grow back in about a month. "I'm also putting on weight again," he said after returning from a 10-day vacation. "I actually feel very good about" the health situation. Snow said on Friday he was to see his oncologist, and they will decide on some minor forms of chemotherapy to start as maintenance treatment. E-mail to a friend

President Bush says Tony Snow "will battle cancer and win" Job of press secretary "has been a dream for me," Snow says Snow leaving on September 14, will be succeeded by Dana Perino .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- White House spokeswoman Dana Perino on Friday said she would do the job again -- but only if she could work for her current boss. Dana Perino said goodbye to the White House press corps at her last briefing as White House spokeswoman Friday. "I wouldn't do it for anybody but President Bush," Perino said as she briefed reporters for the last time Friday. "If given the chance to do it over again, would I? Yes," Perino said. "But would I ever come back and do this? No. ... I think it's good to get off the stage." Perino also thanked the White House press corps. "We all have difficult jobs, we all work long and tough hours, and it's been an exciting challenge," said Perino, 36. "I know I had some big shoes to fill when I got here -- and I still only wear a size six." Watch Bush's farewell address » And she wished President-elect Barack Obama's spokesman, Robert Gibbs, "all the very best." "Please go easy on him -- for a week," Perino joked with reporters. In the 80-year history of official White House press secretaries, only two women have been named to the job: Dee Dee Myers, who served former President Bill Clinton, and Perino. It's been 15 months since Bush named Perino to succeed Tony Snow, who later died of colon cancer, as White House press secretary. View key moments in the Bush presidency » "It was about two weeks into the job when I realized that I am never going to be like Tony Snow," Perino said. Her first goal was to make briefings less heated. She still pushed back, but chose her confrontations carefully. "If I was testy all the time as a woman in this position, I can only imagine what people would have said about me, so there is a delicate balance, I think, in this position." During her time behind the White House podium, Perino sparred almost daily with the media on a number of contentious issues, including the president's decision to "surge" troops into Iraq. Perino said there are some things that she would have done differently. "I'm sure that I'll have lots," she said Friday when asked if she had any regrets. "I'm going to go on a six-week trip with my husband, and I'm sure there will be long-enough flights for me to think about all the things we could have done better. View iconic images from Bush's time in the White House » "Any press secretary always wants to be more proactive, but news happens all over the world," Perino said. "And now with the 24/7 news cycle, in many ways, sometimes, you feel like you're just trying to keep up with that." "That's not a regret or a disappointment. It's just a fact of life," she added. As she begins to look beyond her years in the West Wing, Perino, a native of Wyoming who was raised in Colorado, says she is looking forward to spending more time in her own neighborhood in Washington with her husband, Peter McMahon, and their dog, a Hungarian Vizsla named Henry. Watch Perino prepare for life after the White House » She is also looking forward to sleeping in. When asked what she will miss the least from her time in the White House, Perino said, "Absolutely has to be getting up at 4 o'clock in the morning. "I don't mind working long hours, I don't mind working hard, but getting up when the four is still on the clock is something I hope I never have to do again unless I'm catching a flight to some exotic location," she said. After January 20, Perino does plan to take a vacation -- which she says will include volunteer work for President Bush's HIV/AIDS

White House spokeswoman Dana Perino gave last news briefing Friday . Perino, 36, succeeded Tony Snow, is only second woman to hold post . Perino plans six-week vacation, will volunteer with HIV/AIDS relief program in Africa .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- With U.S. gasoline prices setting records, opponents of the war in Iraq have raised a new complaint this week: The budget windfall that skyrocketing oil prices has given Baghdad. Iraqi employees attend the opening ceremony of a new oil refinery plant in Najaf, Iraq, on March 15. Crude oil futures topped $112 a barrel in Wednesday's intraday trading in New York -- up from about $35 a barrel before the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Though Iraq's oil exports have yet to top prewar levels, the price rise has meant a $6.4 billion surplus for the Iraqi government, according to the Pentagon's last quarterly report on the war. With the five-year-old war's cost to U.S. taxpayers estimated at more than $600 billion, the Iraqi windfall provoked sharp questions from Congress during two days of testimony by the top U.S. officials in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker. "This nation's facing record deficits, and the Iraqis have translated their oil revenues into budget surpluses rather than effective services," Rep. Ike Skelton of Missouri, the Democratic chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said Wednesday. "Under these circumstances and with a strategic risk to our nation and our military readiness, we and the American people must ask: Why should we stay in Iraq in large numbers?" Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, R-California, proposed the Iraqi government pay the cost of stationing U.S. troops in its country under any future agreement between Washington and Baghdad -- and said he would introduce legislation to require that. "The United States government and the people of the United States have paid an awful price," Rohrabacher said. "It's time for the Iraqis to pay that price for their own protection." Crocker said Iraq has allocated $13 billion for reconstruction projects in 2008 and plans to add another $5 billion this summer. The U.S. focus will shift to improving Iraq's economy at the local level and expanding its export capacity, he said. "The era of U.S.-funded major infrastructure projects is over. We are seeking to ensure that our assistance, in partnership with the Iraqis, leverages Iraq's own resources," he said. Five years after Baghdad fell to a U.S.-led army, many Iraqis still lack basic services such as water, sewer connections and electricity. Nevertheless, Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the government is "doing its best" to spend money to improve the country. "I think the government has a responsibility, definitely, to care for its people, to provide services and to use the oil money for reconstruction and development," Zebari said. The United States has committed about $45 billion to Iraq's reconstruction since the March 2003 invasion, according to a report last month from the Government Accountability Office. The agency, the investigative arm of Congress, concluded that Iraq's oil revenues could top $100 billion in 2007 and 2008. When President Bush announced he was dispatching almost 30,000 additional U.S. troops to Iraq in January 2007, he told Americans that Iraqis would spend $10 billion on reconstruction projects and pass a law allocating the country's oil wealth as steps toward a political settlement of the war. The GAO, however, found Iraq had spent only 7 percent of that budget by November 2007, and the proposed oil law has stalled in the country's fractious parliament. Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh blamed the ongoing insurgency and the "socialist command economy" left behind by ousted dictator Saddam Hussein for the slow pace of reconstruction. "At the time we were trying to reform it, open up the system, when we are faced with the terrible challenge of al Qaeda and this tornado of terrorism afflicting the society day in, day out," Saleh said. "People should not be too judgmental." But Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri, said Tuesday the issue is "a burr in the saddle of the American people" -- particularly since Bush administration officials told Congress before the invasion that Iraq could finance its own reconstruction with oil revenues. Rep. Walter Jones of North

Pentagon: Rising oil prices result in a $6.4 billion surplus for the Iraqi government . The Iraq war's cost to U.S. taxpayers is estimated at more than $600 billion . Lawmaker proposes Iraq should pay the cost of stationing U.S. troops . Ambassador: "The era of U.S.-funded major infrastructure projects is over"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- With the election of the next president a year away, Sen. Hillary Clinton remains the person to beat, a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released Monday suggests. As the countdown begins to November 4, 2008, the New York Democrat continues to dominate the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, and comes out ahead when voters are asked whether they prefer her or the GOP front-runner, former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani. But Clinton's path to the White House is in no way certain. Clinton was criticized for her performance during a debate last week, and her rivals for the Democratic nomination have stepped up attacks that she has equivocated on her position on Iraq, Iran and other major issues. The Republican presidential candidates have also stepped up their attacks on the Democratic front-runner, with each suggesting that he has the best chance of stopping Clinton. The attacks may be working. The CNN/Opinion Research polls suggests that Clinton's support has slipped from its height one month ago. Watch CNN's Bill Schneider on the latest poll numbers » "Clinton's strength is about where it was throughout the summer, indicating that she has lost the support she gained last month but that Obama has not yet cut into her core constituency," CNN political director Keating Holland said. Clinton is the top choice of 44 percent of the likely Democratic voters interviewed for the poll. Her closest rival, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, was the top choice of 25 percent, and former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina has 14 percent. All other Democratic candidates were in single digits. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson was backed by 4 percent, Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware by 3 percent, Sen. Christopher Dodd by 2 percent, Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich by 2 percent and former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel was at 1 percent. The poll involved 467 interviews conducted on November 2-4 with Democrats or independents who lean Democratic. The poll's margin of error was plus or minus 4.5 percentage points. View the poll results » In an October CNN/Opinion Research poll, Clinton was supported by 51 percent of Democratic voters and had a 30 point lead over Obama. During last week's Democratic debate, Clinton received heavy criticism from her fellow Democratic presidential rivals, who are desperate to shake up the presidential race just months before the first voting occurs in the Iowa Caucus in early January. Edwards was particularly aggressive during the debate, criticizing Clinton for her stance on Iraq, Iran and Social Security. "The American people ... deserve a president of the United States that they know will tell them the truth and won't say one thing one time and something different at a different time," Edwards said. Edwards has also accused Clinton of being a "corporate Democrat" too willing to defend a "corrupt" Washington establishement. "We desperately need in the next president someone that recognizes we have a system in Washington that's become broken, corruption has crept into it, and we have to tell the truth about that," Edwards said Monday. "If you defend that system, I don't believe you can bring about the change that America needs." In the Republican presidential race, Giuliani continues to be the leading candidate, with the backing of 28 percent of the Republican primary voters polled. Former Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee was backed by 19 percent. Sen. John McCain of Arizona was the top pick of 16 percent, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney had 11 percent. Of the remaining Republican candidates, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee received 10 percent, Texas Rep. Ron Paul 5 percent, California Rep. Duncan Hunter 4 percent and Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo 3 percent. The poll involved telephone interviews with 397 Republicans or independents who lean Republican. The poll's margin of error was 5 percentage points. In a head-to-head matchup of the two front-runners, Clinton leads Giuliani 51 percent to 45 percent. That lead has increased since October, when Clinton led Giuliani 49 percent to 47 percent. "The overall political environment seems

Sen. Clinton supported by 44 percent of Democrats polled, down from October . Rudy Giuliani continues to lead Republican presidential field with 28 percent . Clinton beats Giuliani 51 percent to 45 percent, the poll found . Only 42 percent think things are going well in the U.S., according to the poll .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- With thousands of Americans looking for jobs, many businesses are saying: Sorry, we're not hiring. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is sending out another message: Come right this way. Donna Gill Lumpkin is one of more than 270,000 people to apply for about 2,950 jobs at the FBI. After years of being outgunned in the battle for job applicants by corporations who could pay bigger salaries, hundreds of thousands of job seekers are applying for FBI positions. The FBI announced a hiring blitz in January to fill more than 2,100 professional staff positions. The job postings run the gamut from scientists to accountants to auto mechanics. In addition, the bureau said it wants to hire 850 FBI agents. What happened next caught many at the FBI by surprise. More than 270,000 people applied over about six weeks. The FBI said about 70,000 people seek positions in a normal year. But this isn't a normal year. Just ask Donna Gill Lumpkin, a divorced mother of two who lives in Maryland. Gill Lumpkin lost her job selling radio ad time in November. "The competition is really stiff," she said. "There's a lot of people out of work. A lot of people looking for a job." Gill Lumpkin has applied for a job as an FBI recruiter. If the FBI thinks she has the skills for the post, that's just one step toward a job. She'll have to undergo an FBI background check and take polygraph and drug tests. Watch the applications pile up at the FBI » The FBI official in charge of human resources concedes the FBI is benefiting a bit from the sour economy and getting a flood of applications this year. "In years past it was often difficult to find people with the science and technology background or chemistry background or a biology background because we were competing with the private sector," said FBI Assistant Director John Raucci. Raucci said during the dotcom explosion, the FBI had a difficult time competing with dotcom start-up salaries. "Now, what we offer is stability, we offer a job and I think a very exciting environment in which to work," said Raucci. Raucci said the average starting salary at the FBI is about $35,000 per year. But he adds those with extraordinary academic credentials and prior job experience start at a much higher rate. Donna Gill Lumpkin said the stability of a job with the federal government and the good benefits such as health insurance attracted her to apply. "In this tough economic climate right now the federal government, I think, is one of the most steady and stable places anyone could be." The stakes are high for Gill Lumpkin, who has a 12-year-old daughter and a 14-year-old son. She said her children are covered under her ex-husband's health insurance. But she needs coverage for herself. And she is not able to put any money away right now for her children's college years. "Right now the college fund is on pause," said Gill Lumpkin. "It's the survival fund. We are trying to survive."

Hundreds of thousands of job seekers are applying for FBI positions . Average starting salary at the FBI is about $35,000 per year . FBI no longer has same level of competition from private sector . FBI has openings for agents, but also for those in various support roles .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- You don't find many churches making theatrical films. You especially don't find many churches making films starring Kirk Cameron about a firefighter in a crumbling marriage addicted to online porn. Kirk Cameron stars in "Fireproof," a film he was attracted to for its many themes, he said. But that's the case for Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia. In fact, the film, "Fireproof," was the church's third movie. It was also an unexpected hit. In September it debuted at No. 4 at the box office, eventually bringing in $33.5 million and spawning two books: a novelization, also called "Fireproof," which is in The New York Times' best-seller list's Top 20; and a companion journal to the movie, "The Love Dare," which has sold more than 2 million copies. Last week "Fireproof" debuted on DVD and climbed to No. 3 on Billboard's DVD chart, beating out "The Hulk" and "Saw V," among others. "You don't often see movies made by churches do big numbers," said Billboard's Anthony Colombo. "Having [distributor] Sony behind it helps. Having Kirk Cameron helps, but for it to come out and do 136,000 pieces [DVDs] in its first week is pretty impressive." "It should not be working," said Alex Kendrick, one of the pastors behind the film. "All I can say is we prayed for months and asked for it to honor God." Kendrick said that Sherwood's pastors gathered for prayer two years ago and asked God to give them an idea for their next movie. They were just coming off making "Facing the Giants," a movie shot entirely in Albany on a $100,000 budget. It starred no professional actors -- just members of their church -- but made $10.2 million at the box office and sold 250,000 copies on DVD, launching the church into the national spotlight. The church leaders lit upon the idea of troubled relationships. "Families and marriages are crumbing and we want to do something about it," said Kendrick, recalling the idea's genesis. "God give us the idea. We had no clue what would happen with it." "Fireproof" began with a $500,000 budget and a fresh crop of church member/actors, but the film got a left-field boost when Cameron, best known as the 1980s heartthrob from the TV series "Growing Pains," read the script and asked to get involved. "All throughout the movie ... there are issues of communications, money, sex, addiction, porn, extramarital affairs, feeling respected at work but not at home, feeling respected by friends but not at home," Cameron told CNN. The themes resonated with the actor and devout Christian, a husband of 17 years, and father of six, he said. That and the "cool action scenes," he added. The makers of "Fireproof" tapped into the church market, arranging screenings for the National Baptist Pastors' convention before release and using word-of-mouth among church leaders. However, says Cameron, the film was pitched to general audiences, not necessarily Christians. "'Fireproof' was never marketed as a Christian movie. This is a movie about marriage," Cameron said. "The fact is, though, the gospel is presented, is done well, and it's a central part of the storyline." Although many critics panned "Fireproof" -- "as sincere, uncynical and subtlety-free as a Sunday school lecture," said Variety -- audiences embraced it. "There's a huge market out there that's underserved. That market is there and a lot of people don't want to go there but there is a huge untapped market," Cameron said. Paul Dergarabedian, a box office analyst for Hollywood.com, said he was shocked when the movie debuted in the top five its opening weekend. "With 'Fireproof,' they really

"Fireproof" about a firefighter having marriage problems . Film was produced by a church, aimed some marketing at churches . "Fireproof" successful in theaters, now success on DVD, has become a brand .

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- The Democratic-led Congress yielded to President Bush on Saturday and approved legislation to temporarily expand government's power to conduct electronic surveillance without a court order in tracking foreign suspects. President Bush demanded Congress expand his surveillance authority before leaving for vacation. Civil liberties groups charged the measure would create a broad net that would sweep up law-abiding U.S. citizens. But the House of Representatives gave its concurrence to the bill, 227-183, a day after it won Senate approval, 60-28. The action came amid warnings of possible attacks on the United States. "After months of prodding by House Republicans, Congress has finally closed the terrorist loophole in our surveillance law -- and America will be the safer for it," declared House Minority Leader John Boehner, an Ohio Republican. "We think it is not the bill that ought to pass," said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer. But he conceded he and fellow Democrats were unable to stop the measure in this national security showdown with the White House. "Protecting America is our most solemn obligation," Bush said earlier in the day in urging Congress to send him the bill so he could sign it into law. Watch Kelli Arena's report on what some call an intelligence gap » The measure would authorize the National Security Agency to intercept without a court order communications between people in the United States and foreign targets overseas. E-mail to a friend

Secret court ruling prompted push for updating the program . President Bush had urged the House to pass the bill without delay . Measure expands government's power to eavesdrop on foreign suspects .

WASHINGTON -- For the second time since resigning the Alaska governorship more than a month ago, Sarah Palin is adding her voice to the fiery debate over health care. Sarah Palin says in a new op-ed that big government is not the solution to health care reform. This time, Palin is hitting the pages of the Wall Street Journal to counter President Obama's latest efforts to reform the nation's health care system. "The answers offered by Democrats in Washington all rest on one principle: that increased government involvement can solve the problem. I fundamentally disagree," Palin writes in the 1,110-word opinion piece in Wednesday's edition of the paper. "Common sense tells us that the government's attempts to solve large problems more often create new ones," the former Republican vice presidential candidate continues. "Common sense also tells us that a top-down, one-size-fits-all plan will not improve the workings of a nationwide health-care system that accounts for one-sixth of our economy." Palin, whose initial Facebook posting on "death panels" last month is credited with spurring heated opposition to the House Democratic health care proposal, again raises the claim -- now widely debunked -- that a government panel could determine which senior citizens receive vital treatments. "Is it any wonder that many of the sick and elderly are concerned that the Democrats' proposals will ultimately lead to rationing of their health care by -- dare I say it -- death panels?" she writes. "Establishment voices dismissed that phrase, but it rang true for many Americans." Watch more on the health care debate » Ultimately, Palin says, "Congress will likely reject a wrong-headed proposal to authorize end-of-life counseling in this cost-cutting context" because Americans made their voices heard in the contentious town halls last August. "But the fact remains that the Democrats' proposals would still empower unelected bureaucrats to make decisions affecting life or death health-care matters. Such government overreaching is what we've come to expect from this administration," she says. Palin also takes issue with the president's assertion that Democrats' heath care proposals will rein in costs and eliminate waste and inefficiency in the system. Citing the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, Palin says currently proposed health care legislation will do little to bring down costs, but will instead cause the federal deficit to skyrocket by more than $200 billion over the next decade. "Only in Washington could a plan that adds hundreds of billions to the deficit be hailed as a cost-cutting measure," writes Palin. Instead, Palin argues the true solution to health care lies in "market oriented, patient-centered, and result driven" measures such as providing tax benefits for those who get health care coverage from their jobs, providing seniors on Medicare vouchers to buy their own coverage, and allowing people to buy health insurance across state lines.

Sarah Palin blasts Democrats' health care reform proposals in newspaper op-ed . Palin: Public outcry led Congress not to authorize "end-of-life counseling" She takes issue with Obama's view that Democrats' plans will rein in costs . Palin says the true solution is a "market oriented, patient-centered" approach .

WASHINGTON, Illinois (CNN) -- Ty Ziegel peers from beneath his Marine Corps baseball cap, his once boyish face burned beyond recognition by a suicide bomber's attack in Iraq just three days before Christmas 2004. Ty Ziegel, a Marine, was badly wounded in Iraq. He battled the VA over disability benefits when he returned. He lost part of his skull in the blast and part of his brain was damaged. Half of his left arm was amputated and some of the fingers were blown off his right hand. Ziegel, a 25-year-old Marine sergeant, knew the dangers of war when he was deployed for his second tour in Iraq. But he didn't expect a new battle when he returned home as a wounded warrior: a fight with the Department of Veterans Affairs. "Sometimes, you get lost in the system," he told CNN. "I feel like a Social Security number. I don't feel like Tyler Ziegel." His story is one example of how medical advances in the battlefield have outpaced the home front. Many wounded veterans return home feeling that the VA system, specifically its 62-year-old disability ratings system, has failed them. Watch Ziegel display his model skull » "The VA system is not ready, and they simply don't have time to catch up," Tammy Duckworth -- herself a wounded veteran who heads up the Illinois Department of Veteran Affairs -- told the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee in March. VA Acting Secretary Gordon Mansfield said cases like Ziegel's are rare -- that the majority of veterans are moving through the process and "being taken care of." He also said most veterans are fairly compensated. "Any veteran with the same issue, if it's a medical disability, ... it is going to get the same exact result anywhere in our system," he said. More than 28,500 troops have been wounded in Operation Iraqi Freedom, including about 8,500 that have needed air transport, according to the U.S. military. See photos of these Iraq war heroes » A recent Harvard study found that the cost of caring for those wounded over the course of their lifetime could ultimately cost more than $660 billion. In Ziegel's case, he spent nearly two years recovering at Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas. Once he got out of the hospital, he was unable to hold a job. He anticipated receiving a monthly VA disability check sufficient to cover his small-town lifestyle in Washington, Illinois. Instead, he got a check for far less than expected. After pressing for answers, Ziegel finally received a letter from the VA that rated his injuries: 80 percent for facial disfigurement, 60 percent for left arm amputation, a mere 10 percent for head trauma and nothing for his left lobe brain injury, right eye blindness and jaw fracture. "I don't get too mad about too many things," he said. "But once we've been getting into this, I'm ready to beat down the White House door if I need to." "I'm not expecting to live in the lap of luxury," he added. "But I am asking them to make it comfortable to raise a family and not have to struggle." Within 48 hours of telling his story to CNN this summer, the Office of then-VA Secretary Jim Nicholson acted on Ziegel's case. The VA changed his head trauma injury, once rated at 10 percent, to traumatic brain injury rated at 100 percent, substantially increasing his monthly disability check. Duckworth, the Illinois VA chief, knows exactly what Ziegel and other severely wounded vets are going through. She lost both her legs when a rocket-propelled grenade struck her Blackhawk helicopter on November 12, 2004. Her right arm was also shattered. Watch how Duckworth's wounds changed her life » She told CNN she received "incredible care" at Walter Reed for 13 months, but soon realized the transition to the VA wouldn't be as smooth. "I started worrying about the fact that maybe this country won't remember in five years

Ty Ziegel lost an arm, part of his skull when he was attacked in Iraq . VA initially rated his brain injury at 0%, meaning he got no compensation for it . Another vet: VA rejected his claim, saying his wounds were "not service connected" Ziegel: "I want to make the VA system better"

WATERTOWN, South Dakota (CNN) -- Sen. Barack Obama linked Sen. John McCain Friday with what he called "the failed policies" of the Bush administration, accusing the presumed Republican presidential nominee and the White House of "bombastic exaggerations and fear-mongering" in place of "strategy and analysis and smart policy." "What we've done over the last eight years does not work," the Democratic front-runner said. Obama accused McCain of supporting a track record from the Bush administration that included the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, a longer and more expensive war in Iraq than was initially projected, the continued freedom of September 11 mastermind Osama bin Laden and the strengthening of Iran after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. "The American people are going to look at the evidence," he said. "We don't get a sense that this has been a wise foreign policy or a smart foreign policy or a tough foreign policy. This has been a policy that oftentimes revolved around a lot of bluster and big talk, but very little performance, and what the American people want right now is performance." In a speech at the annual meeting of the National Rifle Association in Louisville, Kentucky, on Friday, McCain defended his foreign policy positions, saying the United States has a realistic chance of success in Iraq after four years of costly mistakes. McCain called some of Obama's ideas "reckless" and questioned his understanding of America's standing in the world. Watch McCain take on Obama's comments » "It would be a wonderful thing if we lived in a world where we don't have enemies," the Arizona Republican said. "That's not the world we live in. And until Sen. Obama understands that reality, the American people have every reason to doubt whether he has strength, judgment and determination to keep us safe." The verbal sparring took place a day after President Bush suggested in a speech before the Israeli Knesset that those who want to shift American policy to include direct talks with what he called "terrorists and radicals" were appeasers and delusional. Watch more of the controversy surrounding Bush's speech » "I don't take what Bush says personally, but I was offended by what is a continuation of strategy from this White House, now mimicked by Sen. McCain, that replaces strategy and analysis and smart policy with bombast, exaggerations and fear-mongering," Obama said. Watch more of Obama's comments » "The speech yesterday was not about an actual policy argument. It was about politics and scaring the American people, and that's what will not work in this election," he said. Obama said he would offer "tough diplomacy" to the leaders of Iran, Syria, Venezuela and North Korea "without preconditions, although with preparation, and I would present to them very clearly what my expectations would be in terms of them changing their behavior." On Thursday, McCain spoke warily of Obama's willingness to meet with dictators and "state sponsors of terrorists." "I have some news for Sen. Obama," McCain told the NRA Friday. "Talking, not even with soaring rhetoric ... will not convince Iran to give up its nuclear program. It is reckless to suggest that unconditional meetings will advance our interests." Speaking to reporters earlier, McCain said he disagreed with Obama's desire to talk with Iran's president. "What you do, if you sit down face to face, as Sen. Obama wants to do, is you legitimize a regime that's dedicated to the extinction of Israel, supports terrorist organizations and is responsible for deaths of brave young Americans," McCain said. McCain also said he would not meet with representatives of Hamas, the Palestinian organization listed as a terrorist group by the United States and Israel, which won elections in 2006 and now controls Gaza while U.S.-friendly President Mahmoud Abbas controls the West Bank. Obama agreed with that position, calling Hamas a terrorist organization that has vowed to destroy Israel. But Obama said McCain and Bush have to answer for

McCain blasts Obama's comments in NRA speech . Obama slams Bush over attack "that alienates us from the rest of the world" He blasts McCain for "embracing" Bush's attacks .

WAXAHATCHIE, Texas (CNN) -- Julie Quiroz clutches her teddy bear crying. "Mommy," she says softly, as her mother wraps her arms around her and rubs her back. One of her brothers tries to console her. "You're going to come back," he says. Julie Quiroz, a 13-year-old U.S. citizen, went back to Mexico when her mom was deported. The 13-year-old Quiroz begins to walk away to catch an airplane from Mexico to the United States. Within moments, she rushes back to her mother's arms. "Mommy," she says again, tears streaming down her face. Quiroz is one of an estimated 3 million American children who have at least one parent who entered the United States illegally, according to the Urban Institute, which researches and evaluates U.S. social and economic issues. In Quiroz's case, she was born in Washington state, lived there her entire life and went to school there. But her mother, Ana Reyes, entered the United States illegally before Quiroz was born and U.S. immigration officials caught up with her last year on her birthday. Watch how deportation separates family » "I was there when they handcuffed her," Quiroz says. "I was there when they took her down." Two of her brothers, who had come with their mother to the United States when they were young children, also were taken into custody. It was the start of a downward spiral for Quiroz. When her mother and brothers were deported, Quiroz and her 6-year-old, American-born sister had no choice but to return to Mexico City with them. Her seventh-grade year was spent in a classroom where she didn't understand the language. "I never belonged there," she says. "I'd just come home, sit down, cry. I'd say, 'Mom, I can't do it.' ... I can't read or write Spanish." She adds, "I felt like there were no dreams for me." Stories like these are becoming more common, immigration analysts say, with American children caught in the middle of their mother or father's illegal status. A report last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association said these children face "increasing risk of family separation, economic hardship and psychological trauma." "It's really hard to imagine something that can be more traumatic than to be forcibly separated from their caregiver. That's the enforcement climate that we're operating in now," says Miriam Calderon, the associate director for education and children's policy at the National Council of La Raza, the largest Hispanic advocacy group in the United States. Calderon says the nation needs to enforce immigration laws, but currently there is a lack of a "consistent and comprehensive standard to ensure that children will be protected" when undocumented parents are taken into custody. "Until a major immigration reform is enacted, the country will continue to cope with challenges resulting from the presence of roughly 12 million undocumented immigrants in our workforce and in our communities," said Janet Murguia, the president of NCLR, before Congress in May. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement says it's simply enforcing the laws on the books. "ICE agents and officers are sworn to uphold all of our nation's immigration and customs laws," ICE press secretary Kelly Nantel said in a written statement. "We cannot pick and choose the laws we enforce. Parents make decisions that affect their families everyday. "There are known consequences for violating our nation's immigration laws. It's unfortunate that parents choose to place their children in these difficult situations." For Quiroz, her journey from America to Mexico City took an unexpected turn when her plight caught the attention of Joe Kennard, a land developer and Christian philanthropist. Kennard reached out to Quiroz's mother and told her the teen could live with his family in Texas and enroll in school there. "You can make all the arguments that [the mother] deserved what she got because she was an adult,

3 million U.S. citizen children are believed to have one undocumented parent . Julie Quiroz, 13, was born in the U.S. but had to return to Mexico with her mom . "I never belonged there ... I'd just come home, sit down, cry," she says . Thanks to a philanthropist, Quiroz was able to come back to study; but without mother .

WEIMAR, Germany (CNN) -- A long narrow road winds through a thick forest up a hill called the "Ettesberg," on the outskirts of Weimar in central Germany. The ovens where tens of thousands of bodies were cremated are restored and working. The road goes on for miles through the forest, but every once in a while you see an old railway station, a tower, or an old structure withering in the German rain. This road was named "the trail of blood," by inmates of the infamous concentration camp Buchenwald, because of the death marches they were forced to undertake as they were deported to work as slave laborers for Nazi Germany's defense industry from 1937 to 1945. "The trail of blood" leads straight to the entrance gate of the former concentration camp -- a structure with a huge iron gate in the middle, a tower with a clock above, and arrest cells in the building's wings. U.S. troops saw the horror of the Nazi regime first hand when they came through this gate on April 11, 1945, and found camp inmates starved to the bone, many too weak to stand. "We couldn't even show our joy at this moment, which we had been waiting for so long," said former inmate Zeev Factor, recalling the day American troops came to liberate the camp. Now the camp is getting ready to host President Obama, who has a special relationship with Buchenwald. His great-uncle Charlie Payne, 84, helped liberate a sub-camp here when he was an infantryman fighting in World War II. "The survivors see President Obama almost like a grandson of theirs," said the director of the Buchenwald memorial, Volker Knigge, speaking just outside the front gate. "The president is related to one of the brave men who came here and saw the Nazi horror first hand. The soldiers only had vague knowledge of what concentration camps actually were, but here they saw people too weak to survive, even after having been liberated." Historians estimate that of the 20,000 inmates who were liberated by U.S. troops, 1,000 died shortly after because of exhaustion and the effects of years of starvation. It is easy to see why. Every building in the Buchenwald complex radiates death, suffering and evil. In the crematorium, where tens of thousands of bodies were burned, the ovens have been restored and are fully functional. In a cellar below the cremation room, meat hooks in the walls were used by SS guards to hang and strangle more than 1,000 inmates, many of them women and children. Obama will see these testimonies to the barbarism of the Nazis when he takes a tour of the camp with German Chancellor Angela Merkel. He will also meet some of the survivors who Volker Knigge says feel so close to this president.

President Obama visits Buchenwald concentration camp, Germany, on Friday . His great-uncle helped liberate one of the complex's sub-camps during WWII . Director of Buchenwald camp memorial: Survivors see Obama as a grandson . Obama will meet some camp survivors during his visit .

WEST HOLLYWOOD, California (CNN) -- We halfway expect the four members of Kings of Leon to roll into Bar 1200 drunk and brawling, a burly tour manager leading them in by the scruff of their necks. Kings of Leon is a family affair, consisting of three brothers and their cousin. Instead, a uniformed valet ushers them in, one by one, offering each a flute of champagne -- which Caleb Followill, the singer, and Nathan Followill, the drummer, politely accept. "We have a bunch of rooms at the hotel, and the valet came with the floor," they explain, shaking their heads in amazement. The hipster lounge we've gathered in is in the lobby of the Sunset Marquis in West Hollywood, California. A framed black-and-white photo of the Kings hangs in a spot of honor: closest to the bar. It's autographed, with a inscription that reads, "Scene of the crime!" Kings of Leon's fourth album, "Only by the Night," has sold 5 million copies worldwide and spun off three hit singles, catapulting the group into that elite fraternity of bona fide rock bands that enjoy airplay on both pop and rock stations. These days, the Followill four -- brothers Caleb, Nathan and Jared, along with their cousin, Matthew -- are fulfilling the promise that so many critics predicted early in their career. Their majestic, tension-filled brand of Southern garage rock has its roots in, of all things, the church. The brothers' dad, Ivan, was a traveling Pentecostal preacher who led raucous, revivalist-style congregations. Both he and his father went by the name Leon. His boys have carried on in his road warrior tradition. The stage is their pulpit, their congregation, 20,000-seat arenas. The following is an edited version of our interview. CNN: It's been a great couple of years for you. Do you feel your lives have changed? Caleb Followill: Absolutely. It's just a strange thing for us, because we've had success in the past, but a great majority of it hasn't been in America. And when it starts to happen in America, you turn into a wild person again. "Oh, let's party!" CNN: Is it really true that you guys can consume more alcohol than any other band out there on the road? Jared Followill: Collectively, it's a possibility. Caleb: I mean, we can consume more alcohol than any other popular band that actually works. As soon as we say "thank you" and "good night," that means it's time for us to have fun. We're sober in the mornings. Most mornings. CNN: Are you sober now? Caleb: Yes. Nathan Followill: Not really. (Laugh) CNN: You guys are also famous for your fights. Rolling Stone had two of you at each other's throats. A $7,000 mirror was apparently involved -- Caleb: And we were so mad about what they said that we got into a big fight. Nah, I'm kidding. A lot of the stories that come out about us fighting absolutely aren't true. CNN: Are all of you still in your 20s? Nathan: I cracked the 30s! June 26th. Caleb: We're about to Menudo his ass and get someone younger. CNN: You grew up with religion at the center of your life. How do you think it's worked its way into what you do now and what we hear coming out of the stereo? Caleb: I grew up with my dad as a preacher, and so you hear Bible verses. I've always looked at the Bible as poetry, so I kind of learned to write in that style from time to time. And a lot of people misconstrued that as me trying to push something on someone. We're all sinners. (Looks at Nathan) Look at him drinking the devil's grape juice. (The others chuckle)

Kings of Leon sold 5 million copies worldwide of CD "Only by the Night" Group of brothers and cousin started out playing in church . Now band is enjoying fruits of their labors, opening for U2, Bob Dylan, Pearl Jam . Many stories of fights "aren't true," one member says .

WEST PALM BEACH, Florida (CNN) -- To pick up the morning paper and see the word "recount" in a headline stirs an ominous case of déjà vu. Judge Robert Rosenberg examines a ballot in Broward County, Florida, during the election recount in 2000. At issue in recent days in Palm Beach County is a local judicial race that is hardly of national note. But problems with administering the local election, and statements from county officials that some critics call confusing, if not contradictory, have some worried about the coming presidential election. Polls showing a dead heat in the battle for Florida's 27 electoral votes only add to the drama. "Managerially, software-wise, procedure-wise, training-wise, there is no confidence that these people will be ready in less than 50 days for the election we are all going to have," said Sid Dinerstein, the Palm Beach County Republican chairman. "Never again!" was the county's promise after the butterfly ballots and hanging chads of the 2000 recount drama. For 2004, the county switched to touch-screen machines. There were no major issues here. But some local Democrats, including Rep. Robert Wexler, demanded changes because they said the touch-screen system might be vulnerable to fraud and did not, in their view, provide a reliable audit trail. So the county switched again, to its third system in eight years, this time a paper ballot that is scanned by an optical reading device. The paper is then retained in case of recounts or other irregularities. Local officials say the system works and promise a smooth Election Day. But Dinerstein says the recount in the judicial race proves the folly of switching. "We could have had nice, reliable computers counting and giving all of us an honest count," he said in an interview. The 2000 recount drama led to major changes -- more than 40 states made changes or adjustments to the way they conducted and administered elections. "We have had more change in our election process since 2000 than we have seen since the Voting Rights Act of 1965," said Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita, a recent past president of the national association of top state elections officials. Indiana alone spent some $67 million on new equipment, including a statewide voter file, and also requires a color photo ID on Election Day. Rokita takes issue with those who question the reliability of newer, high-tech systems. "You know, we use technology in every one of our financial transactions and social transactions -- why did we not until 2000 put that type of technology to use when it comes to our most sacred civic transaction, you know, the voting process?" Rokita asked in an interview at his office in Indianapolis. "The technology is just a tool. And what the conspiracy theorists want you to believe is the technology runs the election -- and nothing could be further from the truth," he said. "If you have well-trained people who know how to use that technology and those tools, to know what to do if a battery dies on election day, all those things, then you will have a fair and an accurate election and the people are the ones who will produce that. And If they are not trained and they are not prepared, then you are not going to have a good election. But it is the people, not the machines." Indiana expects a record number of new voters this year, and Rokita is changing his usual advice as a result. In the past he has encouraged voting on Election Day, saying it builds community spirit and gives voters up to the last moment to ponder their choices. But this year, given the high interest in his state and nationwide, he suggests voters who are certain they will not change their minds help ease the burden -- and the potential for mistakes on Election Day -- by taking advantage of any early voting options in their states.

Palm Beach County, Florida, has changed voting systems twice in past eight years . County GOP chairman says "no confidence" election will go off without problems . 2000 recount drama in Florida led to changes in election procedures in 40+ states . Indiana official says it's people, not machines, that make elections run smoothly .

WEST PARK, Florida (CNN) -- "We are an army," says Andrea Ivory of the group gathered with her early on a Saturday morning. Breast cancer survivor Andrea Ivory is on a mission to educate Florida communities about the disease, one door at a time. Armed with clipboards, leaflets and high spirits, the energetic Ivory leads them into the neighborhood, where they start knocking on doors. The mood is lighthearted, but their mission is serious: to save lives, one house at a time. They're volunteers from the Florida Breast Health Initiative, or FBHI, and they are waging war against breast cancer. It's an effort started by Ivory, 50, herself a survivor of the disease. Every weekend in the spring and fall, she and her volunteers -- who include college students, senior citizens and suburban moms, all wearing matching T-shirts -- fan out across low-income communities in southern Florida, educating women about breast health. They especially seek out uninsured women age 35 and older, who statistics show are twice as likely to be diagnosed with late-stage breast cancer, and thus more likely to die from the disease. For Ivory, comparing this work to a battle isn't overblown. "The only thing that we have to fight this disease and lower the mortality rate is early detection," she says. "We are the troops on the front lines." Since 2006, Ivory has helped provide more than 500 mammograms to eligible women. Ivory herself had always been diligent about getting annual mammograms, but when the breast cancer diagnosis came in 2004, she took it in stride. "I just knew that it was for a higher purpose," she recalls. Ivory says that purpose became clear during her cancer treatment. Reflecting on how lucky she was to have health insurance and to have gotten annual mammograms, she realized that thousands of women without health care were likely falling through the cracks and putting themselves at risk. "Those women don't even have a fighting chance," she says. "The mission became reach[ing] those women." Ivory started FBHI to do just that. Her mantra: "Early detection is the best protection." Do you know someone who should be a CNN Hero? Nominations are open at CNN.com/Heroes The operation runs like clockwork. The first three Saturdays of each month are devoted to outreach -- distributing educational materials and signing up women for free mammograms. She and her volunteers have visited nearly 18,000 homes. "I love knocking on doors," Ivory says with a smile. "I like to think of us as little pixies spreading breast cancer awareness." On the last Saturday of each month, a large mobile mammography van from a partner hospital rolls into the neighborhood, bringing screening technology directly to women who need it. As they line up around the van, the excitement is palpable. Since many have never had a mammogram, Ivory and her team try to make the experience fun -- providing refreshments, smiles and support. One mammogram recipient said the "convenience factor" of the free screenings made the offer too hard to refuse. "Ultimately this is the reason we do the work that we do," says Ivory, "because we want to screen women who would not ordinarily have [the] opportunity." Watch Ivory and her army in action » Telmilda Ariza, 62, always had health insurance, but after losing her job, her annual mammogram became a financial burden. She smiles when recalling the volunteers' first visit to her home. "They knocked on my door and, wow! It was [a] miracle, coming from the sky," she says. "It's something I really needed." Ariza was so grateful that she started volunteering and knocking on doors herself. Watch Ariza describe how she went from recipient to volunteer » Charlene Thomas, another of Ivory's regular volunteers, considers herself living proof of the program's impact. Uninsured, she'd paid for her mammogram out of her

Breast cancer survivor founds group to educate women about the disease . Andrea Ivory, 50, and her volunteers have visited nearly 18,000 homes . Since '06, Ivory has helped provide more than 500 mammograms . Do you know a hero? Nominations are open at CNN.com/Heroes .

WEST POINT, Georgia (CNN) -- A community that seemed on the road to becoming a ghost town has taken a turn toward prosperity despite the recession, thanks to an automaker. A roadside sign in West Point, Georgia, expresses support for Kia's new factory. Korean car manufacturer Kia plans to open a sprawling automobile factory in tiny West Point, Georgia, by the end of the year. The boon has already spurred economic growth -- and just plain excitement -- among residents, said Mayor Drew Ferguson. "We jokingly call it Kia-ville," said Ferguson, a 42-year-old dentist helping to oversee expansion of West Point, population 3,500. The announcement is drawing workers and businesses to the community about 80 miles south of Atlanta. "The revitalization of the community is touching every aspect," Ferguson said. "We have infrastructure projects, new subdivisions going up, hotel professional services that are all needed to support the massive manufacturing." The plant, which will make Kia's Sorento sport utility vehicle, has hired 500 workers. By the time the factory opens, Kia hopes to hire 2,000 more. A smattering of Kia supply companies will eventually employ 7,500 additional workers. Watch the town's excitement about the new factory » "A lot of people feel that we are the savior for this area, which I hope we will be," said Randy Jackson, director of human resources for the manufacturing plant. "We got 43,013 applications; 75 percent of those applications came from Georgia, and about 20 percent came from our neighboring state of Alabama." Some of those applications are coming from auto workers around the country, including Detroit, Michigan, Jackson said. Overall, West Point stands to gain 20,000 jobs as a result of the factory during the next five years, Ferguson said. Georgia's 9.7 percent unemployment rate reported in May is about the same as the June national average of 9.5 percent, according to federal statistics. The U.S. Department of Labor reported unemployment in a five-county region including West Point at 8.6 percent. To secure the $1.2 billion Kia plant, state and local officials helped assemble land from a former cattle farm to create a 2,200-acre industrial park. They also locked in about $400 million in tax breaks and other economic incentives. "We think the investment will pay off big time," Ferguson said. "We're already seeing it. But it's not only in the dollars, but in the hope and opportunity, and the ability to create new jobs." Ruthann Williams invested her life savings to buy and open the Irish Bred Pub on West Point's Main Street. Now she commutes to work 45 minutes a day from her North Georgia home. "I came here because of Kia," Williams said. "We jumped in with both feet and have not looked back one time." 'My little town was gonna die' Plans for the new factory have transformed a community that during the past ten years has been becoming a ghost town. Textile mills that once defined West Point shut down in the 1990s, leaving many out of work. Debbie Williams, co-owner of the popular Roger's Bar-B-Que, was worried her business would go under. "We'd go downtown and there was nothing there," Williams said. "I thought my little town was gonna die." Margaret McManus was laid off last year when the textile mill she worked for closed. The 52-year-old went back to school to study information technology. In April she landed a job as a trainer with Daehan Solutions Georgia, a parts supplier for Kia. McManus said she didn't think in a million years she'd be making car parts. "The job that I used to do for a long time, we thought we'd retire there," McManus said. "It feels good to go to work everyday and have something to do." The signs of transformation in West Point are everywhere. There's new construction, including the city's first new

Mayor: West Point, Georgia, could get 20,000 jobs resulting from Kia car plant . Before Kia announcement, business owner thought town was "gonna die" News spurs construction of West Point's first new subdivision in 25 years . Auto workers from Detroit, elsewhere applying for jobs at plant, mayor says .

WESTERN DESERT, Iraq (CNN) -- The hot wind swirls around the human bones and cracked skulls that litter the forsaken desert lands in Western Iraq. The entrance to the bunker complex where al Qaeda terrorized enemies in Iraq. We are standing in the middle of what was an al Qaeda execution site, just outside an intricate bunker complex that the organization used to torture and murder its victims, the bodies left to rot or be eaten by animals. From the back of the police truck the opening to the first bunker is barely discernible in the distance. "Al Qaeda came in as a massive force" one of the officers says as we bump along the harsh terrain. "They stole our cars, our personal cars. They kidnapped two of my brothers. They blew up the house over there." In the distance we can see his village -- a set of sand colored homes surrounded by parched farmlands. As we approach grubby children chase the truck and then stand to the side, despondent, as the officer points to their home. "Their father was killed by al Qaeda," he says. In 2007 the U.S. military launched a series of airstrikes that drove out al Qaeda. As we enter the first bunker Captain Khaled Bandar tells us they found the floor littered with bodies. A gaping hole is evidence of the U.S. firepower. Insurgents used the layered and intricate labyrinth of passageways and hatches to carry out summary trials and executions. The police show us clothing and shoes, saying they are leaving them in place in case the families of the victims decide to come back. The stench of decay still lingers. Al Qaeda has been on the defensive in recent years, notwithstanding spectacular attacks attributed to the group like last week's blasts in the capital, including suicide truck bomb attacks on the ministries of foreign affairs and finance. At least 100 people were killed and more than 500 wounded. But the concerted security campaign against the group has forced it to change its structure and strategy. According to one man who has close connections to al Qaeda in Iraq and asked not to be identified, the group lost support because it lost the protection of the people. "There is an old saying about the basics of war. Whoever wins the people wins the war. So when al Qaeda didn't win the people over, it lost its battles," he explains. "Al Qaeda's strategy of taking control of areas has been abandoned for now. Their method is propaganda, instilling fear, terrorizing." He adds that the group stopped recruiting over the last six months because of a shortage in funding and increased infiltration. "Al Qaeda is moving towards selecting the elite and condensing its forces rather than expanding. The Americans nearly defeated al Qaeda by cornering it and reducing its operations," he says. But those operations are still deadly, and the war is by no means over. "No, the war is not over in Iraq, a type of battle is over, but there are new battles cloaked in politics. Now politicians try to pay militias, al Qaeda, or armed factions ...in order to eliminate political foes," the man with knowledge of al Qaeda says. And al Qaeda is still able to send a message to those who dare oppose them. The police officers show us blood stains in the desert near the bunkers and tell us how they found two beheaded bodies just a month ago. They were identified as being the brothers of two police officers from another city, Ramadi. Meanwhile, al Qaeda's global war has sifted to a place it believes it can still win -- Afghanistan. "Al Qaeda in Afghanistan is made up of true believers, those who believe in jihad and fighting, and that's why they joined," the man with connections says. "As for most of al Qaeda in Iraq's members, they are just looking to benefit themselves, or they join out of resentment for a certain sect or to avenge their families." As for Iraq's longterm stability, that very

Abandoned al Qaeda in Iraq bunker base littered with bones of its enemies . U.S. bombed bunkers in 2007 but stench of decay remains in desert base . Source close to al Qaeda says it lost in Iraq as it lost support of the people . He says al Qaeda's focus is now Afghanistan .

WESTERPLATTE, Poland (CNN) -- On a sand swept stretch of Afghanistan, a high-ranking Polish general put his country's mission there into perspective. The repurcussions of World War II lasted decades for Poland. He explained to a NATO delegation that Polish troops remind Afghan locals of two things about the mission: They are not Soviets and they know how difficult it is to live under foreign occupation. It is hard to ignore the incomparable price Poland paid during World War II. It was attacked by Germany, invaded by the Soviets, and became home to the notorious Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz. After six brutal years, Poles were the victors in war but losers in peace, living for four decades under Soviet repression. Many here will tell you they still have not come to terms with their fate after the war. Seven decades after the start of World War II, the conflict still defines Polish identity and history. September 1, 2009 in Westerplatte, Poland turned out to be a blue sky day even as dignitaries and notably the leaders of Poland, Russia and Germany turned out to remember the dark horrors that so changed their histories. The leaders laid wreaths to honor the 'Defenders of Westerplatte', the men who died in the battle that started it all. It was here at this strategic port on the Baltic Sea, Danzig, now Gdansk, that Nazi Germany's surprise attack on Poland triggered six years of bloodletting, a savage Holocaust and the death of more than 50 million people. The Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, called it a war against humanity itself. Tusk also answered critics who felt his country and the world should now move on from World War II. He warned that if anniversaries are not marked and ceremonies not planned, there may be nothing to shield us from the brutality of future wars. But still today the events of the last 70 years have left their mark and fueled some modern day controversies. Send us your war stories Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin tried to appeal directly to the people of Poland in an open letter. He reminded them that at least 27 million Russians died in the conflict but also warned against equating the Soviet Union's role in World War II with the menace of Hitler's Nazism. "..exploiting memory, anatomizing history and seeking pretexts for mutual complaints and resentment causes a lot of harm. " wrote Putin. He backed that up with public comments saying, "If we talk about an objective assessment of history, we should understand that it had no one color. It was varied and there were huge number of mistakes committed by many sides. All these actions, in one way or another, created conditions for the beginning of a large-scale aggression by Nazi Germany." Putin was at the heart of a tug-of-war over the war. Some Poles say Stalin was as evil and complicit as Hitler during the war. Russians say that callously overlooks the sacrifice of Russians in defeating Nazism and liberating Europe. In fact, it took German Chancellor Angela Merkel to put their achievement in perspective. She said that a unified, peaceful Europe was a blessing and indeed a miracle.

Poland helped win the war but lost the peace . It was invaded by Germany but put under Soviet influence after the war . 70 years from the start of WWII, the war still defines Polish identity and history . Polish military says its history helps its work in Afghanistan .

WHEATON, Illinois (AP) -- A gunman who took a dozen hostages in a suburban Chicago bank after wresting a gun from a police officer Friday died after shooting himself in the head, police said. Hostages were released Friday after a gunman killed himself in suburban Chicago, police say. The standoff began around 1:30 p.m., after a Wheaton police officer responded to a call of a hit-and-run accident near the bank. When the officer arrived, the suspect grabbed the officer from behind, held a knife to his throat and demanded his gun, Deputy Chief Thomas Meloni said. During an ensuing struggle, the officer was cut on a forearm and the suspect was able to take the gun and run the lobby of the Wheaton Bank & Trust, where he ordered everyone to the floor, Meloni said. Police in Wheaton, about 20 miles west of Chicago, did not immediately release the gunman's identity. As officers evacuated nearby businesses and homes and shut down streets and rail service, hostage negotiators talked to the gunman by phone. They were able to persuade him to release 10 hostages, leaving two behind, Meloni said. "At one point the suspect began to close the blinds from inside the bank and he disconnected the phone contact with the hostage negotiators," Meloni said. Shortly afterward, about 4:15 p.m., officers heard a single gunshot and they rushed in, Meloni said. He said the man was dead of a single gunshot wound to the head. A spokeswoman for Central DuPage Hospital, Amy Steinbruecker, said the hospital treated and released the police officer who scuffled with the suspect for minor injuries. Television footage showed dozens of people running from the four-story bank building, which includes other businesses, with their hands above their heads. "We locked our office door, turned off the lights, drew the blinds," said Donna Price, 52, of McHenry, who works in the office building. "Then we heard a knock on the door and it was a SWAT guy. He told us to get out right now. "I said, 'Let me get my purse.' He said, 'No, now."' Price said police held people in a stairwell of the building before ordering them out. "We all had to put our hands up on the back of our heads and run," Price said from a convenience store across the street where more than 100 people were crowded.

Gunman took a dozen hostages in a suburban Chicago bank Friday . Police: Suspect held knife to officer's throat and demanded his gun . Suspect was found with a bullet wound to his head, officials said .

WHITE OAK, Maryland (CNN) -- Seeking to remove unapproved drugs from the marketplace, the Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday ordered nine companies to stop manufacturing narcotics whose therapeutic claims have not been proved. The FDA ordered nine companies to stop selling unapproved drugs marketed for pain relief. The FDA's warning letters notified the companies they may be subject to legal action if they do not stop manufacturing and distributing "prescription unapproved products" that include high-concentrate morphine sulfate oral solutions and immediate-release tablets containing morphine sulfate, hydromorphone or oxycodone. This action does not include oxycodone capsules. All of these drugs are used for pain relief and are forms of previously approved medications. The agency says this is not a recall, but is instead a warning to manufacturers. The companies have 60 days to pull these pain-relief drugs from the market. Distributors have 90 days to stop shipping them. If these drugs are not off the market by those deadlines, a company could face seizure of the narcotics and legal action. "We estimate there are several hundred unapproved drugs out there," said Deborah Autor, director of the office of compliance within the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "We will continue to take aggressive action against those firms that do not have the required FDA approval for their drugs. Today's warning letters are another demonstration of our commitment to remove illegal, unproved drugs from the market." Although the FDA does not know whether these drugs are unsafe, it has not approved them so cannot certify that the products are 100 percent safe and effective. "Consumers have a right to expect that their drugs meet the FDA's safety and effectiveness standards," said Dr. Janet Woodcock, director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. "Doctors and patients are often unaware that not all drugs on the market are backed by FDA approval. It is a high priority for the FDA to remove these products from the market because they may be unsafe, ineffective, inappropriately labeled, or of poor quality." The FDA believes Americans have access to plenty of legal narcotics for pain relief and removing these unapproved drugs will not create a shortage. Consumers who may be concerned that they are taking any unapproved drug products should refer to the FDA's Unapproved Drugs Web page, which includes a list of manufacturers of these products. Those who find they are taking unapproved drugs should see their health care professionals for treatment options. Those companies receiving warning letters are Boehringer Ingelheim Roxane Inc., Columbus, Ohio; Cody Laboratories Inc., Cody, Wyoming; Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Inc., Mahwah, New Jersey; Lannett Company Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Lehigh Valley Technologies Inc., Allentown, Pennsylvania; Mallinckrodt Inc. Pharmaceuticals Group, St. Louis, Missouri; Physicians Total Care Inc., Tulsa, Oklahoma; Roxane Laboratories Inc., Columbus, Ohio; and Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals Inc., Newport, Kentucky.

FDA warns manufacturers they have 60 days to pull unapproved drugs from market . Officials don't know if drugs are unsafe; they have never been approved . Removing unapproved drugs not expected to create a shortage of pain relievers .

WICHITA, Kansas (CNN) -- Kansas prosecutors have brought murder and assault charges against the man suspected of killing Wichita physician George Tiller, whose women's clinic was a frequent target of protests against abortion. Scott Roeder, 51, is being held on a first-degree murder charge and two counts of aggravated assault. Scott Roeder, 51, is being held without bail on a first-degree murder charge and two counts of aggravated assault stemming from Tiller's shooting death Sunday morning, Sedgwick County District Judge Ben Burgess said. Burgess set a preliminary hearing in the case for June 16. Police have not disclosed a possible motive in Tiller's killing, but associates said Roeder was a regular among the anti-abortion protesters who routinely gathered at his Wichita clinic, Women's Health Care Services. Tiller, 67, was one of the few U.S. doctors who performed late-term abortions, and he had survived one attempt on his life before being gunned down in his church Sunday morning. Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty "under the facts and circumstances that are known at this time," District Attorney Nola Foulston said. Watch the district attorney explain the charges » Kansas state law allows the death penalty only in certain circumstances, such as multiple killings, contract killings, the deaths of police officers or jailers, or a slaying that takes place during a sexual assault. Roeder was in the county jail during his brief initial court appearance and appeared in court via video. He requested a court-appointed lawyer during the hearing, during which he was dressed in maroon jail coveralls and appeared to fidget. Watch scenes from court Tuesday » Burgess ordered Roeder to have no contact with witnesses or Tiller's family. Since Tiller's death, supporters have left a few bouquets of flowers outside his clinic. The architecture of the low-slung, windowless concrete building -- which is fenced off, monitored by cameras and separated from buildings behind it by a moat-like ditch -- reflected the threats he faced for nearly two decades. In a statement issued Tuesday, Tiller's family said they hope his "valuable work" will go on, "but there have been no final decisions made about the long-term plans for the medical practice." "There is currently no plan to immediately reopen the clinic and no patients are being scheduled at this time. The Tiller family's focus, of course, is to determine what is in the best interests of the employees and the patients," the statement read. Dr. Leroy Carhart, a Nebraska physician who also practices at Tiller's clinic, said at his suburban Omaha office that he left a Monday meeting in Wichita with the belief that the practice would reopen "in the very near future." But he said, "At the present time, there's no known future." Carhart was the plaintiff who challenged a federal ban on a type of late-term procedure that opponents labeled "partial-birth" abortion. The Supreme Court upheld the ban in 2006. Tiller practiced medicine for nearly 40 years. Most of his patients were grappling with pregnancies that were "fatally or catastrophically complicated by medical problems," Dr. Warren Hern, a Colorado physician and a friend, said on CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360." "The many women who come for late abortions, in fact, have desperate circumstances with a desired pregnancy," he said. "They want to have a baby, not an abortion." But Tiller's practice made Wichita a flashpoint in the controversy over abortion, which opponents routinely decry as the killing of unborn children. Most anti-abortion leaders quickly condemned Tiller's killing and disavowed Roeder. The National Right to Life Committee, the largest anti-abortion organization in the United States, said it "unequivocally condemns" violence. And Wichita-based Operation Rescue said Roeder never was "a member, contributor, or volunteer." "Operation Rescue has diligently and successfully worked for years through peaceful, legal means, and through the proper channels to see to it that abortionists around

NEW: Physician says future of slain doctor's clinic is unknown . Scott Roeder, 51, charged with first-degree murder, aggravated assault . He is accused of killing Wichita doctor George Tiller on Sunday . Preliminary hearing is set for June 16 .

WICHITA, Kansas (CNN) -- Scott Roeder's ex-wife said she believes her former spouse was capable of murder. Scott Roeder, 51, is being held on a first-degree murder charge and two counts of aggravated assault. Roeder, 51, is sitting in a Kansas jail, charged with murdering George Tiller, one of the few U.S. doctors who performed late-term abortion. "He was determined that if the abortion doctor killed the baby, then he didn't have any right to live either," Roeder's ex-wife Lindsey Roeder told reporters on Monday, refusing to show her face to cameras. Lindsey Roeder said their 10-year marriage ended 13 years ago in part because he had a fanatical preoccupation with certain views, including those on abortion. She said her ex-husband believed killing an abortion provider "is justifiable," and described him as self-righteous and someone who may be capable of murder. Scott Roeder was charged Tuesday with one count of first-degree murder and two counts of aggravated assault stemming from Tiller's shooting death at Tiller's Wichita church Sunday morning. Watch panel discuss ramifications of slaying » During a brief initial court appearance, in which he appeared via video from the county jail, Roeder requested a court-appointed lawyer. He has made no plea, and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 16. Police have not disclosed a possible motive in Tiller's killing. But associates have told CNN that Roeder was a regular among the anti-abortion protesters who routinely gathered at Tiller's Wichita clinic, Women's Health Care Services. And records and interviews with family and fellow abortion protesters suggest Roeder had a fanatical preoccupation with abortion and used Christianity to support his beliefs. In 1996, he was arrested in Topeka, Kansas, with explosives, a military rifle, ammunition and a gas mask in his car, according to records. His ex-wife said that at that time he intended to blow up an abortion clinic. A Shawnee County judge called Roeder a "substantial threat to public safety" telling him that one must follow the law as established, not the law as one might wish it to be. Roeder pleaded not guilty, spent 16 months in prison and eight on probation. But his lawyer argued on appeal that his car had been illegally searched, and Roeder's conviction was vacated. He became known as a regular at protests outside abortion clinics, say those who rallied alongside him. Anti-abortion activists Anthony Leake and Regina Dinwiddie told CNN that Tiller had strong beliefs. "He was a confessing Christian," Leake continued. "He always had his Bible, which wasn't uncommon. He professed faith in Jesus Christ." A man named Scott Roeder signed a message on the anti-abortion group Operation Rescue's Web site in 2007, calling for prayers to shut down Tiller's "death camp." "Sometime soon, would it be feasible to organize as many people as possible to attend Tillers church (inside, not just outside) to have much more of a presence and possibly ask questions of the pastor, deacons, elders and members while there? Doesn't seem like it would hurt anything but bring more attention to Tiller," the message reads. National anti-abortion organizations, including Operation Rescue, condemned Tiller's slaying. "[The alleged killer] is not one of us, and if he thinks he is, then he is deluded," said the Rev. Gary Cass, the director of the Christian Anti-Defamation Commission. Dinwiddie, a 54-year-old grandmother, said Roeder once told her that he confronted a doctor at a Planned Parenthood center, telling the physician, "Now I know what you look like." "We all said, 'Scott, you better leave or they are gonna get after you,' " Dinwiddie said. "Next thing, all these people come rushing out of the place, all worried. Scott was standing up for what he believed in." In the mid-1990s, police said he

Ex-wife: Scott Roeder was self-righteous, potentially dangerous . Scott Roeder, 51, of the Kansas City, Kansas, area charged with murder . Roeder suspected of killing abortion provider Dr. George Tiller on Sunday . Tiller was one few remaining doctors in the U.S. offering late-term abortions .

WICHITA, Kansas (CNN) -- An anti-abortion activist suspected in the death of Kansas doctor George Tiller told CNN on Tuesday the closing of Tiller's women's clinic is "a victory for all the unborn children." Scott Roeder, charged in the death of Dr. George Tiller, spoke to CNN on Tuesday. Scott Roeder, 51, would not admit to CNN's Ted Rowlands that he killed Tiller, who was gunned down at his church May 31. But he said if he is convicted in Tiller's slaying, "the entire motive was the defense of the unborn." Tiller's family said Tuesday the clinic he headed will permanently close, effective immediately, and they would issue no more statements. At the time Roeder was interviewed Tuesday, word of the permanent closure had not come out -- but when told the clinic had been shuttered since Tiller's death, he said, "Good." Roeder said the closure would mean "no more slicing and dicing of the unborn child in the mother's womb and no more needles of poison into the baby's heart to stop the heart from beating, and no more partial-birth abortions." Watch Rowlands describe Roeder's mood during interview » Dan Monnat, Tiller's attorney, declined to respond to Roeder's comments on the family's behalf. But in an e-mail, he added, "Speaking for myself ... I am reluctant to in any way legitimize Mr. Roeder, or anything he stands for, by directly responding to his statements. "I am content to let law enforcement determine whether anything he says merits attention. I do not encourage anyone else to give Mr. Roeder or his extremist views any additional attention as he awaits trial," Monnat wrote. Tiller, 67, was one of the few U.S. doctors who performed late-term abortions. He had already survived one attempt on his life before he was slain, and the announcement by Tiller's family dismayed supporters of abortion rights. Nancy Keenan, the president of Washington-based NARAL Pro-Choice America, called Tiller's killing "part of an ongoing pattern of extreme anti-choice violence and intimidation" aimed at depriving women of a legal medical option. "It is a sad day for our country when family members who stood by their husband and father as he endured countless anti-choice attacks are forced as a result of his murder to make a decision like this one," Keenan said in a statement issued Tuesday afternoon. Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights, expressed hope that other doctors "will be brave enough to come forward and continue Dr. Tiller's critical work of providing services to women." "It is unacceptable that anti-abortion intimidation and violence has led to the closing of Dr. Tiller's clinic. It illustrates the ongoing harassment endured by abortion providers and the resulting disservice to women across this country," Northup said. Roeder is jailed on first-degree murder and aggravated assault charges in Tiller's death. A Kansas judge earlier this month set his bail at $5 million. Tiller's family said Tuesday it is "proud of the service and courage shown by our husband and father," and that it would honor his memory "through private charitable activities." The statement promised his patients "that the privacy of their medical histories and patient records will remain as fiercely protected now and in the future as they were during Dr. Tiller's lifetime." Peter Brownlie, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Kansas and Mid-Missouri, said he and his staff "fully respect and understand" the family's decision. "Their loss is immense -- they have lost a husband, father, grandfather and hero," Brownlie said in a statement. But the closure of Tiller's clinic "creates a significant gap in access for women and families in Kansas," he continued. "No one is providing that service between Kansas City and Denver." Most of the leading U.S. anti-abortion groups have condemned Tiller's killing and disavowed Roeder, saying they wanted Tiller's clinic shut

In jail interview with CNN, suspect Scott Roeder admits no guilt in Tiller slaying . But Roeder says if he's convicted, "motive was the defense of the unborn" Roeder is charged in death of Dr. George Tiller, who performed late-term abortions . Family is shutting Tiller's clinic permanently, lawyer says .

WICHITA, Kansas (CNN) -- She found her husband on their bed in a pool of his own vomit, dead from an accidental overdose of drugs he received from an online pharmacy. These pills were sent to CNN's Drew Griffin, even though he was never seen by a doctor. Every night before her husband went to bed, he would open a prescription bottle of the muscle relaxant Soma and swallow the eight or nine pills it took for him to fall asleep, said the woman. She spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity because she wants to protect her husband's identity and not embarrass his family. The drugs arrived at their doorstep every week. She thought they were being prescribed by a treating physician. Her husband had been in a car accident and suffered back pain, and Soma was the one drug that could relieve the aches. She was wrong. The drugs were purchased online without a doctor's visit. She says that her husband had become an addict -- and that the Internet sites that sold him the drugs were his pushers. "Absolutely," she said. "That's exactly what they are." "These pharmacy people that are doing this and these doctors that are doing this, they don't give a dadgummit about people. It's just the almighty dollar; that's all it is." Rusty Payne, a spokesman with the Drug Enforcement Administration, agreed. The abuse of pharmaceuticals "is one of the biggest drug problems we are dealing with," he said. "The Internet is the biggest culprit," Payne said. About $39 million in cash, bank accounts, property and computers were seized in 2007 as a result of Internet drug investigations, he said. In 2004, the figure was $11.9 million. The DEA has formed an initiative with Google, Yahoo! and AOL to warn people about buying drugs online. Between 2005 and 2007, Payne said the official warning popped up nearly 80 million times. A CNN investigation shows just how easy it is to purchase prescription drugs online without a legitimate prescription, revealing a growing new battle in the war on drug abuse. Watch why 'I wanted to end it' » To prove it, a CNN investigative reporter went to linepharmacy.com, which advertises a long list of prescription drugs for sale. The site sent back an e-mail saying "all orders made are still subjected to Doctor's evaluation." The reporter placed two orders for anti-depressants with the site: one for Prozac, the other for Elavil. A health survey on the site was already filled in. The reporter submitted a credit card and a shipping address. Within 24 hours, the Prozac had arrived at the reporter's front door. The Elavil arrived two days later. Both prescription bottles had a doctor's name and pharmacy on the label. Watch woman describe online drug 'Christmas' sales » The reporter had neither seen a doctor nor talked to a doctor on the phone. In fact, he hadn't even heard of the doctor listed on the bottle. Carmen Catizone, the executive director of the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy, which works to implement and enforce uniform pharmaceutical standards, said prescription drugs are the new crack and heroin, and Internet sites that sell them are the new drug dealers. Except narcotics, Catizone said, "you can order virtually any drug in the world by simply clicking a mouse and going to various Web sites that exist out there." His group blames unscrupulous doctors for writing prescriptions without ever seeing the patients or even reviewing their medical records. It has created a list of nearly 80 sites selling online drugs that it recommends people not use. It is illegal in every state for doctors to prescribe medicines to patients whom they do not know across state lines. It is also illegal in most states for pharmacies to ship prescriptions to where they have no license to operate. The National Association of Boards of Pharmacy has tried to lobby Congress, asking for some federal oversight or federal prosecution to stem the tide of illegal

CNN reporter gets drugs online without ever seeing a doctor as part of investigation . Widow describes losing her husband to overdose of drugs bought online . Expert says online pharmaceutical industry needs better regulation . Woman tells CNN she tried to commit suicide after falling into deep depression .

WINNENDEN, Germany (CNN) -- A gunman dressed in military gear killed 15 people Wednesday in a shooting spree in Germany, police said. German shooter Tim Kretschmer, 17, targeted females during his rampage. Tim Kretschmer, 17, began his rampage at a school where he used to be a student in Winnenden, a small town about 20 kilometers (12 miles) northeast of Stuttgart. Most of the victims at the school were female -- eight female students, three female teachers and one male student, said Heribert Rech, interior minister for Baden Wuerttemberg region. Rech said: "They were completely taken by surprise. Some of the victims still had their pens in their hands." Kretschmer opened fire in three first floor classrooms, including a physics lab where a teacher was found dead behind her desk, Rech told a news conference. Rech said police arrived in minutes. "This speedy intervention means they prevented further escalation of events." The shooting at the Albertville-Realschule Winnenden school began around 9:45 a.m. (0845 GMT) and lasted about two minutes. Student Louis Schweizer was in class when he heard the gunshots. "When I came out, I saw the shell casings lying around everywhere," he said. His sister, Lisa Schweizer, also heard the shots. "It is a tragedy," she said. "One of my teachers was killed." Another student told CNN: "We heard that someone was inside shooting. Then we also saw a teacher who had blood on his hands because he wanted to help a female teacher who sacrificed herself for a student -- she stood in front of a student to protect her." Read how students jumped from windows to escape Fifteen-year-old Natta lost a long-time friend. "She was a very good friend of mine from soccer, and I knew her since we were four years old and it's very hard," she said. Kretschmer did not shoot wildly, Rech said, contradicting earlier police statements, but hit most of his victims in the head. As the first police arrived at the school, he fled and killed a person working in a hospital nearby, then hijacked a car, taking the driver hostage. He drove towards the nearby town of Wendlingen, but the car crashed on a sharp bend, Rech said. The driver escaped and called police as Kretschmer ran away and towards a car salesroom in Wendlingen where he shot a salesperson and a customer, Rech said. Watch the gunman's deadly route » "Police officers in civilian clothes opened fire and shot several times. The perpetrator tried to escape and was shot at least once in the leg. ... A little later he was found dead," he added. It was not clear if he died from injuries received in the police shootout or if he committed suicide. Regional police chief Erwin Hetger said police thought he had killed himself. Kretschmer was on the loose for three and a half hours after the incident began, police said. Watch more about the shootings » German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it was "inconceivable that within seconds school students and teachers have been put to death by this terrible crime." "It is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany," she said in a televised statement. Police did not know the motive for the shooting spree, CNN's Frederik Pleitgen reported from Winnenden. "No one seems to have an explanation for why this happened," he said. "Police officers have heard that this young man didn't cause much of a buzz, wasn't someone who was negative or known for violence. They have no idea why he did all this." Police raided his parents' home later and found they had a collection of 14 guns. The pistol used in the killing was part of the father's collection, authorities said. German gun laws are fairly restrictive and require owners to control access to them. Do you think the gun control issue is taken seriously enough? Rech said the guns were legally owned

NEW: Victims of gunman's rampage at German school are mostly female . NEW: Police unsure if Tim Kretschmer died from police wounds or killed himself . Police: Three teachers, 9 students among 15 people during 3-hour killing spree . Chancellor Angela Merkel: "It is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany"

WINNENDEN, Germany (CNN) -- Students jumped out of windows and locked themselves in classrooms as a former pupil rampaged through a German school with a gun, killing at least a dozen people there Wednesday, a student at the school told CNN. People lay flowers at the school Wednesday. "Suddenly there were police standing in front of me and told us to run outside quickly," Luisa Santonastaso, 16, said. "At first we didn't know what to do. So first we went to the class and picked up some of our classmates and ran out. "Then we heard that someone was inside shooting. Then we also saw a teacher who had blood on his hands because he wanted to help a female teacher who sacrificed herself for a student -- she stood in front of a student to protect her," the girl told CNN by phone from Germany. "The guy just entered the classroom and started shooting and a friend of mine was panicking so much that she jumped out of a window. I think she broke her arm. She's in hospital now." Santonastaso's friend was not the only one who jumped, she said. Dressed in military gear, the gunman -- identified by police as Tim Kretschmer, 17 -- killed a total of 15 people in two different towns before he died. Watch more about the shootings » Initial indications are that he shot himself, but police are continuing to investigate, said Erwin Hetger, the regional chief of police. The rampage in Winnenden, a small town about 20 kilometers (12 miles) northeast of Stuttgart, and spread to neighboring Wendlingen. As people at Albertville-Realschule Winnenden school -- where Kretschmer used to be a student -- realized what was happening, many burst into tears, Santonastaso said. "Everybody was crying because nobody could really imagine what had just happened. They brought us to the swimming pool hall in Winnenden for security reasons," she said. "Then all our parents were called because no child was allowed to leave without parents," she continued. At least one parent got awful news when she arrived. "One mother came and the teachers had to tell her that her child had been injured or shot dead, and then she cried really hard and fainted," Santonastaso said. iReport.com: Town in shock over shooting Santonastaso's own parents were more fortunate. "When I first called to tell them what had happened they wanted to come right away, but I told them that wasn't possible because we were being brought to somewhere safe," she said. Later, she said: "My parents and my friend came and we went out with them. Out there it got a bit better." CNN's Marco Woldt and Lianne Turner contributed to this report

Student tells how classes turned to horror at hands of rampaging gunman . She says one teacher shot when she put herself between the gunman and a student . Students jumped from windows to escape killer . Gunman killed 15 people in two German towns near Stuttgart .

WINNER, South Dakota (CNN) -- Neal Wanless, a down-on-his luck cowboy before winning a $232 million Powerball jackpot last month, was always known for his big heart even when he barely had a dime to his name. Neal Wanless, winner of the $232 million lottery in South Dakota, shown here in a high school yearbook. Now, with his good fortune, neighbors and former teachers worry that he might be easily separated from his new-found money, although he doesn't seem to be around to give any of it away. "I just hope he doesn't get inundated," his former English teacher Deana Brodkorb told CNN. "He's just such a nice guy and I hope he doesn't get suckered." Flip through the yearbook at Todd County High School and the portrait emerges of the "good kid" that teachers and classmates remember. Wanless ran cross-country, played in the band and graduated second in his class -- the 2004 Salutatorian. Diane Linster, his math teacher, remembers Wanless coming early to school and staying late to pump up his grades. "Just a very humble, kind and considerate kid," Linster said. Watch friends and neighbors describe the lucky cowboy » Chris Leneaugh, once an assistant cross-county coach, remembers a dedication to running that propelled Wanless from the middle of the pack to near the front of the team by his senior year. "Neal never gave up trying," Leneaugh said. "That's what I liked about him, his dedication." The yearbook also tells the tale of a hat-wearing rancher who was one of a few white students in a school filled with Native Americans -- Lakota Sioux from the Rosebud Indian Reservation. "Oh man, he was always cowboyed up," said former classmate Mike Prue. "We are all Natives around here and there he was with his Wrangler shirt and jeans. He really stuck out." Prue and his buddy Steve Plank said Wanless would help them with their homework, despite the differences. The story of the Wanless family is the story of a family doing muscle-aching work just to scratch out a living. It's the story of a family that needed a break. Wanless and his parents had recently moved into a camper on their ranch, after losing their home to foreclosure, according to neighbor Erv Figert. A sign with chipped off green lettering sits in the grass at the entrance to the Wanless property. "There was a sign out there that said 'the ranch that God built,' " said Joe Prue, father of Mike Prue. "And for a while there you thought, where was God when everything was coming apart. And now, maybe God helped them." Neighbors say they have not seen anyone come or go from the Wanless Ranch after Neal briefly emerged at a press conference last week to accept a giant-sized check from the May 27 drawing. For now, the gate to the Wanless ranch is held tight by a new lock, linking a rusted-brown chain. Rumors travel through the green fields of South Dakota faster than the Internet. Talk is cheap with millions of dollars to loosen the tongues. Many believe the Wanless family is going to buy a place up north, maybe by Pierre, but the cowboy with the big heart isn't talking. "That grin you saw on his face on television (when Wanless accepted the check) is always there," said Linster. "He always looked like he was probably up to something." Now he has the money to do something about it.

Neal Wanless from South Dakota won $232 million in lottery . Former teacher: "He's just such a nice guy and I hope he doesn't get suckered" Neighbors, teachers call winner "dedicated," "humble, kind and considerate"

WOODBURY, Minnesota (CNN) -- At 14, Andrew Busskohl got a second chance at life when he underwent a heart transplant. But four years later, neighbors have more fear than compassion for him. Police say Andrew Busskohl plotted to kill a neighbor but was stopped before it got to that point. Busskohl, 18, has been charged with two felony counts relating to a break-in attempt. But police say he was up to something more sinister: a murder plot that involved cutting out the victim's heart or slicing off his eyelids. Busskohl posted $100,000 bail on condition he undergo psychological evaluation. He's living with his mother and brother in the same neighborhood where authorities say he had planned to carry out his attack. As condition of his release, he is allowed to leave the Woodbury, Minnesota, home only for medical, psychological and legal appointments. Defense attorney Joe Friedberg says that his client is a threat to no one and that his medications affected his mood. "The Woodbury police are excited because they got something that's more serious than a cat up a tree," Friedberg said. "This is a very unique case, and frankly, I don't know the ramifications of anything yet." Busskohl has been charged with one count of first-degree attempted burglary with a dangerous weapon and one count of aggravated harassment with a dangerous weapon. He has not entered a plea in the case. Busskohl's release has sent shockwaves through this quiet Minneapolis suburb of about 50,000 people. Residents say they survey their homes before entering, secure their windows and check behind curtains and other household items once inside. Once rarely used, alarm systems now are on constantly. "My whole family is feeling a lot more nervous," said one neighbor, who asked not to be identified. "We're just always looking out the windows. ... The whole neighborhood in general is feeling the same way." Tim Kinateder said that his alarm system is on "nonstop now" and that everyone in his family has taken extreme precautions around the home. He didn't mince his words when he spoke of Busskohl being out on bail. "That, to me, is ridiculous. I don't understand how that can happen," Kinateder said. Across the street, Jim Fratto has taken more security measures than most. Fratto sleeps with a baseball bat next to his bed and a flashlight on his nightstand. A 10-foot-long 2 by 4 barricades his bedroom door. He's installed lights with motion sensors on the outside of his home and added locks on his doors, both inside and out. Tour Fratto's high-security house » It is Fratto who, authorities say, was to be Busskohl's possible victim. He lives just a few blocks from Busskohl. Walking through his home, Fratto shows off the locks on his interior doors. They rattle and clang with every movement. "He's going to have to bang a little bit to get in at me. And hopefully, I'll be able to wake up by then," he said through a wild-eyed gaze and booming laugh. "If not, sayonara." Busskohl admits breaking a window of Fratto's home, police say, in the early hours of August 6. Although it may not sound like much on the surface, police now say it was the first step of the plot. Busskohl was planning to return to that shattered window in the next couple of days for an easy entry, one without commotion, according to the criminal complaint filed against him. The complaint says one of Busskohl's friends, Eric Eischens, went to police shortly after the window-breaking incident. "Mr. Eischens stated that Mr. Busskohl told him that he had come up with a plan on how to murder someone," the complaint says. "Mr. Eischens stated that Mr. Busskohl wanted to find an adult male who lived by himself and within walking distance of the defendant's house." Eischens is quoted in the complaint as also telling police

Police: Heart transplant teen planned to cut out possible victim's heart . Andrew Busskohl, 18, charged with two felony counts relating to broken window . Prosecutor stands by charges; neighbors upset teen not facing attempted murder . Defense attorney says teen's medication affected his thinking .

WUGANG, China (CNN) -- Authorities in China's south-central Hunan province are associating disgruntled parents of children stricken by lead poisoning with the outlawed spiritual group Falun Gong. A mother feeds her child in a village near the Wugang Manganese Smelting Plant in Hunan province. "Citizens of the Wugang area have received phone calls from members of the Falun Gong over the past several days," said Wugang Deputy Spokesman Zhen Zhaoxin. "Any resident who receives any calls or information about the Falun Gong activities are encouraged to report to the police." He said the government, along with police, are investigating to determine the calls' origin. But villagers said they have suffered enough and the government's accusation is "insulting." The friction comes after residents in Wenping township, governed by the city of Wugang, last month protested pollution from an area factory that left more than 1,000 children with lead poisoning. That was one of three separate lead poisoning incidents reported in August that affected large numbers of Chinese children. Watch more about the lead poisoning » Residents of Wenping and nearby Simachong village denied any connection to Falun Gong. They said they were not even familiar with the religious sect. They just wanted their children to be well again. China banned Falun Gong in 1999 and has cracked down on practitioners. An August 26 public notice warned villagers to beware of Falun Gong members and instructed people to watch for "reactionary propaganda" sent online and by phone. The Wugang government issued similar information on its Web site. The villagers said the government wants them to keep quiet, but they are worried. "They are insulting us," said one woman, holding up the public notice. "They said we are spreading the rumors." The villagers' lives were shattered when, one by one, children began to fall ill. So far, 1,354 have tested positive for abnormal levels of lead in their blood. Many have stopped eating and are constantly fatigued. Others are not growing hair. Some parents worry they will not be able to provide medical care for long-term problems. Lead poisoning can cause irreversible damage in the nervous and reproductive systems and cause high blood pressure, memory loss and loss of appetite, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization. Xiao Aijun, the father of two sick children, was angered by the government's claims. "My baby's been in the hospital for more than 20 days," he said of his 10-month-old daughter, Xiao Junmei. "We have to go back in the month. Look at her hair, look at her hair. "They said we're Falun Gong," he said. "What is this all about? I have no idea. I don't even know what that is." Some villagers told CNN that 15 parents who protested factory pollution had been detained by police. CNN could not reach local police for comment, but Zhen, the Wugang spokesman, denied the reports. "We would not detain parents. After all, they need to be with their children at this time," he said. "This is definitely not the case." The lead poisoning in Wenping stemmed from the Wugang Manganese Smelting Plant. Similar incidents were reported in northern Shaanxi province, where 851 children were affected, and in southwestern Yunnan province, where 200 children were sickened. China's Ministry of Environmental Protection has dispatched inspectors to examine the plants in Shaanxi and Hunan. Wugang government officials say children who live as far as 20 kms (12.5 miles) from the polluting factories in Wenping and Simachong have been affected. One mother, whose son was hospitalized, said she would have moved long ago if she had known. Another Wugang government spokesman, Lei Zanning, said authorities are keenly aware of environmental protections. "We can't sacrifice it for the sake of economic development," he said. But lead poisoning is a serious problem in China, according to Steven Ma of Greenpeace. About 10 percent of the nation's arable land

Spokesperson: Citizens of Wugang area received calls from members of Falun Gong . Villagers said they have suffered enough and government's accusation is insulting . Follows protests from local parents after pollution from local factory left 1,000 kids ill . China banned Falun Gong in 1999 and has cracked down on practitioners .

Waltham, Massachusetts (CNN) -- Mitt Romney has pledged to repeal President Obama's universal health care law if he is elected president. Critics find his position rather strange, arguing that the plan he helped develop when he was governor of Massachusetts is quite similar in design to the Obama plan. Romney disputes his critics, saying there are important and fundamental differences between the plans. Who is correct? In actuality, both plans draw extensively from legislation offered by President Nixon in January 1974. In a book just published, "Power, Politics, and Universal Health Care," David Shactman and I explain how Romney and Obama used the same approach as Nixon to lower the number of uninsured. All three built their system on private, employer-sponsored insurance in which all but the smallest employers had to provide insurance to their workers or pay a penalty. All utilized Medicare to insure the elderly and an expanded Medicaid-type program to insure the poor. All provided subsidies to low-income individuals and small employers. The Romney and Obama plans created state-based private insurance exchanges to make insurance more accessible and affordable to small business and individuals. President Obama has been heavily criticized by conservatives because his plan includes a mandate for all individuals to have insurance or pay a penalty. Romney, too, has joined those criticizing the president, yet his plan in Massachusetts included just such a mandate. This idea was originally proposed by conservative groups as a measure of personal responsibility and an alternative to a single-payer system advocated by many progressive organizations. Romney believes it is alright to have a state require all to have coverage but that it cannot be mandated by the federal government. Romney contends the Massachusetts plan required no new funding, whereas the Obama law calls for nearly a trillion dollars in increased taxes and cuts in projected Medicare spending over 10 years. What Romney doesn't say is that the Massachusetts plan is partly funded with earmarked federal dollars and partly with state funds generated by a tax increase previously enacted to pay for a universal coverage plan that was never implemented. Unfortunately for Obama, there was no larger entity to support his plan. He had to pay for his plan with new federal monies and cuts in future federal spending. Although the federal government will assume a greater proportion of health spending, total health spending in the United States is projected to increase only 2% more by 2019 under the Obama plan than it would have otherwise. As with the Nixon proposal, neither Romney nor Obama decided to include significant measures to reduce health care costs. Although both were criticized, I believe that was a sound political decision that allowed all the major health groups to support both plans. President Clinton's health plan drew strong opposition from many stakeholders because it included a tight spending budget. Under Obama's plan, hospitals, insurers and drug companies agreed to modest cuts in future revenues or rate increases, because all expected increased revenues from the millions of newly insured Americans. Both Obama and Romney expected that constraining health costs would be necessary in future years. A complete review of the two plans should acknowledge that the Obama plan includes many components not in the Massachusetts legislation. The most controversial are a board appointed to control Medicare spending and a requirement that insurance companies spend a minimum percentage of their revenues on direct patient care. The plan also includes a number of provisions to reform Medicare and Medicaid, and an extensive list of new delivery system approaches to be tested with federal pilot and demonstration programs. Important as these components may be, they are not part of the basic framework of the plan. After comparing the Romney and Obama plans, it is clear that the similarities far outweigh the differences. Romney could argue, however, that Obama didn't use the Massachusetts plan as a model but rather drew on the proposal put forth by Richard Nixon almost 40 years earlier. Romney's plan worked for Massachusetts, reducing its uninsured rate to the lowest in the country. Although the legislation did not put a brake on rising health care costs, there is some evidence it did reduce its rate of growth compared to other parts of the country. Health

Romney promises to repeal Obama health care plan, yet critics find links between two . Stuart Altman says both plans had their basis in Richard Nixon's health care plan . All three plans built on private, employer sponsored health insurance . Romney, Obama plans don't significantly restrain costs, he says .

Warrenton, Georgia (CNN) -- Coach David Daniel's worried pacing along the sidelines of a recent game doesn't even begin to tell the story inside his mind. But the wound over his right eye gives you a sense of his pain inside, two weeks after he was caught in the middle of a post-game melee that sent him to a hospital. Some say he was intentionally targeted by the other team. Others say it was trash talking run amok -- including a text message by a coach -- all set against a raging high school football rivalry in rural Georgia. Either way, a lifelong high school football coach now has bolts holding together his eye socket after it was shattered by a player's football helmet. "It was like if you had crushed up cornflakes, that's what all this bone looked like," Daniel said, motioning to his right eye. On the night of October 14, Daniel's team, the Screaming Devils of Warren County, defeated the Mighty Bulldogs of nearby Hancock County. As the Screaming Devils returned to the visiting team's locker room, they found the door locked. While waiting for a helper on their team to return with the key, the losing home team walked by, on the way to their locker room, and that's when it all began. No one seems to know who or what started the incident, but officials from both schools say both teams threw and swung helmets. "It only took one to get the brawl started. Someone did not make the right decision," Hancock County Schools Superintendent Gwendolyn Reeves said. "Whether it came from our side, or Warren County's side, I do not know." Warren County Schools Superintendent Carole Jean Carey said it was hard to tell what was going on because so many people were involved. "We just saw this sea of people, and it was moving like waves," Carey said. "Then all of a sudden, we saw a helmet go up." During the melee, sheriff's deputies pepper sprayed the players, and a player from each team suffered a concussion. After the incident was broken up, no arrests were made. Daniel says he was struck in the head with a helmet as he tried to intervene. He doesn't remember much about the incident. He lost a tear duct, and it's possible that he may need more surgery. "It just makes no sense. I don't understand it," he said. Carey, the Warren County schools superintendent, wants a full investigation to determine if Daniel was the target of an attack. "I'm not making any judgments right now ... I just have questions about how it could have happened and unfolded like that," she said. "I think using a helmet, to smash somebody's face in, is using a weapon. I do. And we are very lucky the hit didn't move over just a little bit, and we could have had a dead coach." Those involved agree that the incident started a week before, with trash talking about the game in the community and on Facebook. All of the Facebook chatter has been pulled off of the site, but school administrators in both counties say it was alive and well in the week leading up to the game. "There was talk on Facebook before this game. There was some back and forth on Facebook, maybe some text messages," Carey said. "I'm sure that if you're a team and you keep seeing either side trash talk here or there, or back and forth, I'm sure it gets you riled up inside." The heated exchange also continued after the incident on October 14. According to a Warren County school affidavit, a former coach for the Warren County Screaming Devils who is now a volunteer assistant coach with the Hancock Central High School team sent text messages to his former players following the game, including this one: "Better stay yo stupid ass in wc (Warren County), B4 som1 get really hurt." And later that

On October 14, a melee broke out between two Georgia high school football rivals . One coach, trying to break up the fight, suffered serious injuries . A player from each team suffered a concussion . Some say the violence was fueled by talk via text messages and social media .

Warsaw, Poland (CNN) -- Polish legislators were planning Wednesday to hold a June election to choose a successor to President Lech Kaczynski, whose death in an air crash is generating unprecedented scenes of public grief. Mourners lined up through the night outside Warsaw's Presidential Palace to pay respects to Kaczynski, whose body is lying in state alongside that of his wife. However, amid national unity in the wake of the disaster, there were the first signs of discord with protests reported over a decision to bury the late president and his wife in a crypt previously reserved for monarchs and saints. The couple were among 96 Polish dignitaries, military top brass and officials who died when the plane carrying them to a service commemorating Polish prisoners of war massacred in Russia during World War II crashed in bad weather. Their bodies were repatriated earlier this week. Caskets carrying 30 more crash victims were returned to Poland on Wednesday aboard a military jet from Moscow. Draped in Polish flags the caskets were lined up side-by-side by an honor guard during a solemn ceremony at Warsaw's airport. iReport: Share your photos, video and stories with CNN The disaster has caused shockwaves through Poland, with thousands of people waiting up to eight hours to pay their respects to the first couple. Due to overwhelming demand, the palace was opened to the public through the night. A line of up to 15,000 mourners, many dressed in black and carrying pictures of the deceased first couple, could be seen snaking through the center of Warsaw Wednesday. Images of Poland's collective grief "I think this is really unique to Poland," U.S. ambassador to Poland, Lee Feinstein told CNN, adding that the devastation to the country's leadership was unparalleled in the contemporary world. Feinstein described Poland as one of the United States' "staunchest" allies, largely thanks to military support for U.S.-led operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. U.S. President Barack Obama is expected to be among international figures attending the first couple's funeral service in Warsaw, scheduled for Saturday. The Kremlin in Moscow said Russian President Dmitry Medvedev would also attend. The service will be followed by the couple's burial on Sunday in Krakow's Wawel Castle. The archbishop of Krakow said burying the late president in the historic crypt was the country's way of honoring him. "I think in this way the Polish nation wants to include him among the greatest and most revered men in Polish history," Stanislaw Dziwisz said on Polish state television. There have been reports of protests in Krakow over the decision, while debate has raged online as to whether Kaczynski, seen as unpopular prior to his death, should be buried in a national heroes' cemetery in Warsaw rather than at Wawel. Biography: Lech Kaczynski A Facebook group opposed to the castle burial had garnered 32,000 followers by late Wednesday. According to Poland's PAP news agency, a date for the election that will choose Kaczynski's successor will be announced on April 21 by acting President Bronislaw Komorowski. The agency said the date was likely to be June 13 or 20. Under Poland's constitution Komorowski must call the election within 14 days of the president's death with the vote taking place within 60 days. CNN's Antonia Mortensen in Warsaw, Poland and Maxim Tkachenko in Moscow, Russia contributed to this story.

Poland set to hold June election to replace president killed in air crash . Mourners line up for hours to pay respects to first couple . Controversy breaks out over decision to bury Kaczynski alongside former monarchs .