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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Slave labor in developing countries such as Brazil, China and India is fueling part of their huge economic growth, according to a State Department report released Wednesday. Amnesty International activists protest human trafficking during an event in Greece in March. The department's annual "Trafficking in Persons Report" found increased allegations of forced labor made in connection with a variety of agricultural products and manufactured goods in developing countries. In Brazil, the report found a "trafficking phenomenon." It said thousands of trafficked and forced laborers had been found on plantations growing sugar cane for Brazil's booming production and export of the biofuel ethanol. The report cites shrimp processed in Thailand and Bangladesh; clothing from Bangladesh, India, Jordan and Malaysia; and bricks made in India, China and Pakistan as being among the products of booming industries in which workers are subjected to forced labor, debt bondage and hazardous working conditions. Laws are not adequate to punish those responsible, it adds. China was found to have a "significant" problem with forced labor, including forced child labor. Children as young as 12 are reportedly subject to forced labor under the guise of "work and study programs" and subject to excessively long hours, dangerous conditions, low pay and physical abuse. The report found China's growing brick industry is fraught with cover-ups of the problem. For the fourth year in a row, China was put on a "watch list" of countries that could face sanctions if they don't improve their efforts to combat trafficking. India was also placed on the watch list for not doing enough to solve its trafficking problem, according to the report. While commercial sexual exploitation remained a problem in India, the State Department found internal forced labor "may constitute India's largest trafficking problem." It said men, women and children are forced to work in brick kilns, rice mills, agricultural businesses and embroidery factories. Once again, the report found U.S. allies in the Persian Gulf to have dismal records on trafficking. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and Oman were listed as destination countries with widespread trafficking abuses. The report cites forced laborers trafficked from Asia and Africa who are subject to restrictions on movement, withholding of passports, threats, and physical and sexual abuse. The report found those countries made weak efforts to rescue the workers and prosecute the traffickers. The other countries on the blacklist are Algeria, Myanmar, Cuba, Fiji, Iran, Moldova, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, Sudan and Syria.

State Department report documents human trafficking . Slavery rampant in industries in Brazil, China, India, report says . U.S. allies in Persian Gulf have dismal record, according to report . Withholding of passports, threats, physical and sexual abuse reported .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sniper Lee Boyd Malvo said in a letter to CNN that he is still "grappling with shame, guilt, remorse and my own healing if that will ever be possible." And a social worker who has worked extensively with him said he draws self-portraits that often show him with a tear running down his cheek. A self-portrait drawn by sniper Lee Boyd Malvo. Many of his drawings show him with a tear running down his cheek. Malvo, 22, spends 23 hours a day inside his cell at Virginia's toughest prison, a maximum-security compound called Red Onion, not far from the Kentucky border. He's serving a life sentence. According to social worker Carmeta Albarus-Lindo, Malvo is a changed person since he and John Allen Muhammad terrorized the Washington area five years ago this month in attacks that left 10 dead over a 23-day period. "The most I can do is to continue to be there, because that is his greatest fear -- that, you know, another parental figure would abandon him because that was what he'd been exposed to all his life," said Albarus-Lindo, who has spent hundreds of hours with Malvo since his arrest and conviction. Read the letter » She said one of those "parental" figures was Muhammad, who met Malvo in the Caribbean nearly two years before the deadly shooting spree began in 2002. Muhammad became the teenager's surrogate father, convincing him that violence was the only way to correct perceived injustices to African-Americans, Albarus-Lindo said. He ordered Malvo to go to bed each night and to memorize passages from "The Art of War," an ancient Chinese text on battlefield strategy. According to Albarus-Lindo, Malvo was "brainwashed" into aiding Muhammad in the murders. However, prosecutors have said Malvo, even at 17, knew what he was doing. "I thought he was coldblooded," said Paul Ebert, commonwealth attorney for Prince William County, Virginia, of the first time he met Malvo. "He was a person who had chosen a life of crime." And when a Virginia jury spared Malvo's life, some investigators said they were horrified. "That was the hardest day of my career," said April Carroll of the Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms and Tobacco. "I felt that day we had failed when Malvo was not sentenced to death." Some of the victims' families said they are content that Malvo did not receive the death penalty. Vicki Buchanan Snyder, whose brother James "Sonny" Buchanan was shot in the back while mowing a patch of lawn at a Maryland auto dealership, said she was "satisfied" with the jury's verdict. As for Malvo, Albarus-Lindo said he will "never forgive himself for what has happened." When she first began seeing him, he still called Muhammad "Dad." It took months, she said, before he stopped. In the interim, Albarus-Lindo said, he took college correspondence courses and began to draw. Muhammad is at a Virginia prison called Sussex One. In a DVD made last year inside prison and obtained exclusively by CNN, he said he is "still fighting" on death row. He wants to "correct," he said, some "inaccurate statements" made by the news media about his relationship with Malvo. He wasn't specific about what he meant. Watch Muhammad on death row » Muhammad's ex-wife, Mildred, said she believed that she was the real target of the snipers from the beginning. She and her children live in suburban Washington, and she runs a Web site called Afterthetrauma.org, devoted to the victims of domestic abuse. Mildred Muhammad said she feels her ex-husband wanted to kill her as revenge because she was able to gain custody of their three children. As for his relationship with Malvo, she said she too is convinced that John Allen Muhammad brainwashed the younger man. "That boy was a victim before he even knew it," she

Social worker says sniper Lee Boyd Malvo is a changed person. Ten people were killed in Washington-area sniper attacks in 2002 . In a letter to CNN, Malvo writes he's still "grappling with shame, guilt, remorse"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Some "Occupy" demonstrators who've clashed with police in New York City have migrated south as the new year begins, joining their colleagues in the nation's capital where authorities continue to allow protest camps at two locations. "We're here because we got pushed out of New York, but we're also here because this is the heart of where all politics happen," said a protester who would not give his name. "Police know me," he explained, as he tried to repair a tarp torn free by high winds early Monday. He said he has been joined by a handful of other Occupy Wall Street demonstrators pushed out by New York police. On New Year's Eve, New York City police arrested 68 Occupy Wall Street demonstrators at their longtime camp in Zuccotti Park. The young man, who said he left the Wall Street location weeks ago after authorities began to pressure protesters to leave, reflected on a strategy for the new year as he spoke Monday at the larger of two encampments in Washington -- at a small downtown park known as McPherson Square, near the White House . "I think (the movement's) most important stage right now is to inform the American people, before we can give any kind of particular answer or one message," he said. "This is still, relatively, in my opinion, a young movement, and I don't think it's so much that it's anybody having the same answers but everybody asking the same questions right now," he told CNN, speaking on camera with most of his face concealed by a heavy winter scarf. Among the questions being asked include those from a ranking U.S. congressman, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-California, demanding to know why protesters have been allowed to make camp in the first place. Issa, in a letter two weeks ago to the U.S. Department of Interior, said he believes the camping is illegal. But the National Park Service, which is in charge of McPherson Square, has applied the most liberal interpretation of rules against overnight camping, and officials instead consider the makeshift tent city a "24-hour vigil. A handwritten bulletin board maintained by the protesters Monday noted it is "Day 93" of the demonstration there. At a second location in Washington, known as Freedom Plaza, the National Park Service in recent days extended a required permit through the end of February, acting just before it was to expire on New Year's Day. The extension may further provoke Issa, who chairs a House panel on government reform. His December 13 letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar expressed concern that the tent city in McPherson Square has ruined some of a $400,000 restoration project at the park, paid for with economic stimulus money. Issa said the National Park Service has allowed "the Occupy DC movement to ecologically damage the park significantly over the past two months, by camping and killing the newly planted grass" at the location. Protest organizers and supporters have distributed straw around the tents to deal with mud that followed heavy rains last month. Other areas where grass remains now show signs of damage from the tents and tarps blocking sunlight. National Park Service spokeswoman Carol Johnson told CNN the protesters in McPherson Square do not require a permit because their group contains fewer than 500 people and is considered a 24-hour vigil. Police in the area have said their enforcement so far has been to keep city streets clear of protesters, and to respond to petty crime that may take place around the camps. CNN's Greg Seaby contributed to this report.

Occupy Wall Street demonstrators migrate south . Authorities extend permit in Washington, D.C. Congressman questions continued forbearance .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Some Democrats appear to be wavering on a highly contentious House resolution labeling Turkey's treatment of Armenians in World War I as genocide. A KC-135 tanker lands at Incirlik Air Base in southern Turkey in 2003. Turkey, a longtime U.S. ally and NATO partner, was incensed by the resolution calling the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks genocide and threatened to block access to Incirlik Air Base after the resolution passed a House committee vote. The base, in southern Turkey near Syria, is a major resupply center for U.S. operations in Iraq and elsewhere in the Mideast and Asia. The Pentagon is preparing to set up new supply routes for troops in Iraq if Turkey cuts off U.S. access to the strategically important Incirlik, military officials said Tuesday. Ankara acknowledges the killings of Armenians during World War I but vehemently objects to the "genocide" label. The House Foreign Affairs Committee last week adopted the nonbinding resolution. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she would bring the measure to a vote of the full House sometime next month. But the Bush administration urged Congress to drop the issue, and some leading Democrats urged Pelosi not to bring it to the floor. Majority Leader Steny Hoyer signaled Tuesday that the vote might be put off. "I said I thought we would bring this up prior to us leaving here," said Hoyer of Maryland. "I have not changed on that, although I would be less than candid to say that there are a number of people who are revisiting their own positions. We will have to determine where everybody is." Democratic Rep. Ike Skelton, the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, announced his opposition to the resolution last week. And Democratic Reps. Alcee Hastings of Florida and John Tanner of Tennessee, both members of the U.S. House delegation to NATO, urged Pelosi to reconsider in a letter released Tuesday. "More than half of the cargo flown into Iraq and Afghanistan comes through Incirlik Air Base, and this base would be a key component of any plans for redeployment of our troops in the future," they wrote. Lt. Gen. Carter Ham, the director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Pentagon planners are looking at "a broad range of options" to keep food, fuel and ammunition flowing to U.S. troops in Iraq if Turkey blocks Incirlik. "We're confident that we'll find ways to do that," Ham told reporters at the Pentagon. "There's likely to be some increased cost and some other implications for that, and obviously we'd prefer to maintain the access that we have." Defense Secretary Robert Gates echoed lawmakers' concerns last week. "About 70 percent of all air cargo going into Iraq goes through Turkey. ... About a third of the fuel that they consume goes through Turkey or comes from Turkey," Gates said. He also said that 95 percent of the Mine-Resistant Ambush-Protective vehicles, or MRAPs, being deployed in Iraq are flown through Turkey. The vehicles are built to withstand roadside bombs. See Incirlik's key location » The U.S. military issued a "warning order" a few days ago to ensure that alternative air crews, planes, fuel and routes are lined up if Turkey stops or restricts U.S. access to Incirlik, a source said. Jordan and Kuwait are among the alternatives the United States is considering. Some fear pursuit of the resolution would also embolden the Turks to attack Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq which could further complicate Iraqi stability, U.S. officials said. Incirlik offers 10,000- and 9,000-foot runways and 57 hardened aircraft shelters, according Globalsecurity.org, a source of background information about military issues. Globalsecurity said Incirlik has become a hub for cargo shipments to Iraq, taking over for Rhein-Main Air Base in Germany because it is closer to Iraq, reducing the strain on troops and aircraft. E-mail to a friend CNN's Barbara Starr and Deirdre Walsh contributed to this report.

NEW: Majority Leader says a number of Dems are "revisiting their own positions" Turkey is upset about World War I "genocide" resolution in Congress . House resolution calls killing of Armenians "genocide" Incirlik Air Base is key point for U.S. military supply of Iraq mission .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Some experts are skeptical that anything could have stopped Robert Hawkins from going on a murderous rampage at an Omaha, Nebraska, shopping mall on Wednesday. A police car sits outside the Westroads Mall in Omaha, Nebraska, on Thursday. "This is not something that anybody can reasonably anticipate," said Don Greene, a former FBI agent who has written a book on mall security. "If the people closest to him didn't see any indicators or signs that he was going to go off so drastically ... how is some public safety officer supposed to recognize this person?" Greene asked. In fact, security at Omaha's Westroads Mall did find Hawkins' behavior suspicious before the shooting, Omaha Police Chief Thomas Warren said Thursday. Mall surveillance initially flagged Hawkins "based on his actions" when he entered the mall through the Von Maur store's main entrance on the second floor, Warren said. He said Hawkins exited quickly after entering, then re-entered within six minutes and appeared to be concealing something in a balled-up sweatshirt. He then went up the elevator to the third floor, and when he got there, he immediately began firing, Warren said. "It doesn't appear as though there was an opportunity for intervention," he said. Shopping malls around the country were expected to review their emergency plans and consider additional security measures in light of Wednesday's shooting, which killed eight. Watch what experts say about keeping malls safe » "There is always a fear of copycats when something like this happens," said Malachy Kavanaugh, spokesman for the International Council of Shopping Centers. He said malls would be considering whether to close some entrances, bring in additional officers, and make security more visible. There are 1,200 enclosed malls in the United States and about 50,000 shopping centers. Although some include police substations, most are patrolled by unarmed private mall and store security guards. Should these private security guards be armed? "Absolutely not," said Greene. Greene said if a security officer were to pull a gun on an armed individual in a mall, it could result in "the gunfight at the 'OK corral,' and then we might have 23 people killed instead of eight." "These random events are very challenging to prevent and difficult to deal with when they occur. Law enforcement and security prevention measures, no matter how good, cannot forestall a tragedy such as this from happening," said a statement issued Wednesday night by the Simon Property Group, which operates regional and outlet malls across the United States. "We do not disclose or discuss our enhanced security measures and/or procedures that we have in place or may institute at any given time, some of which are visible to the public, with others intentionally less noticeable," the statement said. "Disclosure of such information could potentially compromise our efforts to provide a safe and secure environment." Security expert Lou Palumbo told CNN one useful strategy was having trained law enforcement personnel watching people as they enter the mall. "You start to observe the people coming into the mall area," he said. "To let them in your door and then try to figure out what they're doing, you know, it's not as effective as catching them as they're coming in the door." The International Council of Shopping Centers has conducted focus groups with shoppers to test how they would react to even tighter "airport style" security measures, including bag checks and magnetometers. According to Kavanaugh, the results have shown that shoppers would accept the measures only if the national threat advisory system was raised to its highest level, red. Such extreme measures are "in the mall industry playbook ... but it is something no one wants to do," said Kavanaugh. While some mall owners have increased training of security personnel and have upgraded their emergency systems, many security experts believe more should and can be done. Those experts suggest it's a matter of money. They say until shoppers start staying away, mall owners will not make significant changes

Malls expected to assess security arrangements in wake of Wednesday shooting . Gunman at Omaha, Nebraska, mall killed 8 people and himself . Some security experts say such incidents are impossible to anticipate . Study by Police Foundation says training drills for mall guards are inadequate .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Some of the security officials at this weekend's Super Bowl will be scrutinizing the body language and demeanor of fans as part of the effort to spot suspicious and possibly dangerous people in the crowd. Fans take in the sights Thursday at the NFL Experience at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. The Transportation Security Administration says it will have several teams of behavior-detection officers working with local police in Tampa, Florida, as an added security measure for the high-profile game. TSA spokesman Christopher White said that the officers are being sent at the request of the local police and the FBI, and that it's the first time such officers are assisting with a major sports event. "Unlike technology, the human detection officers can be anywhere," White said. "They can be completely unobtrusive." The TSA officers will be wearing their uniforms and working in teams with police along the stadium's security perimeter but won't work inside the stadium as fans watch the game. They'll also be around key hotels associated with the Super Bowl, the airport and other transportation centers in Tampa. Watch what goes on at Super Bowl media day » According to White, if a TSA officer observes someone displaying unusual behavior, a local police officer will follow up by questioning the person. This month, the TSA also held a four-hour training session on behavior detection for about 100 Tampa-area police. The TSA officers themselves undergo an initial seven days of training before being paired with experienced officers and having follow-up training. Barry Steinhardt of the American Civil Liberties Union said such behavior screening is a bad idea. "There is no scientific evidence behavior profiling works to pick out terrorists or criminals," Steinhardt said. The TSA uses behavior screening daily at airports. White said officers also have helped out at such high-profile events as last week's presidential inauguration and the Republican and Democratic national conventions.

TSA will scan body language and demeanor of fans attending big game . TSA says behavior-detection officers will work in tandem with Tampa police . ACLU says there's no hard proof that such screening works .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Some private security guards hired to protect the U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan say their contractor has allowed widespread mistreatment, sexual activity and intimidation within their ranks, according to the watchdog group Project On Government Oversight (POGO). A spokeswoman for watchdog group POGO said hazing at a camp for security guards went "well beyond partying." The group sent a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Tuesday, and briefed reporters on its findings, which it said are 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, and has been cited several times for shortcomings in the security required by the contract. A U.S. Senate panel two months ago was critical of the State Department for not closely supervising ArmorGroup, after a series of warning letters from the State Department in the year leading up to the panel's inquiry. When CNN contacted Wackenhut, the corporate parent of ArmorGroup, a spokesperson there said the company would have a response Wednesday. The U.S. Embassy said Wednesday 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," it said in a statement. "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." Should initiation rituals such as hazing be allowed? Sound off below POGO says two weeks ago it began receiving whistleblower-style e-mails, some with graphic images and videos, that are said to document problems taking place at a non-military camp for the guards near the U.S. diplomatic compound in Kabul. "This is well beyond partying," said Danielle Brian, POGO's executive director, 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 told CNN that ranking supervisors were "facilitating this kind of deviant hazing and humiliation, and requiring people to do things that made them feel really disgusted." Watch claims that alleged hazing at the U.S. Embassy pose a threat to security » "This is not Abu Ghraib," she said, referring to images and videos of abuse by U.S. military troops against prisoners held at a facility in Iraq. "We're not talking about torture," she continued, "we are talking about humiliation," by supervisors causing a breakdown of morale, and a "total breakdown in the chain-of-command." In the letter POGO 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.

Watchdog: Contractor providing security guards allowed "deviant hazing, humiliation" Video showed naked man, another man apparently drinking liquid poured down back . Watchdog warns Sec. of State Clinton of security threat posed by behavior . ArmorGroup, North America has contract until July 2010 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sonia Sotomayor strongly asserted her adherence to the law while dodging questions about her personal beliefs on the third day of her Supreme Court confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Sonia Sotomayor answers questions from senators on Wednesday, the third day of her confirmation hearings. Asked repeatedly Wednesday by Republicans about her controversial statement that a "wise Latina" could reach a better decision than a white man, Sotomayor called it a poorly expressed but valid point about the value of differing perspectives in applying the law. Senators from both parties pressed her on her personal views on issues such as abortion, gun control and executive powers. But Sotomayor consistently answered she needed to know the specifics of a particular case, such as applicable state statutes and other facts. Sensing frustration over her responses, the federal appellate judge offered an explanation about how judges approach the law. "What we do is different than the conversations citizens have about what they want the law to do," Sotomayor said Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Oklahoma, who sought her views on the legality of some kinds of abortions and whether there was a fundamental right to possess firearms and self-defense. Judges look at the facts of a case and apply the law based on those facts, she said. "It's not that we make a broad policy choice and say this is what we want," Sotomayor continued. Watch Face Off: Should Sotomayor be confirmed? » Her performance rankled Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter, the former Republican committee chairman who changed parties last April. Specter repeatedly cut off Sotomayor's responses Wednesday, saying she was not answering his questions. Later, in praising Sotomayor's record as a judge, Specter said: "I'm not commenting about your answers, but your record is exemplary." "You'll be judged on your record more than your answers," he said. If approved by the committee and confirmed by the full Senate, the 55-year-old Sotomayor would be the first Hispanic Supreme Court justice, the third female justice and the 111th person to sit on the nation's highest court. Watch Sotomayor being questioned » Her dispassionate answers on a range of issues displayed a command of legal concepts that impressed even her harshest interrogators. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, appeared to rule out a filibuster attempt against the nomination by his minority party, telling Sotomayor that "you will get that up-or-down vote on the Senate floor." Watch Cornyn quiz Sotomayor on abortion » Democrats predicted she would be confirmed with support from members of both parties. Cornyn and other Republicans raised the "wise Latina" statement for a second straight day, asking whether it meant she had a gender, ethnic or racial bias. Sotomayor said the remark she made in several speeches was never intended to mean that one gender, ethnic or racial group was better than another. "It is clear from the attention that my words have gotten and the manner in which it has been understood by some people that my words failed," Sotomayor said. "They didn't work." iReport.com: Share your thoughts on the Sotomayor hearings However, she defended the point she was trying to make, and said other Supreme Court justices including Sandra Day O'Connor and Samuel Alito had expressed similar thoughts. "The message that the entire speech attempted to deliver, however, remains the message that I think Justice O'Connor meant, the message that higher nominees, including Justice Alito, meant when he said that he considers his Italian ancestry when deciding discrimination cases," said Sotomayor. See how Sotomayor compares with justices on the court » O'Connor, the first woman Supreme Court justice, had said she believed a wise female judge and a wise male judge could reach the same conclusion. "I don't think Justice O'Connor meant that personal experiences compel results in any way," Sotomayor said. "I think life experiences generally, whether it's that I'm a Latina or was a state prosecutor or have been a commercial litigator or been a trial judge and an appellate judge

NEW: Sotomayor asserts adherence to law, dodges questions about personal views . GOP senator calls Sonia Sotomayor's answers "muddled, confusing" Supreme Court nominee says "wise Latina" remark didn't mean one group is better . Sotomayor questioned by senators on third day of confirmation hearings .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Southwest Airlines will pay $7.5 million to settle complaints that it flew unsafe aircraft, and the fine will double unless the airline completes additional safety measures within a year, federal regulators announced Monday. The FAA found Southwest operated jets on nearly 60,000 flights without performing certain mandatory inspections. The Federal Aviation Administration originally recommended more than $10 million in civil penalties in 2008 after finding Southwest operated 46 of its Boeing 737 jets on nearly 60,000 flights without performing mandatory inspections for fatigue cracks in their fuselages. FAA documents obtained by CNN found that in some cases, Southwest aircraft flew for 30 months after government inspection deadlines had passed. A congressional panel concluded the planes were "not airworthy," and two FAA whistle-blowers said agency managers let the airline conduct the safety checks on a slower schedule to avoid disrupting flights. The Dallas, Texas-based airline said it was happy to have settled "all outstanding issues with the FAA." "This settlement with the FAA will allow us to focus on safety going forward, rather than on issues that are now behind us and that have already been addressed," Southwest Airlines said in a written statement. CNN's Mike M. Ahlers contributed to this report.

Fine will double unless airline completes additional safety measures within a year . FAA found Southwest flew 46 jets without checking for fatigue cracks in fuselages . FAA documents: Aircraft flew for 30 months after inspection deadlines passed . Southwest happy to have settled "all outstanding issues with the FAA"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that House committees will begin action on President-elect Barack Obama's proposed economic recovery package in the next couple of weeks, with a vote in the full House slated for the week after Obama's inauguration. Speaker Nancy Pelosi says the House will not go on a break until an economic recovery package is passed. Obama will take office January 20. If that schedule slips, Pelosi, D-California, pledged to cancel the House's planned weeklong break in mid-February for Presidents Day. "We are not going home without an economic recovery package," Pelosi said. Pelosi said Obama's plan has broad public support "almost sight unseen," citing a poll from Politico that says 79 percent of Americans support the president-elect's plan. A senior Pelosi aide said discussions about the details are ongoing between the Obama transition team and key leaders. The Ways and Means Committee will focus on the tax piece, approximately $300 billion in tax cuts. Obama transition aides met with Democrats on that committee Wednesday morning to discuss various proposals, according to another Democratic aide. The Appropriations Committee is tasked with drafting details on spending hundreds of billions of dollars on infrastructure projects, food stamps and other aid to states. Sidestepping a question on possible roadblocks for the bill, Pelosi instead touted the new muscle of the expanded Democratic majority. "We have been so used to an uphill fight, but now we have arrived. We have a big, strong, something like an 80-vote majority in the Congress, in the House, with a Democratic president in the White House," she said. In a speech Thursday, Obama said it was imperative that Congress move quickly to pass the stimulus package once he takes office, warning that a failure to do so would have devastating long-term consequences to the nation's economy. "We start 2009 in the midst of a crisis unlike any we have seen in our lifetime, a crisis that has only deepened over the last few weeks," Obama said at George Mason University in Virginia. Watch Obama call for "dramatic action" on the economy » "I don't believe it's too late to change course, but it will be if we don't take dramatic action as soon as possible," Obama continued. "If nothing is done, this recession could linger for years." Key members of Obama's own party, however, said they opposed central tax measures of the president-elect's proposals after emerging from a closed-door meeting of the Senate Finance Committee. Watch Obama explain his tax proposals » In particular, they do not think that giving employers a $3,000 tax credit for each worker they hired would work. "I'm not that excited about that," said Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts. "Having a tax credit for hiring is not going to change that dynamic; creating a direct job will. So I'd rather spend the money on the infrastructure, on direct investment, on energy conversion and other kinds of things, much more directly and much more rapidly and much more certainly create a real job." Sen. Kent Conrad agreed. "I think it's unlikely to be effective," the North Dakota senator said. "If you think about it, businesspeople are not going to hire people to produce products that are not selling. Who is going to hire in the auto industry if you give them a $3,000 credit to make cars that people are not buying?" A second Obama tax proposal that several Democrats were down on is payroll tax credits, amounting to about $20 per paycheck and totaling $500 per person and $1,000 for couples earning less than $200,000 a year. Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon said he doubted that proposal would do much to stimulate the economy. "We have an example from the first stimulus that indicates just giving people $500 to $600, while certainly welcome when there's this much economic hurt, may not be the best use of stimulus,

Speaker Nancy Pelosi sets full House vote on stimulus for week of January 25 . House committees will work on Obama's plan over the next couple of weeks . Senate Democrats balk at proposal to give employers $3,000 for each worker hired .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Staff Sgt. Cody Reeves has survived harrowing conditions and stared down enemies on the battlefield during two tours in the military hotspots of Iraq. Staff. Sgt. Cody Reeves works out with his fellow Old Guard soldiers. Now he is stationed near Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, trained to carry the remains of fellow soldiers who perished in that same conflict. Before,"it was all about catching the bad guy," Reeves said. "When you come here, it's all about honoring your brothers who are fallen for catching the bad guys, for their service." Reeves serves in the Army's Old Guard, a tight-knit group of soldiers of similar height and size who physically bear the weight of the Army's fallen veterans. The Old Guard conducts a 15-minute ceremony called a dignified transfer. A recent decision by Defense Secretary Robert Gates gives families the choice to allow media to film the solemn event. It's the first time in 20 years the ceremony has been open to the press. Watch members of the Old Guard in action » Every detail of the transfer is precise. When an American soldier dies overseas, the Old Guard is called into action. They travel from their base to Dover, where they meet the aircraft carrying the soldier's body. The six men receive the flag-draped casket, which can weigh 500 pounds, and carry the soldier's body to a waiting vehicle. Women serve as officers in charge on the Army transfer teams, but do not carry the caskets. For Air Force transfers, which use eight people, women help carry the coffin. Despite the cold or the heat, the late hour when the planes often arrive and the physical and emotional strain of their job, the soldiers keep their faces blank. "There's definitely times where your mind goes off, even in the ceremony," said Spc. Wilbert Steinborn, another member of the Old Guard. "You say, 'This guy might have a wife or kids or mother or father who's never going to see him again.' "You can't let it show. Inside you might feel it, and definitely a human's going to feel that -- they're going to feel that emotion. But you can't show that on the outside," Steinborn said. The men stifle sneezes, learn to yawn through their noses and betray no sign of the burden they carry. And -- what they say makes keeping their composure even more important -- the team performs its duties in front of the soldiers' families. "We're soldiers too. We're infantrymen. We could easily be in their place," Steinborn said. "It's hard because you honestly think you see your wife or your girlfriend sitting where the next-of-kin is. You can imagine yourself being there.... So I think that's why we try to be as precise and exact, and look as good, and make them look as good as possible." Some of the Old Guard choose to learn about the lives of the soldiers they've carried. Reeves asks for information about the fallen after having participated in the ceremonies, but never before he greets the soldier's body. "It's 'take care of business' and then afterwards I like to know a little bit about the soldier," he said. "That way you can keep emotions at bay and you're just focused on doing the soldier part." Strikingly, the men, who head to their barracks' gym for intense weight training twice a day and take five-mile runs as a team, seem to be able to communicate without speaking. After drilling for countless hours on the base's grounds, they can feel if another man is even minutely out of step in the ceremony. Sometimes they'll whisper corrections so discreetly no onlooker would ever notice. The nature of their job means the men also share a tighter, unspoken bond. "When I was walking through the aircraft and saw the transfer case with the American flag draped over it, it was

"It's all about honoring your brothers who are fallen," Reeves says . Army's Old Guard transfers remains of soldiers who died in conflict . The team performs duties in front of the soldiers' families . The nature of their job means the men share a tight, unspoken bond .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Stars and Stripes, the newspaper that receives U.S. military funding to help it cover and get distributed free to American forces in war zones, complained Tuesday of censorship by military authorities in Iraq. A soldier with the U.S. Army's 1st Cavalry Division patrols the streets of eastern Mosul, Iraq, on June 16. In a story on its Web site, the newspaper known as Stripes said the military violated a congressional mandate of editorial independence by rejecting a request to embed reporter Heath Druzin with the U.S. Army's 1st Cavalry Division, which is attempting to secure the city of Mosul. The military cited various problems in Druzin's reporting on previous embed assignments with units of the division, according to the story. One example noted by the military was a March 8 story that said many Mosul residents would like the American soldiers to leave and hand over security tasks to Iraqi forces, the Stripes Web site said. "Despite the opportunity to visit areas of the city where Iraqi Army leaders, soldiers, national police and Iraqi police displayed commitment to partnership, Mr. Druzin refused to highlight any of this news," Maj. Ramona Bellard, a public affairs officer, wrote in denying Druzin's embed request, according to the Stripes story. A military official in Iraq defended the move to turn down the reporter's request. "U.S. Army units in Iraq remain committed to the media embed program and appreciate objective media reporting," said Lt. Col. David H. Patterson Jr., a spokesman for Multi-National Corps-Iraq. "The relationship that Druzin established with the command during a previous embed did not facilitate being invited back." Patterson added that Druzin was welcome to embed in another unit and that the 1st Cavalry Division was open to having a reporter other than Druzin. "Accusations of censorship are without merit," Patterson said. Other allegations against Druzin by the military included that he used quotes out of context, behaved unprofessionally and persisted in asking Army officials for permission to use a computer to file a story during a communications blackout period, the Stripes story said. Terry Leonard, editorial director at Stars and Stripes, denied the Army's allegations, calling Druzin's previous reporting on the division accurate and fair. "To simply say 'you can't send him because we didn't like what he wrote' is unacceptable," Leonard said. He noted that Congress set up Stripes as an independent newspaper so that "no commander can decide what news troops in the field receive." Army officials have offered to allow a different Stripes reporter to embed with the division or to allow Druzin to embed with a different Army unit in Kirkuk, Leonard said. Stripes rejected those offers because the military has no right to deflect coverage from Mosul or decide which Stripes reporter covers its operations, Leonard said. "To deny Mr. Druzin an embed under the reasons stated by Maj. Bellard is a direct challenge to the editorial independence of this newspaper," Leonard wrote in his appeal to the decision, according to the Stripes story. "That independence is mandated by Congress. The denial of the embed constitutes an attempt at censorship and it is also an illegal prior restraint under federal law. ... The military cannot tell us what stories to write or not write." Stripes receives close to $10 million a year from the Department of Defense to help defray the costs of covering "contingency" operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, including the publishing and distribution of roughly 85,000 free newspapers a day, Leonard said. The newspaper receives additional government subsidies, with the total amounting to less than half of its budget, he said. Other revenue comes from ad sales and circulation at permanent U.S. military bases and elsewhere, Leonard said. CNN has been denied embed requests on occasion but never because of the past conduct of individual journalists. The reasons have almost always involved logistical details involving security and force coverage.

Newspaper says military's rejection of embed request is censorship . Paper wanted reporter Heath Druzin to be embedded with Army division in Iraq . Army rejects request, cites Druzin's previous interactions with division . Army denies accusations, says different reporter may embed with division .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- State Department officials should serve where they are needed -- even in war-torn Iraq, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Friday. U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says that "people need to serve where they are needed." Rice was responding to foreign service officers' objections to the possibility of "directed assignments" in Iraq. The issue has caused an uproar in the State Department, resulting in a contentious town hall-style meeting Wednesday. The new directives would be needed if enough qualified foreign service officers don't step forward to fill open positions at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. If the State Department enforces directed assignments, it will be the first time since the Vietnam War era. One official called the order to serve in Iraq "a potential death sentence" during the town meeting. The State Department already has begun notifying about 200 people considered prime candidates. Those chosen will be given 10 days to respond, according to last week's announcement. Unless they have a valid medical reason to refuse, those who decline could face dismissal, it said. Wednesday's heated meeting was replayed on an internal State Department television channel in Washington several times and talked about widely. Some at the hourlong meeting questioned why they were not told of the policy change directly, learning about it instead from news organizations last week. Watch the diplomats exchange angry words » "I just have no respect for the whole process because you've demonstrated a lack of respect for your own colleagues," said foreign service officer Jack Croddy. "Thank you for that comment. It's full of inaccuracies, but that's OK," Harry Thomas Jr., director general of the foreign service, shot back. Others pointed out the risks of such assignments, considering the dangers of a war zone, lack of security and regular rocket attacks on U.S. personnel. Rice, who did not attend the meeting, tried to calm things down Friday by underscoring the State Department's attempts to do "everything that we can to try and protect our diplomats." However, she said, "This is one of the highest priority tasks of the United States, and we're going to meet our obligations." Speaking to reporters en route to Turkey and the Mideast, she said, "I don't know if we will have direct assignments or not, but we are one foreign service, and people need to serve where they are needed." The secretary sent out a cable to State Department employees worldwide encouraging them to serve in Iraq. "This year [U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker] has identified the need for additional positions to more effectively accomplish our mission in Iraq," Rice said in the cable. Rice said she has decided to go forward with the identification of officers to serve, "should it prove necessary to direct assignments." "Should others step forward, as some already have, we will fill these new jobs as we have before -- with volunteers. However, regardless of how the jobs may be filled, they must be filled," she said. Rice earlier said reports that the State Department was finding it hard to coax foreign service employees into Iraq "couldn't be further from the truth." The assignments are new positions. Fifteen people have stepped forward to volunteer for Iraq service since the new policy was announced October 26, department spokesman Sean McCormack said. McCormack rejected comments by Rep. Duncan Hunter, R-California, that State Department employees are "nervous Nellies" and that wounded U.S. military veterans should be asked to fill the Iraq vacancies. McCormack said until now the State Department has been successful in filling jobs in Iraq with volunteers. Since 2003, more than 1,500 personnel have volunteered to go to Iraq, he said. But with the expansion of the staff in Iraq this year, 58 spots were left open. "They are serving in dangerous and challenging places," he said. "We have a lot of brave people who are stepping up to the plate in Anbar and Basra and Baghdad

Condoleezza Rice responds to foreign service officers' objections on Iraq duty . "Directed assignments" will be enforced if enough officers don't volunteer in Iraq . Rice: Department doing "everything that we can to try and protect our diplomats" One official calls order to serve in Iraq "a potential death sentence"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Suspected terrorists and foreign fighters held by the U.S. military at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, have the right to challenge their detention in federal court, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday. A prefabricated court complex has been erected at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to try terrorism suspects. The decision marks another legal blow to the Bush administration's war on terrorism policies. The 5-4 vote reflects the divide over how much legal autonomy the U.S. military should have to prosecute about 270 prisoners, some of whom have been held for more than six years without charges. Fourteen of them are alleged to be top al Qaeda figures. Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy said, "the laws and Constitution are designed to survive, and remain in force, in extraordinary times. Liberty and security can be reconciled; and in our system reconciled within the framework of the law." Kennedy, the court's swing vote, was supported by Justices John Paul Stevens, David Souter, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer, generally considered the liberal contingent. At issue was the rights of detainees to contest their imprisonment and challenge the rules set up to try them. Watch how the 5-4 ruling is a major blow for the Bush administration » A congressional law passed in 2006 would limit court jurisdiction to hear so-called habeas corpus challenges to detention. It is a legal question the justices have tackled three times since 2004, including Thursday's ruling. Each time, the justices have ruled against the government's claim that it has the authority to hold people it considers "enemy combatants." Preliminary hearings have begun in Guantanamo for some of the accused. A military panel this month arraigned five suspected senior al Qaeda detainees, including the alleged mastermind of the September 11 attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who was transferred to the prison camp in 2006. The Bush administration has urged the high court not to get involved in the broader appeals, saying the federal judiciary has no authority to hear such matters. Four justices agreed. In a sharp dissent, read in part from the bench, Justice Antonin Scalia said the majority "warps our Constitution." The "nation will live to regret what the court has done today," Scalia said. He was supported by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito. President Bush, who is traveling in Europe, said he disagreed with the Guantanamo ruling but promised to abide by it. "Congress and the administration worked very carefully on a piece of legislation that set the appropriate procedures in place as to how to deal with the detainees," he said. "We'll study this opinion, and we'll do so with this in mind to determine whether or not additional legislation might be appropriate so that we can safely say, truly say to the American people, 'we are doing everything we can to protect you.' " The Pentagon declined to comment, and the Justice Department said it was reviewing the decision and was expected to comment later Thursday. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, welcomed the ruling, saying the Supreme Court upheld the Constitution. "I have long been an advocate of closing Guantanamo, so I would hope this is in furtherance of taking that action," Pelosi said. The appeals involve noncitizens. Sixteen lawsuits filed on behalf of about 200 prisoners were put on hold pending a ruling last year by a federal appeals court upholding the government's right to detain and prosecute suspected terrorists and war criminals. An attorney for one of the detainees, Salim Ahmed Hamdan -- Osama bin Laden's alleged driver and bodyguard -- said he would file an appeal asking that charges be dropped against the Yemeni native. "The clearest immediate impact of this ruling is to remove the remaining barriers for closing Guantanamo Bay. It means, in legal terms, Guantanamo Bay is no different than Kansas," attorney Charles Swift said. Now the ruling has been issued, a flood of similar appeals can be expected. The lead plaintiffs are Lakhdar Boumediene, a Bosnian, and

NEW: President Bush says he disagrees with ruling but he'll abide by it . NEW: Court says separately it won't rule on case of U.S. citizens convicted in Iraq . Justice Scalia: U.S. "will live to regret what the court has done today" Justice Kennedy: Constitution should "remain in force, in extraordinary times"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Suzanne Richard was born to be an actress. Suzanne Richard says that navigating the maze of government aid regulations is a challenge. She was also, however, born with osteogenesis imperfecta, a bone-crippling disorder that can mean a lifetime of health problems and physical disability. But rather than letting her condition hinder her acting ambitions, Richard has embraced it, and now works to encourage other actors with disabilities to do the same. As the artistic director of Open Circle Theatre, a theater founded to "showcase professional artists with disabilities in an integrated setting," Richard offers her actors respite from the challenges they face, and access to an industry that can often discriminate against people like her. "I decided a long time ago that if people were going to stare at me, they were going to pay me for it," she quipped backstage at a rehearsal for her latest production, "Is there ANYBODY OUT THERE?" And at a height of just under 4 feet, with legs encased in metal braces, the 38-year-old Richard said she indeed often attracts curious stares from the public. Richard's condition, also known as Brittle Bones Disease, is a genetic disorder "characterized by fragile bones that break easily," according to the Osteogenesis Imperfecta Foundation. The condition is considered rare, thought to affect only about 40,000 Americans, said Tracy Hart, CEO of the OI Foundation. There is no cure, Hart said. While the severity of the disorder varies greatly, common health issues related to OI are a short stature, weak tissues, fragile skin, muscle weakness, loose joints, hearing loss, breathing problems and curvature of the spine, according to the OI Foundation. In Richard's case, OI has meant frequent bone fractures, painful surgeries, leg braces, wheelchairs, and a multitude of symptoms caused by the pressure her weak frame puts on her body. As a child, Richard had to have rods surgically placed in her legs "as infrastructure" -- a painful routine that she repeated as often as she grew. But for Richard, the physical constraints of her condition are only half the battle. When Richard was forced to retire from her job as an accessibility specialist at the National Endowment for the Arts because she was too sick to work, she lost her work-provided private health insurance coverage. She now gets Medicare through her Social Security Income retirement benefits. Social Security Income is a government program that "makes monthly payments to people who have low income and few resources," and are either at least 65 years of age or disabled. Social Security recipients are subject to income restrictions depending on what state they live in, and are only allowed to have resources worth $2,000, with certain exceptions, according to the Social Security Web site (www.socialsecurity.gov). These strict financial eligibility limitations, Richard said, can be nerve-wracking, and can make navigating the system extremely difficult. "If you lose your Social Security benefits because you make too much money, you lose everything. You lose your Medicare, too," Richard said. "So if you're on disability you have to be really careful not to make too much money, which is self-defeating." It is "self-defeating" especially when one considers the massive medical bills Richard accumulates due to her OI. Though Medicare covers 80 percent of her medical costs, Richard said she often comes up short some months. "You can't get blood from a stone. ... I'm on a fixed income. That's why I'm on Medicare," she said. So, Richard constantly finds herself in the precarious situation of having to rely on her loved ones and the government for her financial stability. "I'm hanging on by my fingernails. ...You can never get ahead," she said. It's a frustrating circumstance familiar to Richard's fellow actors at Open Circle, as well as to the millions of disabled Americans in need of expensive medical treatment. It's a system, said Richard, that must

Theater's artistic director was born with bone-crippling disorder . Suzanne Richard encourages other disabled actors to embrace their art . Navigating maze of government aid is extremely difficult . "You can never get ahead" when system punishes earning, Richard says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The "vast right-wing conspiracy" that attacked him during his presidency has been weakened, but continues to operate against President Obama, former President Clinton said Sunday. Former President Clinton said Republicans won't see a 1994-like surge at the polls in 2010. On NBC's "Meet the Press," Clinton was asked about the term his wife Hillary Clinton, now secretary of state, famously coined. "Is it still there?" host David Gregory asked. "Oh, you bet. Sure it is. It's not as strong as it was, because America's changed demographically, but it's as virulent as it was," the former president replied. "I mean, they're saying things about him [Obama] -- you know, it's like when they accused me of murder and all that stuff they did," Clinton said, in an apparent reference to conspiracy theories surrounding the suicide of White House deputy counsel Vince Foster. "It's not really good for the Republicans and the country, what's going on now," Clinton said. "I mean, they may be hurting President Obama. They can take his numbers down, they can run his opposition up. But fundamentally, he and his team have a positive agenda for America." The nation needs "a credible debate about what's the right balance between continuing to expand the economy through stimulus and beginning to move back to fiscal balance," Clinton said. "We need a credible debate about what's the best way to get to universal [health care] coverage." Clinton was asked whether he is concerned that the 2010 midterm elections could resemble those of 1994, when Republicans took control of the House and Senate two years into his first term. "There's no way" that could happen, Clinton said, adding that "the country is more diverse and more interested in positive action." Also, he said, Republicans had control of Congress for several years under President George W. Bush, "and they know the results were bad." And, he said, "the Democrats haven't taken on the gun lobby like I did." "Whatever happens, it'll be manageable for our president," Clinton said.

Clinton: Right-wing "conspiracy" not as strong as it once was, but is as virulent . Obama's popularity may take hit, but attacks not good for country, Clinton says . Clinton: "No way" that Republicans will enjoy 1994-level success in 2010 elections .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The 2009 presidential inauguration is looking to be historic and, frankly, headache-inducing for the throngs of people descending on the nation's capital to watch Barack Obama sworn in as the 44th president. Workers are putting the finishing touches on the innaugural stage on the steps of U.S. Capitol. CNN has compiled a list of frequently asked questions and answers. Q: How crowded will Washington be, and how will I get around? A: Think Times Square on New Year's Eve. Throw in tight security, then multiply that by 12. At least, that's how it will most likely feel. Nearly 2 million people are expected to hit the streets of the nation's capital January 20. Police will be shutting bridges across the Potomac River into Washington, along with a huge chunk of the downtown area. Two of the major routes coming into the city -- Interstates 395 and 66 -- will be closed to inbound traffic, at least for private vehicles. And for those coming from Virginia, all of the bridges between the state and Washington are going to be shut. In order to get in: walk or take public transport, such as the metro area's subway system. Amtrak says that it has increased the number -- and length -- of trains running to Washington on Inauguration Day and that tickets are still available but are going fast. iReport.com: Are you going to the inauguration? Security officials also say charter buses, taxis and car services will be another option for those attending. Q: What can't I bring? A: There are several obvious items that are prohibited, according to the U.S. Secret Service, including: "Firearms, ammunition, explosives, weapons of any kind, aerosols, supports for signs and placards, packages, coolers, thermal or glass containers, backpacks, bags exceeding size restrictions, laser pointers, animals other than helper/guide dogs, structures, bicycles and any other items determined to be a potential safety hazard." Items surrendered to security officials will not be returned. Other items that are being banned include baby strollers and umbrellas. Read more about Secret Service traffic, security plans (PDF) Q: When do the festivities start? A: Saturday, January 17. Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden will begin their whistlestop-like train tour, stopping in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Wilmington, Delaware; and then making a stop for an event in Baltimore, Maryland, before pulling into Washington. That evening, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden and their families will hold a free "Kids' Inaugural" concert to honor military families. Sunday, January 18 Obama will kick off the schedule of official inaugural activities in Washington, D.C., with a welcome event on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. The event will be free and open to the public. HBO will exclusively broadcast the event from 7 to 9 p.m. ET. The event will be televised by HBO on an open signal accessible to all U.S. viewers with access to cable, telcos or satellite television. It will also be a star-studded affair, with Beyoncé, Mary J. Blige, Bono, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Renee Fleming, Josh Groban, Herbie Hancock, Heather Headley, John Legend, Jennifer Nettles, John Mellencamp, Usher Raymond IV, Shakira, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, will.i.am and Stevie Wonder -- among many others. The Rev. Gene Robinson, an openly gay Episcopal bishop, will deliver the invocation. Monday, January 19 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day) Obama and Biden will honor King's legacy by urging supporters to participate in activities dedicated to serving others in communities across Washington, according to the Obama transition Web site, Change.gov. On Monday night, Jazz at Lincoln Center and The Rockefeller Foundation will present "A Celebration of America" at the Kennedy Center in Washington. The event -- marking King's legacy and the 56th inauguration -- will be broadcast live on CNN. Special guest stars will be announced shortly. Tuesday, January 20: Inauguration Day

Barack Obama to be sworn in as president January 20 . Several million are expected to descend on Washington . CNN has your guide to all things Inauguration 2009 . Activities begin January 18 with an Obama-Biden whistlestop-like tour .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Air Force is returning F-15E Strike Eagle jets to service over Iraq and Afghanistan after grounding other F-15s, the Air Force said Wednesday. The Air Force grounded models of its F-15 fleet after the crash of an older model F-15C this month. The F-15s were grounded after a crash earlier this month in Missouri of an older model that disintegrated in flight. Each F-15E must pass an inspection of critical parts on the airframe before returning to flying missions, Air Force officials said. All U.S. Air Force 224 E-model aircraft will undergo a one-time inspection of hydraulic system lines, the Air Force statement said. The longerons -- molded, metal strips of the aircraft fuselage that run from front to rear -- will also be inspected, according to the Air Force. The straps and skin panels in and around the environmental control system bay will also be examined, officials said. The Air Force would not say whether the parts being inspected were part of the problem on the aircraft that crashed. The investigation into why that plane fell apart in flight is still ongoing and Air Force officials will not say what happened until the investigation is complete, an Air Force spokesperson said. Air Force officials said the rest of the almost 500 F-15s -- older airframes than the F-15Es -- will remain grounded until the investigation offers a solution to what happened. The E-model aircraft, the youngest and most sophisticated in the F-15 inventory, is heavily used by Central Command for ground support in the U.S.-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is also used for the homeland security mission over the United States known as Operation Noble Eagle. On November 3, the Air Force grounded all of its F-15s in response to a November 1 crash of a Missouri Air National Guard F-15C in Boss, Missouri. The grounding forced Central Command to use other Air Force, Navy and French fighters to fill the gaps, though Strike Eagles did fly to support troops in battle in Afghanistan as an emergency measure while they were still under grounding orders, according to Central Command reports. The plane that crashed, built in 1980, was one of the older F-15s in the fleet. The F-15E Strike Eagle is an air-to-ground and air-to-air fighter, making it more versatile than other F-15 models, which are used for only air-to-air missions. The Strike Eagle is used in Afghanistan and Iraq in its air-to-ground role, using its advanced sensors to drop bombs on targets. E-mail to a friend

F-15s grounded after a November 1 crash in Missouri . F-15 is used for ground support in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan . All U.S. Air Force 224 E-model aircraft will undergo a one-time inspection .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush Pentagon tried to find loopholes in the Geneva Conventions for its "ghost detainee" program in Iraq and to delay the release of Guantanamo Bay prisoners to avoid bad press, three human rights groups contend. The Pentagon considered delaying the release of detainees from Guantanamo Bay because of criticism. Pentagon documents discuss CIA and Pentagon detention activities earlier this decade and indicate coordination between agencies in hiding internees from the Red Cross. Amnesty International USA, New York University's Center for Human Rights and Global Justice, and the Center for Constitutional Rights obtained the material through a Freedom of Information Act request and released it Thursday. "It's obvious that Defense officials engaged in legal gymnastics to find ways to keep detainees off the books," said Meg Satterthwaite, faculty director of the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice. "A full accounting of all agencies' responsibilities must now take place to ensure that these abuses don't continue under a different guise." President Obama has signed an order closing the Guantanamo detention facility in Cuba and prohibiting CIA prisons. However, the order allows the CIA to detain people temporarily. It is not known whether the Pentagon or the CIA still holds "ghost detainees," Satterthwaite said, referring to people housed at secret facilities. The Pentagon issued an information paper May 28, 2004, on the "applicability of the Geneva Conventions to 'Ghost Detainees' in Iraq." Its purpose was to clarify the law about such detainees. The Geneva Conventions spell out international humanitarian law and authorize the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit prisoners during armed conflicts. The Pentagon's information paper said that if "absolute military security" requires it, the conventions permit the holding of persons "who participated in activities hostile to the security of the occupying power." Specific examples would be "spies and saboteurs," the paper said. Although the Red Cross must be notified of such detentions, "persons who have committed such acts are considered to have forfeited the rights of communication," the paper said. "Normally the ICRC has the right to go to all places where protected people are detained," the paper said. But, it added, such visits can be denied temporarily "for reasons of imperative military necessity." A February 17, 2006, e-mail showed that a State Department foreign policy adviser urged the Pentagon to consider delaying by a month and a half the release of Guantanamo prisoners who were scheduled to be sent home in order to avoid bad press. This came amid worldwide furor over the Guantanamo detention facility, photos of prisoners being mistreated at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq, and sharp criticism on the streets and in blogs toward U.S. detention policies. "We may need to definitely think about checking with SouthCom to see if we can hold off on return flights for 45 days or so until things die down," the adviser wrote to Gen. Norton Schwartz, then head of the U.S. Transportation Command. "Otherwise we are likely to have hero's welcomes awaiting the detainees when they arrive, and we will have problems getting overflight and landing clearance for the flights anyway. It would probably be preferable if we could deliver these detainees in something smaller and more discreet than a T tail" -- apparently referring to a large transport plane like the giant C-5 Galaxy. SouthCom is the U.S. Southern Command, the American military command covering Latin American and the Caribbean. Schwartz is now the Air Force chief of staff. The letter appeared to be an e-mail reply to a State Department "hot issues" memo that said the United States was getting "creamed on human rights" and "taking a big hit on the issues of human rights and respect for the rule of law." It pointed to news stories about a U.N. Guantanamo report and coverage highlighting calls from officials to close Guantanamo. It cited criticism of the United States in blogs and discussion boards. "America has lost its prestige," a blogger from Yemen wrote. "Every year the world waits for the annual U.S. State Department report on human

Military tried to justify detention practices, human rights groups say . Groups present Pentagon documents to support accusations . Groups: Pentagon also sought to delay Guantanamo releases to avoid bad press . Communications came amid criticism over Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration has launched a "significant escalation" of covert operations in Iran, sending U.S. commandos to spy on the country's nuclear facilities and undermine the Islamic republic's government, journalist Seymour Hersh said Sunday. An Iranian flag flies outside the building containing the reactor of Bushehr nuclear power plant, south of Tehran. White House, CIA and State Department officials declined comment on Hersh's report, which appears in this week's issue of The New Yorker. Hersh told CNN's "Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer" that Congress has authorized up to $400 million to fund the secret campaign, which involves U.S. special operations troops and Iranian dissidents. President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney have rejected findings from U.S. intelligence agencies that Iran has halted a clandestine effort to build a nuclear bomb and "do not want to leave Iran in place with a nuclear program," Hersh said. "They believe that their mission is to make sure that before they get out of office next year, either Iran is attacked or it stops its weapons program," Hersh said. The new article, "Preparing the Battlefield," is the latest in a series of articles accusing the Bush administration of preparing for war with Iran. He based the report on accounts from current and former military, intelligence, and congressional sources. Watch Hersh discuss what he says are the administration's plans for Iran » "As usual with his quarterly pieces, we'll decline to comment," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe told CNN. "The CIA, as a rule, does not comment on allegations regarding covert operations," CIA spokesman Paul Gimigliano said. Ryan Crocker, the U.S. ambassador in Baghdad, denied U.S. raids were being launched from Iraq, where American commanders believe Iran is stoking sectarian warfare and fomenting attacks on U.S. troops. "I can tell you flatly that U.S. forces are not operating across the Iraqi border into Iran, in the south or anywhere else," Crocker said. Hersh said U.S. efforts were staged from Afghanistan, which also shares a border with Iran. He said the program resulted in "a dramatic increase in kinetic events and chaos" inside Iran, including attacks by Kurdish separatists in the country's north and a May attack on a mosque in Shiraz that killed 13 people. The United States has said it is trying to isolate Iran diplomatically in order to get it to come clean about its nuclear ambitions. But Bush has said "all options" are open in dealing with the issue. Iran insists its nuclear program is aimed at providing civilian electric power, and refuses to comply with U.N. Security Council demands that it halt uranium enrichment work. U.N. nuclear inspectors say Tehran held back critical information that could determine whether it is trying to make nuclear weapons. Israel, which is believed to have its own nuclear arsenal, conducted a military exercise in the eastern Mediterranean in early June involving dozens of warplanes and aerial tankers. The distance involved in the exercise was roughly the same as would be involved in a possible strike on the Iranian nuclear fuel plant at Natanz, Iran, a U.S. military official said. In 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed an Iraqi nuclear reactor. Iran's parliament speaker, Ali Larijani, warned other countries against moves that would "cost them heavily." In comments that appeared in the semi-official Mehr news agency Sunday, an Iranian general said his troops were digging more than 320,000 graves to bury troops from any invading force with "the respect they deserve." "Under the law of war and armed conflict, necessary preparations must be made for the burial of soldiers of aggressor nations," said Maj. Gen. Mirfaisal Baqerzadeh, an Iranian officer in charge of identifying soldiers missing in action. Journalist Shirzad Bozorghmehr in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

New Yorker article says Congress authorized up to $400 million for covert ops in Iran . Journalist Seymour Hersh says program is being staged from Afghanistan . U.S. officials decline comment, deny the U.S. is launching raids from Iraq . Iranian general says troops are building graves for invaders in the event of war .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Central Intelligence Agency hired the private security firm Blackwater USA in 2004 to work on a covert program aimed at targeting and potentially killing top al Qaeda leaders, according to a source familiar with the program. CIA Director Leon Panetta canceled the covert program this year when he learned of its full scope. The existence of the program, which began in 2001, came to light earlier this year when CIA Director Leon Panetta canceled the effort, but it is only now that Blackwater's involvement has become known. That development was first reported Thursday in The New York Times. The program was part of a broader effort inside the CIA to develop the capacity to conduct training, surveillance and possible covert operations overseas, according to the source. The program was outsourced to contractors to "put some distance" between the effort and the U.S. government. By mid-2006, Blackwater's involvement in the program had ended, according to a U.S. official. Other contractors were brought in for other parts of the program, another source said. The total program cost "millions," a U.S. official said. It is not known how much Blackwater was paid. The company -- now known as Xe -- did not return CNN's calls seeking comment. "The program ebbed and flowed. There were different phases to it. There may have been different folks involved," the source said. U.S. officials have previously acknowledged that Panetta canceled the entire program this year when he learned of its full scope. At the time of the cancellation, officials said, renewal of the program was being considered. At that point, it had been brought to the new CIA director's attention. Panetta canceled the effort in part because Congress had not been notified about it, officials said. Also, some in the intelligence community were worried there could be a diplomatic disaster if contractors were caught performing such work in foreign countries. Former CIA Director Michael Hayden, who ran the agency from 2006 to 2009, downplayed the program during a speaking engagement in Washington. "This was not a very prominent thing during my time as director," Hayden said. "What you had were three separate efforts under three different directors to deal with an issue that everyone understood was a problem in a capacity that everyone agreed we should have." A spokesman for the CIA would not comment on the details of the still-classified program. "Director Panetta thought this effort should be briefed to Congress, and he did so," spokesman George Little said. "He also knew it hadn't been successful, so he ended it. Neither decision was difficult. This was clear and straightforward. "Director Panetta did not tell the committees that the agency had misled the Congress or had broken the law. He decided that the time had come to brief Congress on a counterterrorism effort." Blackwater's extensive involvement in U.S. operations overseas, particularly in Iraq, has been controversial. The Iraqi government says that in a shooting in September 2007, Blackwater security guards killed 17 Iraqi civilians. Blackwater says its employees were returning fire after they were attacked by armed insurgents, but an Iraqi investigation concluded that the guards randomly fired at civilians without provocation. The incident led to the Iraqi government's refusal to renew the firm's operating license in the country when it expired in May. Although it lost the Iraq contract, the company, which changed its name to Xe earlier this year, continued to get multimillion-dollar contracts from the U.S. government for work in Afghanistan.

Program, begun in 2001, came to light this year, when it was canceled . It was part of CIA effort to develop possible covert operations overseas . U.S. official says Blackwater's involvement in program had ended by mid-2006 . Ex-CIA director: "This was not a very prominent thing during my time as director"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Chinese government increased its harassment of religious minorities before the Olympic Games, according to a U.S. State Department report released Friday. A Tibetan Buddhist monk in southwest China's Sichuan province. The State Department's Annual Report on Religious Freedom singled out China, Myanmar, North Korea, Iran, Sudan, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia and Uzbekistan to "blacklist" because they are "countries of particular concern" when it comes to religious oppression. Over the past year, "repression of religious freedom intensified in some areas" in China, including in the Tibetan region and in Xinjiang province, where the Uighur Muslims live. As the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games approached, some unregistered Protestant religious groups in Beijing reported intensified harassment from government authorities and said the government cracked down on home churches, the report says. The State Department found that over the past year, Chinese officials also detained and interrogated several foreigners about their religious activities, alleged that the foreigners had engaged in "illegal religious activities" and canceled their visas. The government also undertook a "patriotic education campaign," which required monks and nuns to sign statements personally denouncing the Dalai Lama. As a result, the reports says, protests led to violence in Lhasa, Tibet, in March, and the government detained an unknown number of monks and nuns or expelled them from monasteries. In addition to its continued crackdown on groups such as the Falun Gong, which China considers a "cult," the government harassed Uighur Muslims and confiscated some of their passports to prevent their taking part in the hajj, the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. Once again, the U.S. criticized the government of Myanmar, saying its "repressive, authoritarian military regime" had "imposed restrictions on certain religious activities and frequently committed abuses of the right to freedom of religion." Most followers of registered religions were permitted to worship as they chose, but the government infiltrated and monitored activities of virtually all organizations, including religious ones. The report says that although the North Korean constitution provides for religious freedom, "genuine religious freedom does not exist, and there was no change in the extremely poor level of respect for religious freedom" over the past year. In Iran, the report says, "continued deterioration of the poor status of respect for religious freedom" last year. "Government actions and rhetoric created a threatening atmosphere for nearly all non-Shia religious groups, most notably for Baha'is, as well as Sufi Muslims, evangelical Christians, and members of the Jewish community," the report says. "Government-controlled media intensified negative campaigns against religious minorities, particularly the Baha'is. Reports of imprisonment, harassment, intimidation, and discrimination based on religious beliefs continued." The State Department found some progress in Saudi Arabia. "While overall government policies continue to place severe restrictions on religious freedom, there were incremental improvements in specific areas," the report says. However, the report goes on to note that "Non-Muslims and Muslims who do not adhere to the government's interpretation of Islam continued to face significant political, economic, legal, social, and religious discrimination." It also criticizes U.S. allies in Pakistan and Jordan for aggressiveness toward religious minorities. The governments of Iraq and Afghanistan were praised for endorsing religious freedom, but the State Department found that the war-torn countries have problems. In Afghanistan, "the residual effects of years of Taliban rule, popular suspicion regarding outside influence of foreigners, and weak democratic institutions hinder the respect for religious freedom." In Iraq, "violence conducted by terrorists, extremists, and criminal gangs restricted the free exercise of religion and posed a significant threat to the country's vulnerable religious minorities." In releasing the report, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said the United States is "concerned by efforts to promote a so-called defamation of religions concept," which has been the focus of numerous resolutions passed at the United Nations. She was referring to the Organization of Islamic Conference, a grouping of 57 Muslim states that does not recognize the right of individuals

Myanmar, North Korea, Iran, Sudan, Eritrea, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan "blacklisted" Tibetan region and in Xinjiang province in China stepped up oppression of Muslims . State Department: China detained foreigners for their religion .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Chinese military continues to increase spending on efforts to break into U.S. military computer systems, expand its Navy, and invest in intercontinental nuclear missiles and weapons to destroy satellites, according to the latest U.S report on China's military power. Chinese military officers after a meeting about the People's Liberation Army in 2007. The annual report from the Pentagon to Congress says China's total military spending in 2007 was between $97 billion and $139 billion, but it is hard to tell exactly how much was spent and on what. In comparison, the U.S. military budget request for 2008 is $481.4 billion, not including war requests. Pentagon officials said a chunk of China's spending went to cyberwarfare, because 2007 saw several "intrusions" believed to be from the Peoples Liberation Army. In the incidents, unclassified U.S. military computer systems were broken into and information was taken, according to Pentagon officials. While the information taken was not classified, Pentagon officials said the worry is the Chinese hacking required many of the skills and capabilities that would also be required for a computer network attack. Last summer, a cyber-attack on Department of Defense computer systems took down the e-mail capability of hundreds of staffers for weeks, but the Pentagon still will not comment on who initiated the attack. It is widely believed among the military to have been the Peoples Liberation Army. China is also investing heavily in and fielding improved nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles and antisatellite missiles, according to the report. The United States expressed its concern last year after China fired a missile at one of its old satellites and destroyed it, sending thousands of dangerous pieces of space debris into orbit. The United States conducted a similar strike last month on a broken U.S. spy satellite before it re-entered the Earth's atmosphere. U.S. officials said the satellite was hit and broke into thousands of small pieces that burned up as they re-entered Earth's atmosphere. The United States is also concerned about the purchase of more submarines by the Chinese navy as well as plans for more aircraft carriers. The Chinese once had a small Navy. Now the United States is keeping an eye on the growing service amid concerns over Taiwan. The concerns include "China's near-term focus on preparing for contingencies in the Taiwan Strait, including the possibility of U.S. intervention, which is an important driver of its modernization," the report says. Additionally, the Chinese have placed about 100 more short-range missiles on the shore opposite Taiwan in the past year, it says. Pentagon officials worry the continued increase in Chinese military spending is slowly tipping the balance of power between China and Taiwan in China's favor. The United States has said it would help defend Taiwan if China invaded. The report also says the Peoples Liberation Army is "pursuing comprehensive transformation from a mass army designed for protracted wars of attrition on its territory to one capable of fighting and winning short-duration, high-intensity conflicts along its periphery against high-tech adversaries." Such an army, the report says, would have "the greatest potential to compete militarily with the United States and field disruptive military technologies that could, over time, offset traditional U.S. military advantages." The United States says the lack of transparency by the Chinese on its spending poses "risks to stability by increasing the potential for misunderstanding and miscalculation," and that China has yet to explain to the international community the purpose of its military expansion, Pentagon officials said. E-mail to a friend

Pentagon: Chinese military expanding its Navy, investing in weapons . Officials worry China is trying to hack into U.S. military computers . "Intrusions" have already happened, officials say, though info was not classified . Pentagon: China's lack of transparency makes it hard to know the extent of activity .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Dalai Lama, accepting a human rights prize from a U.S. foundation Tuesday, chastised the United States for not fully addressing the economic divide between its poorest and richest citizens. The Dalai Lama sits with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the awards ceremony on Tuesday. "Huge gap, rich to poor. This is unhealthy," he said. "You have to think seriously about those less-privileged people. They're also human beings." The "real greatness of America," he said, "is your ancestors' principles," and he urged the nation to preserve those principles. "When I think of America, I think of the idea -- concept of freedom, liberty, equality. I think these are real human values," he said. The inaugural Lantos Human Rights Prize, presented to the 74-year-old Dalai Lama by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, honors his commitment to ending global injustice. The Dalai Lama called the award, from the New Hampshire-based Lantos Foundation for Human Rights and Justice, "a great privilege, especially because it is named after an individual I admired deeply." He was referring to the late Rep. Tom Lantos, D-California, whom the foundation describes as a champion of human rights during his 27 years in Congress. Lantos, who was the only Holocaust survivor in Congress, died of cancer in February 2008. His image is on the large medal. Before presenting the award, Pelosi said people continue to be inspired by the Dalai Lama's messages of peace and nonviolence. The medal, the California Democrat said, contains the words "The rights of one are the rights of all." "The Dalai Lama is one of the most highly honored peacemakers of our time," she added. Tuesday's program focused largely on the work of Lantos, who co-founded the Congressional Human Rights Caucus about 20 years ago. The name of the caucus has been changed to the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, and part of its mission is to "promote, defend and advocate internationally recognized human rights norms in a nonpartisan manner," according to its Web site. The group is a formal entity of Congress, said Howard Berman, D-California, who was at Tuesday's event. Also at the ceremony was Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, who called Lantos "an inspiration." "When he died we lost one of the better angels of our national conscience," McCain said. According to the foundation, created by Lantos' daughter, Katrina Lantos Swett, the Lantos Prize is meant to focus attention on the "often unsung heroes of the human rights movement." The foundation's Web site says the prize "will be awarded on an annual basis to the individual or organization that best exemplifies the foundation's mission, namely, to be a vital voice standing up for the values of decency, dignity, freedom and justice in every corner of the world." The Dalai Lama is visiting Washington this week for a conference and to meet with Undersecretary for Global Affairs Maria Otero, who has just been named as President Obama's special coordinator on Tibet, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Monday. The Dalai Lama won't meet with Obama, who instead plans to visit with him after a presidential trip next month to China, Kelly said. The Dalai Lama and Tibet are dicey issues in Washington, since Beijing considers the Himalayan province a part of China and accuses the spiritual leader of advocating Tibetan independence. The Dalai Lama -- whose name is Tenzin Gyatso -- has repeatedly said he seeks autonomy for the region, not independence, and advocates the "middle way" of nonviolence. China has ruled Tibet since 1951, a year after sending troops to "liberate" the region from what it said was serfdom under the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama's emissaries have held sporadic talks with Chinese officials. But the talks, encouraged by the United States and other countries, have failed to break the impasse. In a 2007 trip to Washington, the Dalai

NEW: Dalai Lama lauds U.S. founding principles, decries gap between rich and poor . Pelosi calls Dalai Lama "one of the most highly honored peacemakers of our time" Dalai Lama is in Washington for conference and to meet U.S. officials . He won't meet with President Obama, who plans to visit him next month in Asia .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Democrats' top investigator in Congress reacted angrily Friday to a report that the former Blackwater USA employee accused of killing an Iraqi vice presidential guard was hired by another U.S. contractor weeks later. Rep. Henry Waxman says the State Department is covering up "an epidemic of corruption" in Iraq. The report comes alongside Rep. Henry Waxman's warning of a "confrontation" with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over how much Americans should be able to learn about corruption in Iraq. In a sharply worded letter, Waxman demanded Rice turn over a long list of documents related to the contractor, Andrew Moonen. "Serious questions now exist about whether the State Department may have withheld from the U.S. Defense Department facts about this Blackwater contractor's shooting of the Iraqi guard that should have prevented his hiring to work on another contract in support of the Iraq War," wrote Waxman, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Moonen is accused of fatally shooting an Iraqi guard and fleeing the scene, according to a Congressional memo describing the investigation report. He was fined, fired and flown home from Iraq, and the company later paid $20,000 in compensation to the victim's family. Moonen returned to the United States within a few days of the incident, his attorney said, but in February he returned to Kuwait working for Combat Support Associates (CSA), a company spokesman said. CNN reported Thursday night that CSA said it was unaware of the December incident when it hired Moonen, because the State Department and Blackwater kept the incident quiet and out of Moonen's personnel records. Waxman wrote it is "hard to reconcile this development" with previous assertions State Department officials have made in recent days. Waxman earlier accused Rice and the State Department of a cover-up of what he called "an epidemic of corruption" in Iraq in general. He branded the State Department's anti-corruption efforts "dysfunctional, under-funded and a low priority." Waxman further blasted the department for trying to keep secret details of corruption in Iraq, especially relating to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. "Corruption is increasing in Iraq, and the State Department can't keep us from knowing that -- can't censor that -- just because it might embarrass or hurt our relationship with [al-]Maliki," Waxman said at the House committee hearing. Watch Waxman ask why negative comments must be said behind closed doors » Deputy Secretary of State Larry Butler repeatedly refused to answer questions from Waxman about Iraqi corruption but offered full disclosure if his testimony would be kept secret. Asked if he believes the Iraqi government has the political will or the capability to root out corruption, Butler responded, "Mr. Chairman, questions which go to the broad nature of our bilateral relationship with Iraq are best answered in a classified setting." But he was more forthcoming when talking about efforts that al-Maliki has taken to improve matters, commending the prime minister for dispatching Iraqi forces to surround a refinery to ensure oil did not end up on the black market. But Waxman appeared unmoved. "Why can you talk about the positive things and not the negative things?" he asked. "Shouldn't we have the whole picture?" "I'd be very pleased to answer those questions in an appropriate setting," Butler replied. Waxman laughed and asked, "An appropriate setting for positive things is a congressional hearing, but for negative things, it must be behind closed doors?" "As you know, this goes to the very heart of diplomatic relations and national security," Butler said. "It goes to the very heart of propaganda," Waxman said, putting funding for anti-corruption activities through June 15, 2006, at $65 million, "or less than 0.003 percent of the total" spent by the Iraqi Relief and Reconstruction Fund. The State Department said details of anti-corruption efforts must be secret to protect investigators and Iraqi allies. In a letter to Rice last week, Waxman called the department's position

NEW: Rep. Henry Waxman demands documents on Iraq contractor . Waxman accuses State Department of covering up "an epidemic of corruption" State Department says it will provide information if it is kept classified . Ex-Iraqi official estimates the total lost to corruption at $18 billion .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Democrats' top investigator in Congress reacted angrily Friday to a report that the former Blackwater USA employee accused of killing an Iraqi vice presidential guard was hired by another U.S. contractor weeks later. Rep. Henry Waxman says the State Department is covering up "an epidemic of corruption" in Iraq. The report comes alongside Rep. Henry Waxman's warning of a "confrontation" with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over how much Americans should be able to learn about corruption in Iraq. In a sharply worded letter, Waxman demanded Rice turn over a long list of documents related to the contractor, Andrew Moonen. "Serious questions now exist about whether the State Department may have withheld from the U.S. Defense Department facts about this Blackwater contractor's shooting of the Iraqi guard that should have prevented his hiring to work on another contract in support of the Iraq War," wrote Waxman, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Moonen is accused of fatally shooting an Iraqi guard and fleeing the scene, according to a Congressional memo describing the investigation report. He was fined, fired and flown home from Iraq, and the company later paid $20,000 in compensation to the victim's family. Moonen returned to the United States within a few days of the incident, his attorney said, but in February he returned to Kuwait working for Combat Support Associates (CSA), a company spokesman said. CNN reported Thursday night that CSA said it was unaware of the December incident when it hired Moonen, because the State Department and Blackwater kept the incident quiet and out of Moonen's personnel records. Waxman wrote it is "hard to reconcile this development" with previous assertions State Department officials have made in recent days. Waxman earlier accused Rice and the State Department of a cover-up of what he called "an epidemic of corruption" in Iraq in general. He branded the State Department's anti-corruption efforts "dysfunctional, under-funded and a low priority." Waxman further blasted the department for trying to keep secret details of corruption in Iraq, especially relating to Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki. "Corruption is increasing in Iraq, and the State Department can't keep us from knowing that -- can't censor that -- just because it might embarrass or hurt our relationship with [al-]Maliki," Waxman said at the House committee hearing. Watch Waxman ask why negative comments must be said behind closed doors » Deputy Secretary of State Larry Butler repeatedly refused to answer questions from Waxman about Iraqi corruption but offered full disclosure if his testimony would be kept secret. Asked if he believes the Iraqi government has the political will or the capability to root out corruption, Butler responded, "Mr. Chairman, questions which go to the broad nature of our bilateral relationship with Iraq are best answered in a classified setting." But he was more forthcoming when talking about efforts that al-Maliki has taken to improve matters, commending the prime minister for dispatching Iraqi forces to surround a refinery to ensure oil did not end up on the black market. But Waxman appeared unmoved. "Why can you talk about the positive things and not the negative things?" he asked. "Shouldn't we have the whole picture?" "I'd be very pleased to answer those questions in an appropriate setting," Butler replied. Waxman laughed and asked, "An appropriate setting for positive things is a congressional hearing, but for negative things, it must be behind closed doors?" "As you know, this goes to the very heart of diplomatic relations and national security," Butler said. "It goes to the very heart of propaganda," Waxman said, putting funding for anti-corruption activities through June 15, 2006, at $65 million, "or less than 0.003 percent of the total" spent by the Iraqi Relief and Reconstruction Fund. The State Department said details of anti-corruption efforts must be secret to protect investigators and Iraqi allies. In a letter to Rice last week, Waxman called the department's position "

NEW: Rep. Henry Waxman demands documents on Iraq contractor . Waxman accuses State Department of covering up "an epidemic of corruption" State Department says it will provide information if it is kept classified . Ex-Iraqi official estimates the total lost to corruption at $18 billion .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Department of Homeland Security will bypass environmental and land-management laws to build hundreds of miles of border fence between the United States and Mexico, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Tuesday. A border fence stands at Juarez, Mexico. More than 360 miles of fence are supposed to be finished by year's end. "Criminal activity at the border does not stop for endless debate or protracted litigation," Chertoff said. "These waivers will enable important security projects to keep moving forward." Chertoff cited a congressional requirement that 361 miles of fence be completed by the end of the year. He also pointed out that Congress had given him the authority to bypass laws. But the executive director of the Sierra Club, an environmental group, said the move "threatens the livelihoods and ecology of the entire U.S.-Mexico border region." "Secretary Chertoff chose to bypass stakeholders and push through this unpopular project on April Fools' Day. We don't think the destruction of the borderlands region is a laughing matter," said Carl Pope. The Sierra Club says the waivers will affect a range of federally protected lands, including national parks, monuments, wildlife refuges, forests and wilderness areas. The Sierra Club says the waivers themselves are unconstitutional and has asked the Supreme Court to rule on the question. This is the fourth set of waivers issued by the department, and is the most sweeping. Chertoff's orders Tuesday affect two areas. First, the department proposes to place fencing, towers, sensors, cameras, detection equipment and roads along a 470-mile stretch of the border in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. Second, it plans to integrate a concrete wall into proposed levee reinforcements along a 22-mile section of the Rio Grande in Hidalgo County, Texas. The department said it is committed to working in an environmentally sensitive manner and cooperating with resource agencies so it does as little damage as possible. E-mail to a friend

NEW: Sierra Club says border waivers are unconstitutional . Homeland Security chief: Waivers will enable security projects to move forward . Environmental, land-management laws will be bypassed for U.S.-Mexico fence . Michael Chertoff says Congress has given him the authority to bypass laws .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin Thursday citing an alleged claim of responsibility by al Qaeda for former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's assassination, a DHS official told CNN. An Italian news agency says al Qaeda No. 2 Ayman al-Zawahiri began planning Bhutto's killing in October. But such a claim has not appeared on radical Islamist Web sites that regularly post such messages from al Qaeda and other militant groups. The source of the claim was apparently Italian news agency, Adnkronos International (AKI), which said that al Qaeda Afghanistan commander and spokesman Mustafa Abu Al-Yazid had telephoned the agency to make the claim. "We terminated the most precious American asset which vowed to defeat [the] mujahadeen," AKI quoted Al-Yazid as saying. According to AKI, al Qaeda No. 2 Ayman al-Zawahiri set the wheels in motion for the assassination in October. One Islamist Web site repeated the claim, but that Web site is not considered a reliable source for Islamist messages by experts in the field. The DHS official said the claim was "an unconfirmed open source claim of responsibility" and the bulletin was sent out at about 6 p.m. to state and local law enforcement agencies. The official characterized the bulletin as "information sharing." Ross Feinstein, spokesman for Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell, said the U.S. intelligence community is monitoring the situation and trying to figure out who is responsible for the assassination. "We are not in a position to confirm who may be responsible," Feinstein said. Feinstein said that the intelligence community "obviously analyze(s) open source intelligence," but he would not say whether the community believes the claim has any validity. For now, he said, there is "no conclusion" as to who may be responsible. Earlier, DHS spokesman Russ Knocke said Bhutto's assassination had not prompted "any adjustments to our security posture." "Of course, we continue to closely monitor events as they unfold overseas," he said. E-mail to a friend CNN's Jeanne Meserve contributed to this report.

FBI, Department of Homeland Security issue bulletin Thursday . Bulletin says two al Qaeda associates made claim to news agency . "We terminated the most precious American asset," associate says . DHS official says the claim has not been confirmed .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The FBI says it found child pornography on a computer used by the man charged with the fatal shooting of a security guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum June 10. Museum shooting suspect James von Brunn remains in a Washington hospital. In court documents filed Wednesday, an investigator says the pornography was found on a desktop computer during a search of an Annapolis, Maryland, apartment where 88-year old James von Brunn had been living for the past two years. The documents did not provide details about the pornography, but investigators requested permission to make a more extensive search of the computer and others found in von Brunn's home. Von Brunn has been charged with the murder of museum security guard Stephen Johns. The white supremacist was shot in the face after two other security officers returned fire. He remains in a Washington hospital. The FBI also searched a red Hyundai that law enforcement officials say von Brunn left double-parked in front of the museum right before the shooting. In separate documents also filed on Wednesday, investigators say they found 35 rounds of live ammunition for a .22 caliber rifle. Officials allege von Brunn used a .22 caliber rifle, which was found at the scene, to shoot Johns in the chest. According to paperwork detailing the car search, investigators found business cards advertising a USS Liberty Web site that claims Israeli forces "suddenly and brutally" attacked the U.S. Navy vessel in international waters in 1967. Investigators also found business cards for von Brunn's own Web site, which hosts postings of white supremacist writings. Among other items found in the car were a disabled parking permit, mouthwash, a salt shaker and a roll of quarters totaling $7.25. Earlier this week investigators filed papers saying among the items discovered in von Brunn's apartment was a painting that appeared to depict Hitler and Jesus. They also found a .30-30 rifle, ammunition and a handwritten will.

Computer found in apartment of 88-year old James von Brunn . FBI asks for more extensive search of the computers found in von Brunn's home . FBI also searches von Brunn's car; finds ammunition for .22 caliber rifle .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday proposed fines against two of the nation's largest airlines, saying the airlines flew planes on hundreds of occasions in violation of FAA or airline safety standards. US Airways says the problems are in the past. United notes it self-reported its problem. The FAA is seeking a $5.4 million fine from US Airways and a $3.8 million fine from United Airlines for unrelated violations. Both airlines issued statements Wednesday assuring the public of their commitment to safety. US Airways blamed its problems on the difficulties of merging US Airways and America West maintenance operations in 2007. United, meanwhile, said it self-reported the incident leading to its proposed fine and has since taken steps to ensure that safety standards are met. The US Airways case involved the greatest number of planes -- eight. The FAA alleges US Airways operated the eight aircraft on a total of 1,647 flights last fall and winter while the planes were in a potentially unsafe condition. Three of the planes were flown while not in compliance with FAA rules known as Airworthiness Directives, or ADs. The FAA issues ADs when it discovers a potentially unsafe condition on a type of aircraft, and it wants airlines to inspect their fleets or conduct preventive maintenance. The FAA said it issued an AD requiring airlines to inspect Airbus A320 aircraft for possible cracking of a landing gear part. But US Airways operated two Airbus A320s on a total of 43 flights without complying with the ordered inspection. The airline also operated an Embraer 190 aircraft on 19 flights without performing an inspection to prevent a cargo door from opening during flight, according to the FAA. The remaining five cases involve the airline's failure to follow its own maintenance procedures, the FAA said. In a letter to its employees, US Airways Chief Operating Officer Robert Isom called the FAA announcement disappointing. "It is important to remember that today's announcement references situations that are in the past, and in several cases, date back to two years ago," he wrote. "Our team has worked cooperatively with the FAA to investigate and correct any discrepancies to the FAA's satisfaction." The United Airlines case involves one aircraft, a Boeing 737. According to the FAA and the airline, a pilot noticed a low fuel pressure indication while on a flight from Denver, Colorado, on April 28, 2008. The pilot shut down an engine and returned to the Denver airport. United mechanics who inspected the engine found that two shop towels had been used to cover openings in the oil sump area, instead of protective caps. The FAA said the aircraft had flown more than 200 times in the unsafe condition before the problem was discovered. A United spokeswoman said the airline reported the incident to the FAA and has taken several measures to prevent a recurrence, including additional training of maintenance workers. Both airlines have 30 days to respond to the FAA's proposal for fines. In March, Southwest Airlines agreed to pay $7.5 million to settle a complaint that it flew unsafe planes.

FAA seeks a $5.4 million fine from US Airways, $3.8 million fine from United Airlines . Airlines issue statements assuring public of their commitment to safety . US Airways case includes planes not complying with Airworthiness Directives . United plane flew with shop towels covering openings in oil sump area .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Food and Drug Administration approved a second vaccine intended to protect against cervical cancer. GlaxoSmithKline has manufactured a vaccine for the prevention of cervical cancer. Cervarix, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, was approved Friday for prevention of cervical cancer and pre-cancerous lesions caused by human papillomavirus (HPV) types 16 and 18. The vaccine is approved for use in girls and women ages 10 to 25 years and is to be administered in three doses. After the initial shot, the second and third doses are to be given within six months. "The licensure of Cervarix adds another option in the prevention of cervical cancer," said Dr. Karen Midthun, acting director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. "It has the potential to save lives from cervical cancer as well as reduce the need for biopsies and invasive procedures associated with the necessary follow-up from abnormal Pap tests." According to GlaxoSmithKline, the vaccine is 70 percent effective against pre-cancerous lesions, regardless of HPV type. "The vaccine contains two HPV types (16 & 18) responsible for the majority of cervical cancers in North America," said Sarah Alspach, a GlaxoSmithKline spokeswoman. "But approximately 25 percent of cervical cancers are caused by other cancer-causing HPV types. Cervarix has been shown to reduce the incidence of pre-cancers resulting from cancer-causing virus types beyond 16 and 18." The vaccine will be available this year, according to GSK, which did not divulge the price. Cervarix will be competing with Merck & Company's Gardasil, the first cervical cancer vaccine, which won FDA approval in June 2006. Gardasil, for girls and women ages 9 to 26, prevents against cervical, vulvar and vaginal cancers and protects against HPV types 11, 16 and 18. Gardasil's approval has been broadened by the FDA to include an indication for boys and young men ages 9 through 26 for prevention of genital warts caused by HPV types 6 and 11. "This vaccine is the first preventive therapy against genital warts in boys and men ages 9 through 26, and, as a result, fewer men will need to undergo treatment for genital warts." Midthun said. According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention, HPV is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the nation. More than 40 types of HPV can infect genital areas, according to the disease agency. But because many of them are not visible to the naked eye, most people who become infected don't know it.

FDA approves GlaxoSmithKline's HPV vaccine . Cervarix is designed to help prevent cervical cancer . Drug will compete with another HPV vaccine Merck & Company's Gardasil . Cervarix will be available later this year, according to GlaxoSmithKline .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The H1N1 flu virus could cause up to 90,000 U.S. deaths, mainly among children and young adults, if it resurges this fall as expected, according to a report released Monday by a presidential advisory panel. The report urges speedier production of the H1N1 vaccine and the availability of some doses by September. The H1N1 virus, commonly known as swine flu virus, could infect between 30 percent and 50 percent of the American population during the fall and winter and lead to as many as 1.8 million U.S. hospital admissions, the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology reported. The report says 30,000 to 90,000 deaths are projected as part of a "plausible scenario" involving large outbreaks at schools, inadequate antiviral supplies and the virus peaking before vaccinations have time to be effective. Up to 40,000 U.S. deaths are linked to seasonal flu each year, with most of the fatalities occurring among people over 65. With seasonal flu and H1N1, this fall is expected to bring more influenza deaths and place "enormous stress" on intensive care units nationwide, which normally operate near capacity, the report says. An H1N1 resurgence may happen as early as September, at the beginning of the school year, and infections may peak in mid-October, according to the report. However, the H1N1 vaccine isn't expected to be available until mid-October, and even then it will take several weeks for vaccinated individuals to develop immunity, the report says. Watch more on H1N1 predictions for this fall » The potential "mismatch in timing" could significantly diminish the usefulness of the H1N1 vaccine, the report says. "Even with the best efforts, this will cause some illness, some severe illness and unfortunately, some deaths," Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Monday. "But a lot so far has gone remarkably right," Frieden said. "There's a vaccine well on its way to being distributed, diagnostic tests available in well over 100 laboratories, treatments pre-positioned around the country ... and guidance issued for health care providers, schools, businesses and other communities." Among the report's recommendations are for government agencies to: • Prepare several "planning scenarios" to determine demand for supplies and care. • Set up surveillance systems to track information about influenza-like illnesses. • Develop plans to protect the public's most vulnerable groups, such as pregnant women and those with pre-existing medical conditions. • Speed up the production of the H1N1 vaccine and have an initial batch -- enough to vaccinate up to 40 million people, especially those who are at risk of serious disease -- by mid-September. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said the government's preparation and guidance for the public was based on the need to strike a balance "on a continuum of being paralyzed with fear versus complacency." So far, clinical trials for the H1N1 vaccine have not indicated adverse side effects beyond what are experienced with the seasonal flu vaccine, Sebelius said. However, there would be no formal decision to launch a vaccination campaign until those trials were complete, she said. That decision would be hers, she said, and she emphasized that any vaccination program would be strictly voluntary. Pregnant women, health care workers and parents or guardians of infants under 6 months of age are among the most vulnerable segments of the population, Sebelius has said. Adults under the age of 65 with an underlying health condition -- such as asthma -- are also considered to be more at risk from the H1N1 virus. H1N1 preparation guidelines for the nation's businesses and school systems were released three weeks ago. The plans are available at the Web site www.flu.gov. The H1N1 vaccine would require two shots, the second three weeks after the first. Immunity to the virus would not kick in until two weeks after the second shot. The World Health Organization declared the H1N1 virus a global pandemic on June 11. More than 1,490 people around the world have died from the virus since it emerged this spring, a WHO

Panel: Up to 50 percent of U.S. population could be infected this fall, winter . H1N1, plus seasonal flu, could place "enormous stress" on hospitals . Vaccine expected in mid-October, but too late to help many, panel says . Panel urges availability of some doses by mid-September .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The House of Representatives on Tuesday night passed an energy bill clearing the way for more oil drilling off U.S. coasts, but not nearly as much as Republican leaders wanted. The bill was passed by a vote of 236-189. Many Republicans opposed the bill because it would allow new oil drilling only between 50 and 100 miles offshore. Republicans generally want to allow new drilling starting 3 miles from shore. Republicans also objected to provisions repealing tax cuts for the oil industry and what they said was a lack of incentive for states to allow drilling on their land. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a California Democrat, told reporters Tuesday: "The American taxpayers have been ripped off for years on offshore drilling. This bill changes that." Before the vote, Pelosi said the bill presented a choice between "the status quo, which is preferred by Big Oil," and "change for the future to take our country in a new direction." Fifteen Republicans voted for the largely Democrat-backed bill. Thirteen Democrats voted against it. The Senate, meanwhile, could vote on various energy proposals, including more offshore drilling, as early as this week. The House bill would require states to give their permission for drilling on their land. It also would offer incentives for renewable energy, require the government to release oil from its emergency reserve, and force oil companies to drill on federal lands they already lease from the government. Democratic leaders had previously opposed Republican-led efforts to repeal a 1981 law barring most offshore drilling. But they changed course over the August recess, saying their new plans would allow some expanded drilling. See where U.S. offshore drilling is banned » But Republicans say the House bill wouldn't expand offshore drilling enough. Before the vote, Rep. Mike Pence, an Indiana Republican, called the bill "a charade," denying it would do what its backers claim. "This is not 'yes' to drilling. This is 'yes, but,' " he said. "This is 'yes, but no drilling in Alaska, no drilling in the Eastern Gulf, no drilling inside 50 miles,' " Pence said. "This is 'yes, but no litigation reform that will prevent radical environmental attorneys from tying up leases even before a single shovel of dirt is turned.' " Democrats and Republicans traded harsh words on the House floor Tuesday in the debate over the bill. Rep. Anthony Weiner, a New York Democrat, said President Bush's "idea of an energy policy is holding hands with the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, embracing him with a big smooch." When the Republicans "controlled Congress, [they] passed their own energy bill, signed into law by the president. We got into this mess," Weiner said. But Rep. Jeb Hensarling, a Texas Republican, shot back that the Democrats' bill is a "sham" and a "fraud." "This is a bill designed to ensure Democrats' re-election, not designed to ensure affordable energy in America," Hensarling said. Hensarling also complained about how the bill was brought to the floor: "No amendments, no substitutes, no committee hearings. Is this democracy? No."

NEW: Bill passes by 236-189 vote . Democrats' plan would expand offshore drilling, but Republicans not satisfied . Some Republicans fought proposal, saying too many areas still would be banned . Republican representative: "This is not 'yes' to drilling. This is 'yes, but' "

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The House of Representatives passed a $3.55 trillion budget for fiscal year 2010 Thursday night, capping off weeks of acrimonious partisan debate and a long day of voting marked by the defeat of several alternative plans. The U.S. House passed a $3.55 trillion budget for fiscal year 2010 Thursday night. The House version of the budget passed by a margin of 233-196 in a virtual party-line vote. All but 20 House Democrats supported it; no House Republican voted in favor. In London, England, where he has been attending the Group of 20 summit, President Obama lauded the House vote. "Tonight, the House of Representatives took another step toward rebuilding our struggling economy," he said in a statement. "And by making hard choices and challenging the old ways of doing business, we will cut in half the budget deficit we inherited within four years. With this vote comes an obligation to pursue our efforts to go through the budget line-by-line, searching for additional savings. Like the families we serve, we must cut the things we don't need to invest in those we do." The Senate plans a vote on its $3.53 trillion version of the budget later Thursday night. That vote, too, is expected to fall on party lines. Moderate GOP Sens. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania and Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine, who voted in favor of Obama's stimulus bill last month, intend to vote against what is essentially the blueprint of Obama's economic policies going forward. The House budget largely tracks Obama's initial proposed spending plan, with the exception of a decision to drop his $250 billion request for potential future bailouts of struggling financial institutions. Watch more on Obama's budget details » Fiscally conservative House Democrats, known as Blue Dogs, also negotiated with House Democratic leaders to cut $7 billion from the president's $540 billion request for nondefense discretionary spending. Under the House Democrats' plan, the federal government will run an anticipated deficit of $1.2 trillion in the next fiscal year. Their plan promises to cut the deficit by more than half by 2013. House Democrats agreed to extend the middle class tax cut that was included in the recently passed economic stimulus plan, but failed to specify how the cut would be paid for after 2010. They also included language that allows for the controversial procedure called "budget reconciliation" for health care, a tool that would limit debate on major policy legislation. Senate Democrats did not include reconciliation in their version of the budget. The matter is guaranteed to be a major partisan sticking point when the two chambers meet to hammer out a final version of next year's spending plan. If it passes, it would allow the Senate to pass Obama's proposed health-care reform without the threat of a Republican-led Senate filibuster. Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyoming, speaking for most of his GOP Senate colleagues, warned Tuesday that if a health-care "reconciliation winds up in the budget bill, it'll be like a declaration of war. ... I hope that that wedge doesn't get thrown in there." Both the House and the Senate version of the budget allow former President George W. Bush's tax cuts for couples who make more than $250,000 to expire in 2010, and both plans let Obama's signature tax cuts -- $400 for individuals and $800 for couples -- expire as well, unless the White House finds a way to pay for them. Under the House plan, the cuts would expire in 2010; in the Senate plan, they would expire in 2012. Key differences between House and Senate include deficits and nonmilitary discretionary spending. The House budget would reduce the deficit from $1.7 trillion in 2009 to $598 billion in 2014, House Democrats said, while the Senate Democrats say their plan would bring the deficit down an additional $80 billion. The House rejected an alternative proposal put forward by the GOP leadership, which called for $4.8 trillion less in overall spending over the next decade,

NEW: In England, President Obama praises House vote . Budget passes 233-196 in party-line vote; no House Republican voted in favor . Budget drops Obama's $250 billion request for potential financial institution bailouts . Senate plans vote on its $3.53 trillion version of budget later Thursday night .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The House of Representatives passed legislation Thursday to try to recoup bonuses paid to Wall Street executives with taxpayer money. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House members Wednesday announce tax proposals affecting bonuses. The measure passed, 328-93; most Democrats supported the measure, while Republicans were sharply divided. A two-thirds majority among all members voting was required for passage. The measure would tax individuals on any bonuses received in 2009 from companies getting $5 billion or more in money from the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. Bonuses for people with incomes over $250,000 would be taxed at a 90 percent rate. "Today's vote rightly reflects the outrage that so many feel over the lavish bonuses that AIG provided its employees at the expense of the taxpayers who have kept this failed company afloat," President Obama said. "I look forward to receiving a final product that will serve as a strong signal to the executives who run these firms that such compensation will not be tolerated." The measure now moves to the Senate, which is considering a bill to tax retention bonuses paid to executives of companies that received federal bailout money. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid on Thursday failed to get that bill passed by unanimous consent when Republican Whip Jon Kyl objected. Kyl wants "to understand the root and cause of what happened here before we haphazardly rush and approve what we think is the remedy," his spokesman Ryan Patmintra said. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charlie Rangel, D-New York, told reporters Wednesday, "We can't have any concept of we're getting even, but we must have a concept that we're trying to show that Congress ... cannot tolerate that." The vote comes one day after AIG chief executive Edward Liddy testified before Congress that he has asked employees of the bailed-out insurer who took home more than $100,000 in bonuses to return at least half. Liddy, saying he knew that the public's patience is "wearing thin," said some employees have decided on their own to return their entire bonuses to the company. More than $165 million has been slated for bonuses to AIG's senior executives; the federal government rescued the company from financial ruin with more than $170 billion in taxpayer assistance. Referring to the AIG executives who received bonuses, Rangel said, "I don't think these are the type of people to [whom you can] make an appeal to equity and justice. I don't think they really know the difference. I don't really think they've had life experience to allow them to believe the pain that they've caused for millions of Americans." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, said the bill was necessitated by the poor judgment shown by firms receiving bailout money. "We must stabilize the financial system in order to strengthen our economy and create jobs," she said. "We must also protect the American taxpayer from executives who would use their companies' second chances as opportunities for private gain. "Because they could not use sound judgment in the use of taxpayer funds, these AIG executives will pay the Treasury in the form of this tax." A similar proposal in the Senate would attempt to recoup bonuses by taxing both individuals and companies, but Rangel said House leaders decided against penalizing companies because they could simply ask for more taxpayer money. Earlier Wednesday, President Obama also lashed out at the bonuses given to AIG executives, calling them "outrageous." "People are right to be angry. I am angry. ... People are rightly outraged about these particular bonuses," he said. "But just as outrageous is the culture that these bonuses are a symptom of, that [has] existed for far too long; a situation where excess greed, excess compensation, excess risk-taking have all made us vulnerable and left us holding the bag." CNN's Deirdre Walsh contributed to this report.

NEW: House passes measure to recoup bonuses with a vote of 328-93 . Bill would tax bonuses of people in firms that received at least $5 billion in bailout . People with incomes over $250,000 who received bonuses would be taxed at 90% . A similar Senate bill aims to recoup bonuses by taxing individuals and companies .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The House of Representatives voted Wednesday to give the Treasury Department the power to ban future "unreasonable and excessive" compensation at companies receiving federal bailout money. The bill would give Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner greater say on executive compensation. The Pay for Performance Act of 2009, which passed by a vote of 247-171, would empower Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to define what constitutes reasonable compensation, as well as to ban bonuses not based on performance standards. Geithner's guidelines would apply to companies receiving assistance from the government's Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. Democrats provided heavy support for the bill, with only eight from that party voting against the measure. Republicans, who are in the minority in the House, were mostly opposed, with only 10 crossing party lines to support it. Two weeks ago, the House passed legislation taxing individuals on any bonuses received in 2009 from companies getting $5 billion or more in money from the TARP. Bonuses for people with incomes over $250,000 would be taxed at a 90 percent rate, but the measure has failed to clear the Senate. Watch Rep. Barney Frank spar with CNN's Lou Dobbs over bonus bill » Public outrage followed the recent revelation that insurer AIG paid $165 million in bonuses even as it received at least $170 billion of taxpayer money in federal bailouts, plus an $85 billion loan from the Federal Reserve.

NEW: House passes Pay for Performance Act by 237-171 vote . Bill would allow Geithner to define what constitutes reasonable compensation . It would apply only to companies receiving federal bailout money .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Iraq war has strained U.S. forces to the point where they could not fight another large-scale war, according to a survey of military officers. U.S. troops patrol Haifa Street in Baghdad last week. Of those surveyed, 88 percent believe the demands of the Iraq war have "stretched the U.S. military dangerously thin." On the other hand, 56 percent of the officers disagree that the war has "broken" the military. Eighty percent of officers believe it is unreasonable to expect the U.S. military to wage another major war successfully at present. Foreign Policy magazine and the Center for a New American Security on Tuesday issued the U.S. Military Index, a survey of 3,400 present and former U.S. military officers. "We asked the officers whether they thought the U.S. military was stronger or weaker than it was five years ago," said Michael Boyer, who helped write the report. "Sixty percent said the U.S. military is weaker than it was five years ago," Boyer told reporters. The report found that officers "see a military apparatus severely strained by the grinding demands of war." More than half of the officers responding cited the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the "pace of troop deployments" needed for those conflicts, the survey said. The report comes a few weeks before the five-year anniversary of the Iraq war, where a troop "surge" is winding down by summer. The U.S. military is proposing a pause in troop reductions for a period of review before any more decisions on withdrawals. The officers have "an overwhelmingly negative view" of many of the early decisions shaping the Iraq war, but most believe the present U.S. counterinsurgency strategy and troop increases are good omens for success in Iraq. A majority of officers in the Iraq war say some policy decisions have "hindered the prospects for success there." "These include shortening the time units spend at home between deployments and accepting more recruits who do not meet the military's standards. Even the military's ability to care for some of its own -- mentally wounded soldiers and veterans -- was judged by most officers to be substandard," the survey found. At the same time, 64 percent of the officers believe morale in the military remains high. Nearly three-quarters of the officers believe civilian leaders set "unreasonable goals for the military in post-Saddam Iraq." "They believe more troops were needed on the ground at the start of the fighting. They believe disbanding the Iraqi military was a mistake," the survey said. However, nearly nine of 10 think the surge and Gen. David Petraeus' counterinsurgency strategy are "raising the U.S. military's chance for success there." The officers believe "that either China or Iran, not the United States, is emerging as the strategic victor" in the Iraq war. "The United States has been preoccupied away from Asia," said Kurt Campbell, the head of the group that conducted the survey. China's rising influence worldwide predates the war but is part of a "great game under way in Asia for influence, for relationships," Campbell said. The U.S. focus on Iraq "sends a message to our friends and others that maybe we're not as focused on the drama that's playing out there," he said. Iran has gained from the war because of the removal of Iraq "as a strategic counterweight," the report said. The survey portrayed Iran, the Taiwan Strait (where tensions have flared between China and Taiwan), Syria and North Korea as four potential hot spots and sought opinions of how prepared the U.S. is "to successfully fight a major combat operation there." Officers were asked to judge the preparedness of the U.S. on a scale of one to 10, with 10 meaning "fully prepared" and one indicating "unable to execute." Iran was rated 4.5, the Taiwan Strait ( where there have been tensions between China and Taiwan) 4.9, Syria 5.1, and North Korea 4.7. The officers ranked the Navy and

Eighty percent of officers: It's unreasonable to expect U.S. to wage another major war . Officers have "overwhelmingly negative view" of early decisions shaping Iraq war . Fifty-six percent of officers disagree that the Iraq war has "broken" the military . Results based on survey of 3,400 present and former U.S. military officers .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Justice Department on Thursday announced 300 additional arrests in a four-year operation that it says produced nearly 1,200 arrests and seizures totaling 11.7 tons of illegal drugs. Authorities look through seized property after a drug raid at a house near Atlanta, Georgia, on Wednesday. Attorney General Eric Holder announced the wrap-up of Project Coronado, which resulted in arrests in 15 states in the past two days. Holder said the operation targeted the distribution network of a major Mexican drug trafficking organization known as La Familia. About 3,000 federal agents participated in the investigation and raids, officials said. "This unprecedented, coordinated U.S. law enforcement action -- the largest ever undertaken against a Mexican drug cartel -- has dealt a significant blow to La Familia's supply chain of illegal drugs, weapons and cash flowing between Mexico and the United States," Holder said in a news conference. Watch Holder announce the arrests » Michele Leonhart, acting chief of the Drug Enforcement Administration, said the cartel was known for specializing in the trafficking of methamphetamine and for its brutal violence, including beheadings. Authorities said the arrests made Wednesday and Thursday occurred in California, Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Washington. Dozens of arrests occurred in the Dallas, Texas, area where agents with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives filed charges against cartel members believed to have illegally purchased and shipped high-powered firearms to the cartel, which was based in the Mexican state of Michoacan. U.S. officials vowed to indict cartel leaders and extradite them to the United States. One leader, Servando Gomez-Martinez, was indicted in New York on Thursday. He remains at large, and is presumed to be in Mexico. A senior law enforcement official involved in the operation, who asked not to be identified, said he was certain the latest crackdown on La Familia would affect the methamphetamine market in the United States for months. "It'll make a difference not only because of how hard we hit 'em, but where we hit 'em," the official said. Another official said during the course of the investigation that labs run by La Familia had been discovered in Atlanta, Georgia, and San Jose, California. To date, Project Coronado has led to 1,186 arrests in 44 months. During that time, agents seized $32.8 million in U.S. currency, and about 1,225 kilograms (2,700 pounds) of methamphetamine, 2,000 kilograms (4,409 pounds) of cocaine, 13 kilograms (29 pounds) of heroin and more than 8 tons (7,200 kilograms) of marijuana.

In past two days, Project Coronado resulted in arrests in 15 states . Officials: 4-year operation produced nearly 1,200 arrests, 11.7 tons of drugs seized . AG says operation targeted La Familia, a top Mexican drug trafficking group . Law enforcement official: Crackdown will affect methamphetamine market in U.S.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The National Transportation Safety Board began four days of hearings Tuesday on how to stem the "drastic increase" in medical helicopter accidents. Smoke rises from Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan, after a helicopter crash in May. Over a recent 12-month period, the board probed nine fatal medical helicopter accidents that killed 35 people, a development that one board member called "alarming." Medical helicopters "provide an important service to the public" in swiftly transporting ill and injured patients and donor organs, the board said on its Web site. Chopper pilots must operate "safely and quickly" in bad weather, at night or on "unfamiliar landing sites," the board added. "This hearing will be extremely important because it can provide an opportunity to learn more about the industry so that possibly we can make further recommendations that can prevent these accidents and save lives," said Robert Sumwalt, chairman of the hearing's board of inquiry. Watch Sumwalt's remarks at hearing » Flying at night in poor weather conditions likely contributed to the crashes in Texas and Alaska of three medical helicopters that killed 11 people, the NTSB said. The three crashes occurred near South Padre Island, Texas, in February 2008; Huntsville, Texas, in June; and Whittier, Alaska, in December 2007. iReport: Watch smoke pour from a medical chopper crash in Michigan A December 2007 accident in Cherokee, Alabama, was likely caused by the pilot flying too low over trees, the NTSB said. The helicopter was shining a searchlight on a hunter who had been lost as rescue personnel on the ground tried to reach him. The pilot, a paramedic and a flight nurse were killed, the NTSB said. Among the issues to be discussed at the hearing will be flight operations, aircraft safety equipment, training and oversight. Expert witnesses such as pilots, medical personnel, managers and Federal Aviation Administration officials will give sworn testimony on what has been an "ongoing concern" of the safety board, which issued a report on emergency medical services operations in 2006. The NTSB said there were 55 EMS-related aviation accidents -- both fatal and nonfatal -- between January 2002 and January 2005 that could have been prevented with "simple corrective actions." In those crashes, 54 people were killed, and 18 were seriously injured, the NTSB said. The agency recommended to the FAA in January 2006 that all medical chopper operators be required to develop and implement risk evaluation programs, use dispatch and flight procedures that include up-to-date weather information, and install "terrain awareness and warning systems" on their aircraft. A fourth recommendation would require medical flight operators to follow federal regulations regarding their flights. The recommendations have not been fully implemented, the NTSB said.

Transportation safety board beginning four days of hearings . Board examines reported "drastic increase" in accidents and deaths . Nine air ambulance crashes killed 35 people during one-year period . Board's 2006 safety recommendations not fully implemented, it says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The National Transportation Safety Board said Thursday that it is investigating an incident in which a panel separated from the wing of a Boeing 757 while it was in flight last week. iReporter and Flight 1250 passenger Paul Shepherd took this photo of the damage through the aircraft's window. The incident occurred Saturday on US Airways Flight 1250 from Orlando, Florida, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the NTSB said in a statement. The separation occurred over Maryland. The aircraft landed in Philadelphia about 30 minutes later, and none of the 174 passengers or six crew members aboard was injured. The panel, on the trailing edge of the upper side of the left wing, broke loose and struck several windows toward the rear of the aircraft, causing the outer pane of one window to crack, the agency said. Pressurization of the cabin was not compromised. The wing panel has not been located. NTSB investigators are using a computer program to pinpoint the area where it might be and will notify local authorities that an aircraft part may be there, the statement said. The plane's cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder have arrived at the NTSB laboratory in Washington, the agency said, and are being evaluated. E-mail to a friend

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating US Airways flight . Plane was en route from Orlando, Florida, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . Wing panel struck several windows, cracking the outer pane of one . Plane landed in Philadelphia about 30 minutes after the incident with no injuries .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Navy is investigating how thousands of dollars went missing in the rescue of the captain of the Maersk Alabama in April, a Pentagon source told CNN. The USS Bainbridge tows the lifeboat in which Capt. Robert Phillips was held for days. The Naval Criminal Investigative Service opened an investigation into how $30,000 disappeared after special forces snipers shot and killed three pirates, ending the multi-day siege and freeing the captain, who had been held hostage. Investigators are talking to anyone who may have had contact with the money or knowledge about what happened to it, the source said, including military personnel on the warship, Navy SEALs who rescued Capt. Richard Phillips, and the crew of the Maersk Alabama. The NCIS and the Maersk Line Ltd., which owns the Maersk Alabama, have not responded to CNN's request for comment. In a criminal complaint filed against the one surviving alleged pirate, Abduwali Muse, the government contends the alleged pirate demanded money from the ship's captain and led him by gun point to the ship's safe. Watch CNN's Chris Lawrence on the investigation » "The captain opened the safe and took out approximately $30,000 in cash. Muse and two other pirates then took the cash," the criminal complaint contends. It goes on to allege that Muse distributed some of the money to the other pirates who retreated to a lifeboat where they were holding the captain as a captive. See timeline of events that led to piracy case » All three of the other pirates were killed by U.S. Special Forces snipers during the rescue but the complaint does not list any money recovered from the boat after the rescue. It only lists rifles, a hand gun, artillery, cell phones and handheld radios.

The Naval Criminal Investigative Service opened an investigation into missing cash . $30,000 disappeared after rescue of captain of Maersk Alabama by Navy SEALs . SEALs shot and killed three pirates, ending multi-day siege, freeing captain in April . Pirates reportedly led captain at gun point to the ship's safe .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Obama administration has decided to rescind invitations to Iranian diplomats for July Fourth celebrations overseas because of violent crackdowns against protesters in Iran, the White House said Wednesday. President Obama on Tuesday toughened his stance on Iran's crackdown on protesters. "July Fourth allows us to celebrate the freedom and the liberty we enjoy: freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom to assemble peacefully, freedom of the press," White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters. "Given the events of the past many days, those invitations will no longer be extended." The administration had decided to invite Iranians to the celebrations at overseas posts as part of the president's policy of engaging the Iranian regime. In late May the State Department sent a cable to its embassies and consulates worldwide informing them they "may invite representatives from the government of Iran" to their July Fourth celebrations. But in a fresh cable sent to all embassies and consulates Wednesday evening, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ordered posts "to rescind all invitations that have been extended to Iranian diplomats for July Fourth events. "Unfortunately the circumstances have changed and participation by Iranian diplomats would not be appropriate in light of the Iranian government's continued violent and unjust actions against its own people," said the cable, obtained by CNN. "For invitations which have been extended, posts should make clear that Iranian participation is no longer appropriate in the current circumstances. For invitations which have not been extended, no further action is needed." A senior administration official said Clinton made the decision, and then informed President Obama. The U.S. receptions marking Independence Day usually feature symbols of Americana, such as hot dogs, red-white-and-blue decorations and remarks by U.S. officials about America's founding fathers. One senior administration official said Wednesday the reconsideration of the July Fourth invitations is consistent with Obama's comments Tuesday, in which he said he was "shocked and appalled" at the violence against demonstrators. "The president said yesterday how this plays out will affect what we do," the official said. Obama said Tuesday, "If Iran chooses a path that abides by international norms and principles, then we are interested in healing some of the wounds of 30 years in terms of U.S.-Iranian relations." Watch Obama ramp up criticism of Iran » On Tuesday, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Florida, the top Republican on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said an invitation to Iranian diplomats would send the wrong message to Iranians "who are bravely standing up for the same rights and freedoms which Americans celebrate on this day." "The Fourth of July is a day when we celebrate democracy and reflect on the gift of freedom which all Americans cherish," she said in a statement. "The Iranian people are no less worthy of freedom and self-governance than citizens of the United States." Earlier this year, as part of the policy to engage Iran, Obama videotaped a message for the Iranian people on the Persian new year and U.S. officials have engaged members of the Iranian government. In March, Richard Holbrooke, the Obama administration's special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, spoke briefly with Iran's deputy foreign minister, Mohammad Mehdi Akhondzadeh, at an Afghanistan conference in The Hague. Administration officials believe the U.S. will engage Iran at some point to address issues of U.S. national security, including the nuclear issue, but the idea of bilateral engagement is in a holding pattern while the violence continues. "I wouldn't say engagement is off the table, but it is certainly on ice," a senior administration official said this week.

Administration had planned to invite Iranians to celebrations at overseas posts . Clinton: Participation not appropriate given "continued violent and unjust actions" Violence against election protesters in Iran has caused the change, officials say .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Obama administration is abandoning a controversial plan to charge private insurers for treatment of veterans' service-connected ailments. White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel met with veterans' groups on Wednesday. In an statement Wednesday night, the White House said that although the president believes the plan would raise more money for veterans' care, the administration is dropping the idea after hearing the objections of veterans groups. "The President listened to concerns raised by the VSOs [veterans service organizations] that this might, under certain circumstances, affect veterans and their families' ability to access health care," the White House said. "Therefore, the president has instructed that its consideration be dropped." News of the change of heart originally came from Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, who disclosed the decision to reporters while meeting with a group of veterans on Capitol Hill. "President Obama has listened to the concerns expressed by veterans' leaders and veterans' service organizations," Pelosi said. "We will leave no veteran behind." Veterans' representatives and members of Congress have angrily opposed the proposal, which White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said was never finalized. Leaders from 11 veterans groups discussed their position in a meeting Wednesday afternoon with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. "We stood firm on our stance that there is no way to support charging veterans' insurance companies for service-connected treatment," said Jim King, executive director of AMVETS, a leading veterans' advocacy organization. Emanuel indicated that the proposal was "a dead issue," King added. "The administration was quick to say [that if veterans were] going to fight it, [the White House wasn't] going to push it." Another attendee, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America Executive Director Paul Rieckhoff, said Emanuel was quick to come back after hearing the veterans' groups stand firm and tell them, "Let's clarify, it is dead." "They made the right move -- they listened to us. Now we can move on to bigger more important issues," Rieckhoff said. The meeting was very short, said King. Despite the difference in opinion, King said the atmosphere was cordial and "everybody seemed comfortable." On Monday, the groups met with President Obama, Emanuel, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki and Steven Kosiak, director in charge of defense spending for the Office of Management and Budget. The administration saw the plan as a way of raising more than $500 million in revenues for the Department of Veterans Affairs. However, veterans groups saw it is a violation of what they said is the government's moral obligation to treat veterans injured during service to their country. In addition, they believed it would lead to veterans and their families losing their private insurance or premiums rising because of the high costs of treating many service-related injuries. The head of the Senate Veterans Affairs committee, Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii, said Tuesday his committee would "not advance any such legislation." His counterpart in the House, Bob Filner, D-California, said his committee wouldn't take up the proposal either. In a statement released by his office, Filner said the idea is "DOA" and said the budget "cannot be balanced on the backs (or legs, or kidneys, or hearts) of our nation's combat-wounded heroes." The president pushed back during the meeting on Monday, telling the groups that private insurance companies were getting a free ride. He challenged the veterans to come up with an alternative way to raise revenues. AMVETS planned to propose that billings be pursued more aggressively for injuries not related to service. But AMVETS director King said Emanuel didn't ask for suggestions in Wednesday's meeting. A 2008 Government Accountability Office study found that about $1.7 billion in treatment that could have been charged to private insurance never was, nor was it collected by the VA. CNN's Deirdre Walsh contributed to this report.

White House chief of staff meets with veterans groups . Administration wanted to charge private insurers for treatment of veterans . Vets' groups and members of Congress have angrily opposed the proposal .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Obama administration is giving General Motors 60 days worth of financing for restructuring, according to senior administration officials. General Motors' Rick Wagoner, CEO of the company since 2000, is on his way out, sources say. Chrysler will receive as much as $6 billion and 30 days to complete an agreement with Italian automaker Fiat, the officials said. Meanwhile, White House and GM sources told CNN Sunday that GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner will resign as part of the federal government's bailout strategy for the troubled automaker. Wagoner's departure comes as President Obama is expected to announce Monday the latest details of the government's plans for restructuring GM and Chrysler LLC, which have been pushed to the brink by huge losses and a sharp decline in sales. Fritz Henderson, GM's chief operating officer, is expected to be named GM's interim CEO, according to two GM sources. A GM spokesman declined to comment on reports of Wagoner's resignation. A company statement said: "We are anticipating an announcement soon from the administration regarding the restructuring of the U.S. auto industry." GM and Chrysler face a Tuesday deadline to prove to the Treasury Department that they can be viable in the long term. Without such a finding, the government can recall the $13.4 billion it already loaned to GM and the $4 billion it loaned to Chrysler. Wagoner, a 32-year company veteran, has been CEO of General Motors since 2000. Before becoming CEO, he was chief operating officer and led the company's North American operations. He also served as chief financial officer from 1992 to 1994. A senior GM official official told CNN that the White House and its auto task force had "sent very clear signals" that the key to more help was "new leadership" and something that would help the administration see real change. General Motors has been hit hard as auto sales have plummeted. Sales have continued to tumble through the early months of this year, falling 40 percent across the industry and about 50 percent at GM and Chrysler. The companies and industry analysts have slashed their sales estimates for the year, and that has heightened the need for more loans to keep GM and Chrysler afloat. Last month, the two companies filed reports on their restructuring efforts. GM said it needed up to $16.6 billion more in loans. Chrysler asked for an additional $5 billion, and said it would need the money by the end of March to avoid running out of cash. The Obama administration had been widely expected to approve the requests. Obama has repeatedly spoken about the importance of saving the struggling auto industry, and on March 19, the Treasury Department announced $5 billion in federal help for GM's and Chrysler's auto parts suppliers. CNN's Kate Bolduan and John King contributed to this report.

Departure of General Motors' CEO part of government's bailout strategy, sources say . GM official: White House signaled that "new leadership" was key to more aid . Officials: GM to get 60 days of financing; Chrysler could get $6 billion . GM, Chrysler were told to prove viability to Treasury Department by Tuesday .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Obama administration's efforts to help struggling homeowners will aid "responsible" borrowers, not deadbeats or speculators, Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan said Sunday. The plan is aimed at "folks who are playing by the rules," Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan says. President Barack Obama announced the plan Wednesday, saying it will help up to 9 million people keep their homes in a housing market ravaged by foreclosures. But critics, including several leading Republicans and some commentators, said the $75 billion proposal will unfairly help some people at the expense of others. White House spokesman Robert Gibbs acknowledged Friday that some people who made "bad decisions" might end up getting help under the proposal. But Donovan, Obama's secretary of housing and urban development, told CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday that "there are no 'flippers,' investor-owners or scammers that are eligible for this program." "We're going check everybody's income when they come into this program. We're going to make sure that people are paying their bills. And more than anything, we're targeting the folks who are playing by the rules," Donovan said. The administration's proposal would make it easier for homeowners to afford their monthly payments either by refinancing the mortgages or having their loans modified. And it would vastly broaden the scope of the government rescue by focusing on homeowners who are still current in their payments but at risk of default. Read more about the plan South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford, a Republican who also has criticized the administration's stimulus package, called the mortgage plan "a horrible idea." "About 95 percent of folks are playing by the rules and struggling, but still paying their mortgages. The idea that somebody down the street gets a different system, I think, is ultimately something that's going to undermine a whole lot of other folks with regard to paying their mortgage," Sanford told "Fox News Sunday." In particular, he singled out a provision that would allow judges to modify or reduce the principal of loans for borrowers in bankruptcy -- an idea Sanford called "incredibly dangerous for the precedent it sets." But Donovan told CBS's "Face the Nation" that judges already have that power for second homes or vacation homes. "It's only for people who have one home and are living in it or are in trouble where you can't have a modification of that loan in bankruptcy," he said. But he said the administration would limit the plan to existing loans, not future ones, and considered it a "last resort." "There seems to be growing consensus that this is an important part of the solution," he said. About $50 billion of the money would come from the $700 billion financial industry bailout package, a senior administration official said Friday. Nationalized mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will contribute more than $20 billion to the loan modification program, mainly to subsidize interest rates so troubled borrowers' monthly payments can be lowered to affordable levels. But those companies are on shaky financial ground themselves and are expected to report billions in losses in the next week or two. To stabilize them, the foreclosure prevention program calls for doubling their lines of credit with the federal government to $200 billion each. Donovan said 45 percent of home sales in December were "distressed," meaning either sellers were facing foreclosure or the homes were already seized by the bank, driving down home prices further in an already-battered market. "We've got to make clear, here, that a foreclosure hurts every American," he told CNN. In releasing his proposal Wednesday, Obama said it would help both responsible homeowners suffering from falling home prices and borrowers either at risk of or already in default. But it does virtually nothing for the unemployed, who often don't have enough income to make any reasonable monthly payment affordable. And since it relies more heavily on lowering interest rates than on reducing principal, it does little for borrowers concerned their homes will never recoup

Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan: Scammers, speculators won't be helped . Critics have said plan will unfairly help some people at the expense of others . Donovan: "We're targeting the folks who are playing by the rules"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Pacific island nation of Palau has agreed to take in 17 Chinese Muslims held at the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the country's ambassador to the United States said Wednesday. The map shows the Pacific island nation of Palau in relation to China. Details of the transfer are still being worked out, Ambassador Hersey Kyota told CNN. But Kyota said his country, a former U.S. Pacific trust territory, has agreed to take in the ethnic Uighur detainees "for humanitarian reasons" and because of the "special relationship" between Palau and the United States. U.S. State Department spokesman Ian Kelly would not comment on the announcement, telling reporters, "We're still involved in ongoing discussions." The agreement includes some U.S. aid for Palau, Kyota said, but he said those details remained to be worked out as well. The country, with a population of about 20,000, is about 1,000 miles southeast of Manila, Philippines, and about 4,600 miles west of Hawaii. Palau has received nearly $900 million in U.S. aid since independence in 1994, according to congressional auditors, and depends on Washington for defense. The "Compact of Free Association" between Palau and the United States is up for review, but Kelly said any additional aid offer "is not linked to any other discussions we may be having with the government of Palau." The Uighurs were accused of receiving weapons and military training in Afghanistan. Some of the prisoners have been cleared for release from the Guantanamo Bay facility since 2003, but the United States would not send them back to China out of concern that Chinese authorities would torture them. A federal court ordered the men released, but an appeals court halted that order. China has said no returned Uighurs would be tortured, but it has warned other countries against taking the men. Foreign Ministry spokesman Jiang Yu told reporters in February that the men "must be handed over to China and brought to justice."

Country's ambassador to U.S. says agreement includes some aid to Palau . Uighurs are native Chinese Muslims . Palau agrees to take 17 Uighurs from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba . U.S. wouldn't send Uighur detainees to China due to torture concerns .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Pentagon is portraying India as a major customer for U.S. military equipment, worth an estimated $6 billion in the past decade, even as U.S. companies are shut out of a multibillion dollar bid for fighter jets that India is starting this week. In the newest edition of a congressionally mandated report, the Defense Department signaled that it was hoping to interest India in its top-of-the-line and most expensive weapon, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, still being tested. Arms sales, as well as more frequent military exercises and exchanges, are seen as an important ways to cement ties between the two countries. But India doesn't always buy American. Recently, India considered and then rejected a major purchase of U.S. F-16 and F-18 fighters, a expensive setback for U.S. arms sales and the U.S. aviation industry. That deal -- now between the Dassault Rafale and Eurofighter Typhoon -- is a reminder of the vast sums in play. "With a potential contract price of US$9 billion to US$14 billion, this is the single biggest competition in the global defence aviation industry at the moment and offers both bidders a much-needed opportunity in a major market," said James Hardy, Asia Pacific Editor at IHS Jane's Defence Weekly said in a statement. Arms sales, as well as more frequent military exercises and exchanges, are seen as an important ways to cement ties between the two countries. The Defense Department downplayed any suggestion that arms sales and other contacts could backfire and that next-door Pakistan may feel new pressure both in its already-strained relationship with Washington and with its historical enemy, India. "It's important that none of us think about relationships in this region as a zero-sum game," said Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Robert Scher at the Pentagon. "We have valuable relationships with Pakistan and valuable relationships with India and these things can co-exist." Scher signaled that he hoped the relationship, and the arms sales would continue to grow. "I think there is a great potential to do much more," Scher said in a briefing at the Pentagon. "India sees the U.S. as a reliable defense supplier and we have been able to provide some top-of-the-line equipment. Is there some potential for more? Certainly there is. That is for the government of India to decide" Lisa Curtis of the Heritage Foundation, a long-time observer of U.S. and Indian affairs, said the report should be a catalyst to deepen defense ties and possibly lead to a loosening of present export and licensing controls. "The Defense Department offer to provide India with information on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter sends a clear signal that the U.S. considers India one of its most important future defense partners and is willing to consider co-production of some of its most sophisticated defense technology," Curtis told CNN. The Pentagon's government-to-government program of foreign military sales to India have included C-17 and C-130 aircraft, radar systems, Harpoon weapons and specialized tactical equipment. Any consideration of India's role in the region must include China and U.S. concerns about the Chinese modernization of its armed services especially its navy. "The attention given to maritime security cooperation in the report should be seen in light of a series of maritime incidents in which Chinese naval vessels have challenged other countries' naval vessels in the South China Sea," Curtis said. "It is clear that the U.S. views India as a leader in helping to maintain freedom of navigation in the Indian Ocean region and will likely look for ways to enhance India's involvement in maritime security endeavors throughout the Indo-Pacific in the future."

The Pentagon tells Congress it hopes to interst India in its most expensive weapon . The top-of-the-line F-35 Joint Strike Fighter is still being tested . But India recently rejected purchase of other U.S.-built fightrers . Arms sales are seen as a way to cement relations between the U.S. and India .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Richard Nixon Presidential Library will allow access Tuesday to about 154 hours of Nixon White House tape recordings and 30,000 pages of documents that were formerly classified. President Nixon announces the U.S. incursion into Cambodia during the Vietnam War in April 1970. Among the tapes and documents are conversations about the Vietnam War, Nixon's second inauguration, the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision in 1973 and the first Watergate trial, according to a library statement. Tuesday's release is the 13th opening of Nixon White House tapes since 1980, the statement said. The new Nixon tapes and documents will be available on the Internet and in the Richard Nixon libraries in College Park, Maryland, and Yorba Linda, California. Nixon resigned August 9, 1974, over the Watergate scandal -- the first president to resign from office. President Ford pardoned Nixon the following month, saying it was necessary for the nation to heal after Watergate.

Richard Nixon Presidential Library to open access to 154 hours of recordings . Tapes include conversations about Watergate, Roe v. Wade, Vietnam War . Release also includes 30,000 pages of formerly classified documents .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Salvadoran immigrant suspected in the 2001 slaying of Washington intern Chandra Levy told at least two people he killed her, according to an affidavit filed in the case. Ingmar Guandique is serving a 10-year sentence for two assaults in the park where Chandra Levy's body was found. Ingmar Guandique, 27, also kept a magazine photo of Levy in his prison cell, stated the affidavit detailing evidence supporting a warrant for his arrest for first-degree murder. Guandique is in prison in California for two assault convictions. Guandique boasted of his ties to the violent Salvadoran gang Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, and told witnesses that he was known as "Chuckie" -- the name of a demonic doll in a series of horror movies -- because he had a reputation for "killing and chopping up people," the affidavit states. D.C. Metro police and federal prosecutors released the affidavit on Tuesday, announcing they would charge Guandique with first-degree murder in the Levy case. He has not been charged with any other slayings. Watch the police announce arrest » The affidavit revealed that Levy, 25, fought for her life, scratching her attacker on his face and giving him a "fat lip." Guandique said he received the injuries in a fight with his girlfriend. But the girlfriend later told police that while Guandique struck and bit her at times, she never hit him, the document says. Guandique is serving concurrent 10-year sentences in connection with attacks on two other joggers in the park during the summer of 2001. He told probation officials the attacks were motivated by robbery, but no valuables were taken from either victim. Guandique was arrested after the second attack -- exactly two months after Levy's slaying. D.C. Metro police began to take a hard second look at him in 2008, the affidavit shows. He has repeatedly denied to authorities that he killed Levy, and his public defenders have cautioned against a rush to judgment, citing what they called flaws in the investigation. The affidavit details a case built largely on circumstantial evidence collected over the eight years since Levy disappeared, apparently while jogging along the Western Ridge trail in Washington's Rock Creek Park. It portrays Guandique as an opportunistic attacker who came up behind female joggers, grabbing them as they were tiring and becoming winded. The affidavit includes highlights from interviews with a dozen witnesses, who are not identified by name and are instead given numbers. One witness, who frequently exchanged letters with the suspect, told police Guandique had told him as early as 2003 that he killed a young woman in the park. During a taped 2008 phone conversation with the witness, "Guandique acknowledged that he had told W9 about the 'girl who's dead,''' the affidavit says. Another witness told police that Guandique said he and two male teenagers were sitting on a bench in a park smoking marijuana laced with cocaine when a woman with dark, thick hair jogged by. The witness said Guandique thought she "looked good" and told the two teens that he was going to "get her." Guandique told the witness that the three followed her along a path, then grabbed her and forced her off the trail. When she started screaming, he grabbed her by the neck and choked her to death, so that other people in the park would not hear her cries for help. It is not clear from the affidavit whether the two teens Guandique said were with him actually exist. Police have said no other arrests are imminent, but the investigation is continuing. Timeline of Levy's disappearance » Levy's skull was found in the park on May 22, 2002 -- more than a year after she disappeared. A search turned up other remains, as well as clothing later identified as hers strewn down the side of a ravine. Her running shoes were unlaced. He clothes were turned inside out, the pants knotted in tight restraints around her legs. "It appears that Guandique wanted Ms. Levy naked and incapacitated," states the affidavit, signed by D.C. Metro Det. Todd Williams. Also among the witnesses are two

NEW: Affidavit says suspect kept a magazine photo of Chandra Levy in prison cell . NEW: Witnesses say suspect known as "Chuckie," like demonic movie doll . An arrest warrant for Ingmar Guandique was signed Tuesday . Levy disappeared in May 2001; her body was found a year later .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Senate Wednesday approved a bill to put new rules in place for intelligence agency eavesdropping on suspected terrorists. Communication technologies like mobile phones have made the 1978 FISA bill out of date, supporters say. The bill also effectively protects telephone companies from being sued for cooperating with a government surveillance program launched in the wake of the 2001 attacks on New York and Washington. The White House pushed hard for the provision, with a threat to veto the bill if it did not contain protection for phone companies. The vote was 69-28, with Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois voting in favor. Republican candidate Sen. John McCain of Arizona was not present for the vote. President Bush said Wednesday afternoon he will sign the bill, calling it "vital" and "long overdue." Watch Bush praise the new FISA bill » The bill, formally known as the FISA Amendments Act, updates the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. It will: Opponents argued that the provision creating a judicial review of cases against the telecommunication companies is a sham. The bill essentially grants immunity to the telecommunication companies, the opponents said, because all of the telephone carriers received government certifications saying their participation in the program was legal. Obama was criticized for backing away from his early opposition to the bill by liberal bloggers and individuals commenting on his campaign Web site. Before voting for the bill, Obama voted for an amendment offered by Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Connecticut, that would have stripped the language granting immunity to telecommunications companies. Civil liberties groups have vowed to fight the legislation in court. "This fight is not over. We intend to challenge this bill as soon as President Bush signs it into law," Jameel Jaffer, director of the ACLU National Security Project, said in a statement issued minutes after the Senate approved the bill. "The bill allows the warrantless and dragnet surveillance of Americans' international telephone and e-mail communications. It plainly violates the Fourth Amendment." President Bush acknowledged in 2005 that he ordered the secretive National Security Agency to intercept communications between U.S. residents and people overseas suspected of having ties to terrorism. The administration says the program was authorized when Congress approved military action against al Qaeda after the 2001 attacks. CNN's Pam Benson contributed to this report.

Bill updates Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 . Senate passes measure by a vote of 69-28; Bush says he will sign the bill . Bill updates eavesdropping rules to take into account technology changes . Civil liberties groups vows to fight bill in court .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Senate approved a controversial nuclear deal with India on Wednesday, clearing the way for the United States to export nuclear know-how to India after a ban lasting decades. President Bush, who supports the deal, meets with India Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week. Sen. Chris Dodd, a Connecticut Democrat, said the deal would not only "set the stage for a stronger U.S.-India relationship," but also would promote stability in India's troubled neighborhood. "This agreement is indicative of a new era in Indian foreign policy, an era in which India will see all the world's powers as potential partners in efforts to address its own needs and the needs of others," Dodd said. "I believe that this new era will bring increased stability and progress in South Asia." India and Pakistan have fought several wars since they became independent in 1947, and both countries have tested nuclear weapons. Wednesday's vote was 86-13. Sen. Tom Harkin, an Iowa Democrat, spoke against what he called flawed legislation before the vote. "If we pass this legislation, we will reward India for flouting the most important arms control agreement in history, the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, and we will gravely undermine our case against hostile nations that seek to do the same," Harkin said. Before he voted against the bill, he said Congress had not debated the legislation properly. "It was hustled through [the House of Representatives] without any hearings and without a vote in the House Foreign Affairs Committee," he said. "Here in the Senate, the Foreign Relations Committee held just one hearing with just one witness who spoke in support of the agreement." Presidential candidates Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain voted for the bill. President Bush urged the Senate to pass the bill in a statement released before the vote. The bill "represents a major milestone in the transformation of our nation's important relationship with India," the statement said. One senator had anonymously been using parliamentary rules to prevent the bill from coming to a vote, but the leaders of the Senate announced Tuesday night the vote would go ahead. The House of Representatives passed the bill without debate on Saturday. The next step is for Bush to sign it into law. The Indian nuclear market is a rich prize, and the agreement could open the way for U.S. companies to earn billions of dollars building nuclear power plants in India. The French government clinched its own nuclear trade deal with India on Wednesday when President Nicolas Sarkozy signed an agreement in Paris. That puts French companies in the running for some of the same contracts U.S. companies want. In exchange for access to U.S. nuclear technology, India would allow international inspections of its civilian -- but not military -- nuclear power plants. It would also promise not to resume testing of nuclear weapons. The United States banned nuclear trade with India after India exploded a nuclear device in 1974 and refused to sign the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. In an informal agreement between the two nations, the United States said it would halt any nuclear cooperation should India resume testing.

Deal could let U.S. businesses earn billions building plants in India . President Bush backs the deal; he's expected to sign it into law . U.S. banned nuclear trade with India in 1974 . Sen. Harkin, bill opponent: We're rewarding India for flouting nonproliferation pact .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Senate confirmed by unanimous consent retired Adm. Dennis Blair as director of national intelligence Wednesday. Retired Adm. Dennis Blair answers questions at his confirmation hearing last week. The confirmation followed the resignation of former director Michael McConnell, who left the post Tuesday after nearly two years on the job. Earlier this month, President Barack Obama nominated Blair to be chief of intelligence. McConnell had been expected to remain as DNI until Blair was in place, but a delay in Blair's confirmation prompted him to announce his resignation sooner than that. Blair's confirmation hearing was held last week. The retired admiral will continue to advise Obama, however, having agreed to serve on the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. The defense consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton announced Tuesday that McConnell will return to the company as a vice president. He left the firm in February 2007 to become the nation's second director of national intelligence. In a farewell letter obtained by CNN, McConnell thanked his colleagues for their hard work and touted some of the accomplishments during his tenure. At the top of his list: passage of legislation revising the law governing intelligence community eavesdropping and updating the presidential order that outlines the power and authorities of the community. "These documents lay a foundation to provide the IC the structure and the tools needed to continue our work, while expanding privacy and civil liberties protections to all Americans," wrote McConnell. The office was created in late 2004 as part of the effort to improve intelligence gathering after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States and the faulty intelligence on Iraq weapons of mass destruction.

Retired Adm. Dennis Blair confirmed by unanimous consent . Confirmation comes after previous director Michael McConnell resigned . Earlier this month, President Obama nominated Blair as chief of intelligence .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Senate voted Thursday night to extend the "Cash for Clunkers" program with an infusion of $2 billion. President Obama is expected to sign the OK to spend $2 billion more on the "Cash for Clunkers" program. White House aides said earlier that President Obama will quickly sign the bill into law to prevent any interruption to the popular incentive. The Senate voted 60-37 to approve the measure already passed by the House. "[President Obama's] going to want to make sure the funds are in place by this weekend," one senior White House official noted, because of the particularly brisk weekend business the program has sparked. The program under Obama's economic stimulus package pays people up to $4,500 for trading an older-model vehicle with low fuel efficiency for new vehicles that get better miles per gallon. " 'Cash for Clunkers' has been a proven success. The initial transactions are generating a more than 50 percent increase in fuel economy; they are generating $700 to $1,000 in annual savings for consumers in reduced gas costs alone; and they are getting the oldest, dirtiest and most air polluting trucks and SUVs off the road for good," Obama said in a statement Thursday night. "I want to thank Leader Reid and the members of the Senate who moved quickly to extend a program that benefits our recovery and our auto industry while reducing our economy's dependence on oil," he said. The program was intended to run until autumn, but higher than expected participation caused the government to warn last week the program would run out of money without an infusion from Congress. The extension would keep the program going through Labor Day. The House voted to add $2 billion to the program before it adjourned for the summer on Friday. With the Senate vote, the additional money will become available right away. Several top Republicans, including Sen. John McCain of Arizona, raised concerns about pouring more money into the program at a time when the government is deep in debt. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada and other top Democrats had been lining up votes for the expansion by making the case that the program is providing a boost to the economy by increasing weak auto sales, while also helping the environment by getting "clunkers" off the road in favor of more fuel-efficient vehicles. The program calls for the engines of the clunkers to be made inoperable so the cars cannot be returned to the road. Watch what happens to 'clunkers' » Democratic officials said several hurdles were cleared in order to allow the Senate to pass the bill with new money on Thursday night. On Monday, two key senators who opposed more money for the program announced they had changed their minds and now supported the extension. The announcement by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, and Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, boosted Democratic efforts to secure enough votes to pass the measure this week. CNN Senior White House Correspondent Ed Henry contributed to this report.

NEW: Obama says program stimulates economy while getting old vehicles off road . Senate votes 60-37 to expand program with an infusion of $2 billion . Program allows drivers to turn in gas guzzlers for fuel-efficient models . Lawmakers fear program will run out of money without extension .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Senate voted Wednesday to move forward on a bill meant to crack down on oil speculators. Democrats say speculation in oil futures is a significant reason why oil prices have risen this year. But Republicans vowed to block the Senate from taking up any other measure until the Democratic leadership agrees to vote on other energy-related issues. Republicans want to offer up to 28 amendments to the bill on a wide range of energy topics, including increasing domestic oil production. The Democrats want to limit them to two amendments. "This is not some arcane subject; this is the biggest issue in the country," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky. "It's on the floor now. We say, let's deal with it. We're not afraid to vote on their amendments, they shouldn't be afraid to vote on ours. Let the Senate work its will on the No. 1 issue in the country." The Republicans said they would not prevent the Senate from taking up the housing bill passed earlier in the day by the House, although a final vote on that bill is not expected before the end of the week. Democrats oppose Republican measures to lift bans on offshore drilling and oil exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve. See how gas prices have risen across the country » Republicans say the process would not be fair unless they can offer all of their amendments. Sen. Robert Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, accused the Republicans of wanting to score political points rather than pass legislation. "The problem with our Republican colleagues is that they want to debate, not act. ... Even when they are offered what they want, they say no." Menendez suggested there was bipartisan support for measures meant to limit speculation, encourage conservation and provide tax credits for renewable energy. "Why would you not move forward on the items that you have consensus?" he asked. The disagreement between Republicans and Democrats could result in Congress leaving Washington for its monthlong recess in August without passing any measures to lower gas prices, which are averaging above $4 a gallon at the pump. Experts have said lifting bans on drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and offshore would not affect the oil market for several years, but Republicans have argued that the psychological effect of opening more areas for oil exploration would bring prices down. Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-North Dakota, one of the main sponsors of the bill, pleaded for Republicans to help "wring excessive speculation" from the oil markets. He says speculation is responsible for 71 percent of the increase in a price of a barrel of oil this year. Some analysts say speculation has added between $40 to $60 dollars to a barrel of oil. But other experts have questioned the extent to which speculators -- rather than basic market principles of supply and demand -- have driven up the price of oil. Wednesday morning, a barrel of light, sweet crude was priced around $128 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, down from the $147 a barrel record set July 11 and the lowest price since June 5. Dorgan said ending speculation in the oil market would be a sensible first step toward lowering gas prices that both sides of the aisle could agree to. Republicans "have come up with a hundred excuses why they don't want to do that," he said. But Republicans say they want the opportunity to offer "real" solutions that will lower energy prices, which includes more drilling to expand domestic production. See what factors are driving up the price of oil » "The Republicans know that American people want us to do something real, something big, something important about the price of gasoline," said Sen. Pete Dominici, R-New Mexico. "And the only thing that we can do that is important is to release large quantities of crude oil and natural gas that are owned by American people and that have been locked up for 27 years in moratoria." Dorgan, however, said the Republicans are trying to

Bill would allow regulators to crack down on speculation in oil markets . GOP wants to add 28 amendments to bill; Democrats want to allow two . Republicans say Americans want "real" answers, which includes more drilling .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court agreed Monday to examine whether prosecutors can aggressively prosecute illegal immigrants for identity theft if they didn't know the documents they were given belonged to someone else. The Supreme Court has agreed to grapple with the issues of identity theft and illegal immigration. The justices announced they will hear arguments in the appeal of a Mexican national arrested in a government work site raid in the Midwest. A ruling is expected by June. At issue is whether people who use fake IDs to obtain work in the United States but did not know the documents belonged to someone else can be convicted of "aggravated identity theft." Stealing personal identification such as Social Security numbers is illegal, but federal courts around the country are divided over how to treat people who buy them on the black market. Federal law states that for aggravated identity theft to occur, it must be proved that a person "knowingly transfers, possesses, or uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person." Many criminals steal a person's identification to empty his or her bank account or falsely obtain loans or credit. Lawyers for the detained illegal immigrants say their clients simply used numbers picked "out of thin air" that happened to belong to another person. They used the numbers only to obtain work, not steal to money, the lawyers said. The Justice Department argues its prosecutors need not prove "knowledge" that the documents belonged to someone else instead of being fabricated. The difference could mean an additional two years in federal prison under an enhanced sentence. Most workers with false papers serve only a few months behind bars, and many are then deported. At stake is the government's crackdown on undocumented workers, most of whom must rely on fake IDs to obtain employment. Read a report from the front lines of the immigration debate The case before the justices involves Mexican immigrant Ignacio Flores-Figueroa, who worked at a steel plant in East Moline, Illinois. He was arrested with phony Social Security and alien registration cards that had been assigned to someone else. He admitted obtaining the documents but said he did not know they were someone else's. He was convicted and sentenced to 75 months in prison. The court did not act on a similar appeal from a Mexican national who was arrested during a raid on a meat processing plant in Iowa, the largest criminal workplace enforcement operation in U.S. history. Nicasio Mendoza-Gonzalez was among 389 people arrested, most of whom were given five months in prison.

Attorneys for illegal immigrants argue their clients used random numbers . U.S. says prosecutors need not prove "knowledge" that ID belongs to someone . A decision is expected by the end of June .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court dealt federal prosecutors dual setbacks Monday in efforts to prosecute the laundering of drug ring and organized crime profits. The Supreme Court considered a pair of cases involving hidden money and an illegal gambling ring. The justices ruled that merely hiding money headed out of the United States is not proof of money laundering. Justices also concluded that prosecutors had to prove that an illegal gambling ring had laundered profits of its betting, rather than just proceeds. In a unanimous ruling, the justices overturned the federal conviction of Humberto Regaldo Cuellar, who had run afoul of the "transportation" part of the international money-laundering law when his car was stopped by a deputy sheriff near Eldorado, Texas. Inside the car, officers found nearly $81,000 in cash wrapped in duct-taped bundles and hidden in a secret compartment covered with animal hair, presumably to trick drug-sniffing dogs. Police suspected the money came from drug trafficking and arrested Cuellar, who had been heading for Mexico when he was stopped. Cuellar was convicted and sentenced to 78 months in prison. Federal law requires proof the transportation was "designed to conceal or disguise the nature, location, the source, the ownership, or the control" of the money. Writing for the high court, Justice Clarence Thomas said prosecutors failed to prove the reason for moving the money across the border was to hide its source, as part of an alleged international drug ring. "Although the evidence suggested Cuellar's transportation would have the effect of concealing funds, the evidence did not demonstrate that such concealment was the purpose of the transportation " Thomas wrote. Congress passed a law in 1986 designed to prevent the laundering, or "washing," of criminal funds through legitimate enterprises and overseas bank accounts. In the other case, the high court split 5-4 in concluding that prosecutors failed to show money used to pay couriers in alleged gambling operation were "profits," rather than "gross proceeds." The case involved Efrain Santos and Benedicto Diaz, convicted of running an illegal lottery in Indiana since the 1970s. Santos allegedly used a network of "runners" and "collectors" to run the enterprise, and Diaz was a collector who gathered money from the runners and delivered it to Santos. "The money laundering charges brought against Santos were based on his payments to the lottery winners and his employees, and the money laundering charge brought against Diaz was based on his receipt of payments as an employer," Justice Antonin Scalia wrote in a very narrow opinion. "Neither type of transaction can fairly be characterized as involving the lottery's profits," Scalia added. "Indeed, the government did not try to prove, and the defendants have not admitted, that they laundered criminal profits." Scalia noted the high court's ruling would not overly burden prosecutors, saying only one instance of "profitability" would be required to prove money laundering. "What counts is whether the receipts from the charged unlawful act exceeded the costs fairly attributable to it," he said, adding the government "exaggerates" the difficulty it would have to do that. Although Scalia wrote the main ruling, it was Justice John Paul Stevens who provided the critical fifth vote for a majority, and his concurring views will probably provide the controlling opinion to guide lower courts in similar cases down the road. Stevens did not go as far as Scalia wanted, saying Congress failed by writing an "ambiguous" law that only confused judges. He said lawmakers seemed to want a broader interpretation of "proceeds" as the term applied to money laundering. Justices Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy, Stephen Breyer, and Chief Justice John Roberts dissented.

In one case, court rules that hiding money not same as money laundering . In another, justices say prosecutors have to prove gambling ring laundered "profits" Cases involved cash hidden in car, illegal Indiana lottery .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court has agreed to review a civil liberties dispute over the government's power to criminalize "support" of a terrorist organization. The Supreme Court will review a key provision of the 2001 Patriot Act. The justices on Wednesday accepted review of a key provision of the 2001 Patriot Act, and whether it threatens free speech rights of those who would assist non-violent activities of designated groups. Since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the United States, federal prosecutors have pursued "material support" cases against at least 120 individuals or organizations, winning convictions in about half of those cases. Nearly every such domestic terrorism-related prosecution has included that charge as part of the indictment. At issue is whether the congressional law allows prosecution of those with knowledge of "any service, training, expert advice or assistance" to a foreign terrorist organization, as designated by the U.S. government. A federal appeals court in San Francisco, California, struck down several parts of the legislation, finding them too vague to satisfy the Constitution. The government then asked the high court to intervene and uphold the law. Among those charged under the "material support" provision: John Walker Lindh, an American Muslim captured on the battlefield in Afghanistan; the "Lackawanna Six," men from Buffalo, New York, who attended an al Qaeda training camp; several men in Portland, Oregon, who allegedly sought to travel to Afghanistan to fight on behalf of the Taliban; a group of young Virginia individuals who allegedly tried to assist a Kashmir terror group; and James Ujaama, an African-American activist in Seattle, Washington. The key plaintiff in the current appeal is the Humanitarian Law Project, a Los Angeles, California-based non-profit that says its mission is to advocate "for the peaceful resolution of armed conflicts and for worldwide compliance with humanitarian law and human rights law." HLP sought to help the Kurdistan Workers' Party, a group active in Turkey. Known as PKK, the party was founded in the mid-1970s and has been labeled a terror organization by the United States and the European Union. Its leaders have previously called for militancy to create a separate Kurdish state in parts of Turkey, Iraq, Syria and Iran, where Kurds comprise a population majority. In its appeal to the high court, the government noted that "since its inception, the organization has waged a violent insurgency that has claimed over 22,000 lives." HLP claimed it wanted to advocate on behalf of the PKK before the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, and conduct other advisory sessions and public awareness campaigns. Another plaintiff is an American physician who wanted to help ethnic Tamils in his native Sri Lanka. Much of the island nation is controlled by the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which has also fought for decades to carve an independent state. The government claims the Tamil Tigers have "used suicide bombings and political assassinations in its campaign for independence, killing hundreds of civilians in the process." HLP and a group of Tamil doctors say they merely wanted "to provide their expert medical advice on how to address the shortage of medical facilities and trained physicians" in the region but "they are afraid to do so because they fear prosecution for providing material support." The Patriot Act was passed six weeks after the 9/11 terrorism attacks. It included amending a previous anti-terror law to strengthen the "expert advice and assistance" provision, making it a crime punishable by a 10- to 15-year prison sentence. The Justice Department calls the material support provision "a vital part of the nation's effort to fight international terrorism." Officials told the justices the law is constitutional since "the statute in question regulates conduct, not speech, and does not violate the First Amendment in any of its applications." And the government argues lawmakers properly used their authority to address a pressing problem. "Congress has banned a broad range of material support -- regardless of whether the terrorist group claims to engage in otherwise lawful activities, and regardless of whether the support is ostensibly given to assist those supposedly

Supreme Court to review a key provision of the 2001 Patriot Act . Federal appeals court had struck down several aspects of Patriot Act . Government had asked the high court to intervene and uphold the law . Oral arguments to be held early next year, with decision expected by spring .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court has blocked further consideration of a federal law designed to keep sexual material from underage users of the Web. The justices without comment Wednesday rejected an appeal from the federal government to reinstate the Child Online Protection Act (COPA), passed by Congress in 1998. The high court and subsequent federal courts said the law -- which has never taken effect -- had serious free speech problems. The Bush administration was a strong supporter of the law and the Justice Department led the fight in court to revive it. The justices issued their ruling a day after all nine were on hand for the inauguration of President Barack Obama. Retired Justice Sandra Day O'Connor also attended the ceremony. The case tested the free speech rights of adults against the power of Congress to control Internet commerce. The Supreme Court twice ruled against COPA, arguing that it represented government censorship rather than lawful regulation of adult-themed pornography businesses. The law would have prevented private businesses from creating and distributing "harmful" content that minors could access on the Internet. Free speech advocates said adults would be barred access to otherwise legal material and that parental-control devices and various filtering technology are less intrusive ways to protect children. The high court in 2004 upheld a preliminary injunction against the law and sent the case back to lower courts for consideration of the arguments. In their opinion at the time, the 5-4 majority concluded COPA "likely violates the First Amendment." "The government has not shown that the less restrictive alternatives proposed ... should be disregarded," Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote in the 2004 decision. "Those alternatives, indeed, may be more effective" than the law passed by Congress. "Filters are less restrictive" he said, and thus pose less risk of muzzling free speech. "They impose selective restrictions on speech at the receiving end, not universal restrictions at the source." He added, "There is a potential for extraordinary harm and a serious chill upon protected speech" if the law takes effect." In reconsidering the law, a federal appeals court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, again ruled the law unconstitutional.

Justices reject appeal to reinstate the Child Online Protection Act . COPA violates the First Amendment right to free speech, justices say . COPA would have kept businesses from distributing "harmful" content to minors . In 2004 ruling, justice said parental filters are less restrictive on free speech .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court has blocked the imminent release of dozens of sex offenders who have served their federal sentences after the Obama administration claimed many of them remain "sexually dangerous." The Supreme Court has blocked the release of sex offenders after claims they remain dangerous. Chief Justice John Roberts on Friday ordered that the men be kept in custody while the case works its way through a federal appeals court, which had ruled as many as 77 North Carolina inmates should be released, some as early as next week. At issue is whether the government has the power to indefinitely detain prisoners who have served their sentences but could pose a public threat upon release. Such laws are known as "civil commitments." The Justice Department filed papers with the high court Friday, asking that any release be put on hold until the justices have more time to consider the larger legal issues raised in their appeal. Such an early release "would pose a significant risk to the public and constitute a significant harm to the interest of the United States," wrote Solicitor General Elena Kagan, who took office this month. The Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act passed by Congress in 2006 included a provision allowing indefinite confinement of sex offenders. A federal appeals court in Richmond, Virginia, ruled lawmakers had overstepped their authority, prompting the emergency appeal to the Supreme Court. The law was named after the son of "America's Most Wanted" host John Walsh. The boy was kidnapped and murdered by a suspected child molester in 1981. Four inmates brought suit against the law. They were serving sentences of up to eight years for sexual abuse of a minor or possessing child pornography. Their detention was to have ended two years ago, but corrections officials and prosecutors determined they remained a risk for further sexually deviant behavior if freed. The inmates argued such continued imprisonment violates their constitutional right of due process. The justices' actions means the men remain behind bars for now. The case is U.S. v. Comstock (08A863).

As many as 77 North Carolina inmates are scheduled to be released . Obama administration claims many of them remain "sexually dangerous" The men must remain in jail for now .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court has given a girl's parents the go-ahead to sue a Massachusetts school district over alleged sexual harassment by another student. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling allows a couple two avenues to pursue claims against their daughter's school district. The justices, in a unanimous ruling, allowed the plaintiffs two avenues to make their claims -- a 1972 law banning gender bias in education and a separate civil rights law enacted 138 years ago. Lisa and Robert Fitzgerald said their then-kindergartner daughter was forced by an older male student to lift her skirt or pull down her underwear. The parents alleged school officials ignored their concerns and refused to discipline the boy. Federal courts had been split over whether the newer law -- known as Title IX -- displaced any claims made under part of the 1871 civil rights law, called "Section 1983." The Fitzgeralds lost their initial Title IX claims and an appeals court blocked them from pursuing the other legal strategy. The ruling from the justices now gives the Fitzgeralds the right to continue their lawsuit against school officials. "We hold that Section 1983 suits based on the Equal Protection Clause remain available to plaintiffs alleging unconstitutional gender discrimination in schools," Justice Samuel Alito wrote. The plaintiffs allege the incidents happened on a school bus in Barnstable, Massachusetts, in the 2000-01 academic year. The child had told her parents that whenever she wore a dress, a third-grader would make her do things she did not want to do. After the mother complained to school officials, the boy denied the allegations. The principal, after interviewing other students and the bus driver, concluded she could not corroborate the girl's version of events. The principal suggested the girl be transferred to another bus as a possible solution. The Fitzgeralds said that amounted to punishing their daughter and said the boy was the one who should be transferred. The local police department also looked into the case but concluded there was insufficient evidence to bring criminal charges against the boy. The parents began driving the girl to school and filed a lawsuit, claiming the schools system's response was inadequate. School officials denied wrongdoing and tried to limit the case to Title IX, which applies to public or private schools receiving federal aid. The law is credited, among other things, with helping bring equality in sports participation and funding for college women. "Our concern was that the school district just didn't take things as seriously as they should," said Charles Rothfeld, attorney for the Fitzgeralds. "They were frustrated by what they perceived as indifference by the school." Rothfeld said the school's behavior was "pretty egregious." Barnstable school officials did not respond to a request for comment. The case is Fitzgerald v. Barnstable School Cmte. (07-1125).

Parents allege older boy sexually harassed daughter on school bus . Parents: School district ignored our concerns, refused to discipline the boy . U.S. Supreme Court: Parents can sue school district .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court has granted a condemned Georgia inmate's request that his execution be delayed as he attempts to prove his innocence. Troy Davis has always maintained his innocence in the 1989 killing of Officer Mark MacPhail. The inmate, Troy Davis, has gained international support for his long-standing claim that he did not murder a Savannah police officer nearly two decades ago. Justice John Paul Stevens on Monday ordered a federal judge to "receive testimony and make findings of fact as to whether evidence that could not have been obtained at trial clearly establishes petitioner's innocence." Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer supported the decision. Sonia Sotomayor, who was sworn in August 8 as the newest member of the high court, did not take part in the petition. Davis' case has had a dramatic series of ups and downs in the past year. He was granted a stay of execution by the Supreme Court two hours before he was to be put to death last fall. A month later, the justices reversed course and allowed the execution to proceed, but a federal appeals court then issued another stay. The high court's latest ruling means Davis will continue to sit on death row. Stevens said the risk of putting a potentially innocent man to death "provides adequate justification" for another evidentiary hearing. His supporters in June delivered petitions bearing about 60,000 signatures to Chatham County, Georgia, District Attorney Larry Chisolm, calling for a new trial. Chisolm is the county's first African-American district attorney. Davis is also African-American. Davis has always maintained his innocence in the 1989 killing of Officer Mark MacPhail. Witnesses said Davis, then 19, and two others were harassing a homeless man in a Burger King restaurant parking lot when the off-duty officer arrived to help the man. Witnesses testified at trial that Davis then shot MacPhail twice and fled. But since his 1991 conviction, seven of the nine witnesses against him have recanted their testimony. No physical evidence was presented linking Davis to the killing of the policeman. The Georgia Pardons and Parole Board last year held closed-door hearings and reinterviewed the witnesses and Davis himself. The panel decided against clemency. MacPhail's mother, Annaliese, told CNN at the time, "This is what we were hoping for, and I hope pretty soon that we will have some peace and start our life, especially my grandchildren -- my grandson and granddaughter. It has overshadowed their lives." After the justices in October refused to grant a stay of execution, Davis' sister, Martina Correia, told CNN she was "disgusted" by the decision. "It doesn't make any sense," she said. "We are praying for a miracle or some kind of intervention. We will regroup and fight. We will never stop fighting. We just can't be discouraged. The fight is not over till it's over." Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas objected to the court's decision Monday, calling it a "fool's errand." "Petitioner's claim is a sure loser," wrote Scalia. "Transferring his petition to the [federal] District Court is a confusing exercise that can serve no purpose except to delay the state's execution of its lawful criminal judgment." Ten days after the high court refused last October to intervene, a federal appeals court in Georgia granted a temporary stay of execution. Since then, further appeals by Davis' legal team have dragged on for nearly a year. Prominent figures ranging from the pope to the musical group Indigo Girls have asked Georgia to grant Davis a new trial. Other supporters include celebrities Susan Sarandon and Harry Belafonte; world leaders such as former President Jimmy Carter and former Archbishop Desmond Tutu; and former and current U.S. lawmakers Bob Barr, Carol Moseley Braun and John Lewis.

Supreme Court's latest ruling means Troy Davis will continue to sit on death row . Davis was convicted in 1991 of murdering a Savannah, Georgia, police officer . Since his conviction, 7 of 9 witnesses against him have recanted their testimony . Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas objected to the court's decision .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday lifted sanctions placed on the Navy over its underwater sonar testing, a setback for environmental groups that claimed the warfare technology was harming whales and other marine mammals. An endangered blue whale surfaces off the coast of Southern California in July. At issue in the 5-4 ruling was whether the Navy's need to conduct exercises to protect the country from enemy submarines outweighed concerns raised by environmental groups. The case focused on whether the president had the power to issue executive waivers allowing such tests and whether federal judges can issue preliminary injunctions blocking them. The high court ultimately sided with claims of national security over environmental concerns. Those environmental interests, said Chief Justice John Roberts for the majority, "are plainly outweighed by the Navy's need to conduct realistic training exercises to ensure that it is able to neutralize the threat posed by enemy submarines." Roberts said a lower federal court "abused its discretion" by imposing a 2,200-yard perimeter for testing and ordering a shutdown of sonar use during surfacing exercises. But in dissent, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg warned that the ecological damage was significant. "This likely harm cannot be lightly dismissed," she said, "even in the face of an alleged risk to the effectiveness of the Navy's 14 training exercises." Justices David Souter, Stephen Breyer and John Paul Stevens also questioned the Navy's arguments. The exercises have continued while the case was under appeal. Environmentalists had sued the Pentagon over the practice, and a federal judge ordered major changes to the Navy's annual offshore training exercises in March. President Bush had issued an emergency waiver to allow the exercises to go on without the filing of an environmental impact study, but the lower court ruling blocked the use of sonar. That federal judge, in ruling against the government last March, said it was "constitutionally suspect" for Bush to issue the national security exemption to allow skipping the impact study. Military officials argued that the restrictions could hamper readiness in time of war, because new sonar technology is needed to detect increasingly sophisticated enemy submarines. "This case was vital to our Navy and nation's security, and we are pleased with the Supreme Court's decision in this matter," Navy Secretary Donald Winter said. "We can now continue to train our sailors effectively, under realistic combat conditions." One of the environmental organizations that sued the Defense Department told the justices that the exercises had been planned in advance and that the Navy was required under law to conduct more extensive environmental tests than it had. The waters of southern California are home to dozens of species of whales, dolphins, seals and sea lions, nine of them federally listed as endangered or threatened. Federal courts have cited scientific studies and the Navy's own conclusions that high levels of sonar can cause hearing loss and disorientation in the animals. In February, the U.S. Navy demonstrated for CNN its onboard procedures for turning down mid-frequency sonar when whales come within 1,000 meters and shutting it off completely when they approach 200 meters. The sonar sounds like a "ping, ping" noise, and it can be reduced as necessary, officers said. But environmentalists say that the sonar can hurt whales much farther than 1,000 meters away and that the noise created by the sonar "was like having a jet engine in the Supreme Court multiplied 2,000 times, compensating for water," attorney Richard Kendall told the justices. Reacting to the ruling, Kendall said, "It is gratifying that the court did not accept the Navy's expansive claims of executive power and that two-thirds of the injunction remain in place." In 2000, 16 whales beached themselves in the Bahamas, and the Navy concluded that too many sonar ships had been operating in a narrow underwater channel. The service says it is funding $16 million in independent research to minimize sonar's effect on marine mammals.

NEW: Navy secretary says ruling allows sailors to train under "realistic" conditions . By 5-4 vote, Supreme Court allows Navy exercises in whale habitat . Sound waves can permanently harm sea mammals, environmentalists argue . Fleet's safety and need to train trump concern for whales, chief justice writes .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court voiced deep free speech concerns Tuesday about a law designed to stop the sale and marketing of videos showing dog fights and other acts of animal cruelty. Selling depictions of animal cruelty like this amateur dogfighting video may be illegal under a 1999 statute. The justices heard an hour of lively debate about the scope and intent of the decade-old statute that supporters say has done much to stop the spread of profiting from the torture and abuse of animals. But media groups and the National Rifle Association were among those who say the law is overly broad. "It's not up to the government to decide what are people's worst instincts," said Justice Antonin Scalia. "One can contemplate a lot of other areas, where government could say: You are appealing to people's worst instincts, and, therefore, movies cannot be made" showing dramatized depictions of animals being abused, for example. "What about people who like to see human sacrifices?" asked Justice Samuel Alito, somewhat sarcastically. "Suppose that is legally taking place someplace in the world. I mean, people here would probably love to see it. Live, pay-per-view, you know, on the Human Sacrifice Channel. They have a point of view they want to express. That's okay?" He seemed to indicate strongly it was not, and that lawmakers would have discretion to block it. The specific case before the court dealt with tapes showing pit bull dogs attacking other animals and one another in staged confrontations. Watch an excerpt of the tapes » A federal appeals court had thrown out the conviction of Robert Stevens, a Pittsville, Virginia, man who sold videos through his "Dogs of Velvet and Steel" business. According to court records, undercover federal agents found he was advertising his tapes in "Sporting Dog Journal," an underground magazine on illegal dogfighting. Among the products Stevens advertised was "Catch Dogs," featuring pit bulls chasing wild boars on organized hunts and a "gruesome depiction of a pit bull attacking the lower jaw of a domestic farm pig," according to the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based appeals court. Stevens was charged in 2004 with violating interstate commerce laws by selling depictions of animal cruelty. He was later sentenced to 37 months in prison, and promptly appealed. He argued his sentence was longer than the 14 months given professional football player Michael Vick, who ran an illegal dogfighting ring. It was the first prosecution in the United States to proceed to trial under the 1999 law. The divided appeals court concluded that when it came to the federal law in question, "research and empirical evidence in the record before us simply does not support the notion that banning depictions of animal cruelty is a necessary or even particularly effective means of prosecuting underlying acts of animal cruelty." Nearly every state and local jurisdiction have their own laws banning mistreatment of wild and domesticated animals. Several media organizations have come out in support of Stevens, worrying the federal law was too broad and could implicate reports about deer hunting, and depictions of bull-fighting in Ernest Hemingway novels. A number of justices too had concerns, raising a number of hypotheticals, a possible sign a majority of the court remains uncomfortable with allowing the law to be reinstated. "Why not do a simpler thing?" suggested Justice Stephen Breyer. "Rather than let the public guess as to what these words mean, ask Congress to write a statute that actually aims at those frightful things that it was trying to prohibit. Now, that can be done." "You have to look at the content to determine whether or not the speech is prohibited," said Chief Justice John Roberts. "How can you tell these aren't political videos? With organizations like PETA [People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals] and others, depictions of the same sort of animal cruelty that is used to generate support for efforts to prohibit it. Why aren't these videos the exact opposite of efforts to legalize it?" Justice Sonia Sotomayor questioned the distinction between Stevens

The justices heard an hour of debate about scope and intent of decade-old statute . Statute supporters say it helps stop profiting from the torture and abuse of animals . Media groups, National Rifle Association say the law is overly broad . Case is first prosecution in the United States to go to trial under the 1999 law .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court will decide whether it is cruel and unusual punishment for young criminal offenders to be sentenced to life in prison with parole. Joe Sullivan, now 33, was convicted of burglary and rape when he was 13. He is serving life without parole. The justices agreed without comment Monday to accept appeals from two Florida inmates convicted as teenagers of criminal offenses. Oral arguments will be heard in the fall. One of the men is Joe Sullivan, 33, serving a life term without the possibility of parole in a Florida prison while confined to a wheelchair. He was sentenced for a rape committed when he was 13. The man's lawyers say he is one of only two people his age in the world who was tried as an adult and sentenced to "die in prison" for a non-homicide. The justices also accepted a case dealing with Terrance Graham, who was 17 when he took part in a violent home-invasion robbery while on parole for another felony. Outside a death-penalty context, the high court has offered little recent guidance on how to treat the youngest of underage criminal defendants. The appellate record for rapists younger than 15 is almost nonexistent, legal experts say. Child legal advocates say many states lack adequate resources to handle young inmates given long sentences, including a lack of proper jailhouse counseling. Few studies have been conducted on the psychological effects of young defendants facing life in prison at such a young age, said the Equal Justice Institute, which is representing Sullivan's high court case. "We have created a forgotten population with a lot of needs," said Bryan Stevenson, Sullivan's lawyer. The crime happened in 1989, when, Sullivan admitted, he and two friends ransacked a home on Seabrook Street in West Pensacola. But he denied the prosecutor's claim that he returned with a knife and sexually assaulted the 72-year-old female homeowner. An older co-defendant claimed that Sullivan was the rapist. After a daylong trial, Escambia County Circuit Judge Nicholas Geeker sentenced Sullivan to life without parole. "I am going to try to send him away for as long as I can. He is beyond help," the judge said. "The juvenile system has been utterly incapable of doing anything with Mr. Sullivan." Sullivan, who had a lengthy juvenile record, continues to deny that he committed the attack. At the time, state prosecutor Larry Kaden -- who retired this year -- said, "It was a brutal crime, and he had an extensive record. This was a bad, bad crime." The Florida attorney general's office told the high court that prosecutors should have the discretion they have long been given to decide how harshly young criminals should be prosecuted. Sexual battery remains a crime punishable by life imprisonment in Florida. A study by the nonprofit Equal Justice Initiative found eight prisoners serving life terms for crimes committed at age 13, all in the United States. Among them is another Florida inmate, Ian Manuel, who was 13 when convicted of attempted murder and robbery in 1990. The Justice Department reports that no 13-year-old has been given life without parole for a non-homicide in a decade. And although about a thousand people under 15 are arrested for rape every year, none has been given life without parole since Sullivan. Only a handful of states -- including Alaska, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico and Oregon -- prohibit sentencing minors to life without a chance for parole, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. The Equal Justice Initiative says 19 states have laws allowing the possibility of life without parole for those younger than 14. In 2005, the Supreme Court banned the death penalty for underage killers. The justices cited evolving "national standards" as a reason to ban such executions. Sullivan is in deteriorating health from multiple sclerosis and is confined to "close management" for dangerous or trouble-prone inmates, state corrections officials say. His lawyers admit that he has had more than a 100 incidents of fighting and threatening inmates and guards, plus

Justices will hear appeals of two Florida inmates sentenced as teens . Joe Sullivan committed his crime at age 13; Terrance Graham was 17 . Attorneys say life without parole is too harsh a punishment for young offenders .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Taliban in Afghanistan -- whose government was toppled by U.S.-led forces after the September 11 attacks in 2001 -- has strengthened its military and technical capabilities even while suffering heavy combat losses, says a State Department report released Wednesday. Afghan policemen stand Wednesday outside the ruins of a house destroyed during clashes with Taliban insurgents. "The Taliban-led insurgency remained a capable, determined, and resilient threat to stability and to the expansion of government authority, particularly in the Pashtun south and east," according to the "Country Reports on Terrorism 2007." The Taliban's information operations have become "increasingly aggressive and sophisticated," and their ability to obtain al Qaeda support and recruit soldiers from the Taliban base of rural Pashtuns is "undiminished," the report says. But new civilian-military counterinsurgency approaches in the east, particularly Nangarhar, have begun to yield successes, the report says. The Taliban is funding its terror activities with money from supporters in neighboring Pakistan and from narcotics trafficking and kidnappings. Kidnappings of foreigners have increased, the report says. The group also has increased its use of improvised explosive devices, and suicide bombings have become more frequent and more deadly, it says. Quoting U.N.-compiled figures, the State Department said terrorists launched about 140 suicide-bomb attacks in 2007. The number of terror attacks in Afghanistan increased from 969 in 2006 to 1,127 last year, and the number of people killed, injured or kidnapped as the result of terrorism rose from 3,557 in 2006 to 4,673 in 2007, the report says. In the face of attacks by the Taliban and related groups on coalition forces and others, Afghanistan has struggled to build a stable, democratic government. However, it has taken steps to build strong relationships with neighboring Pakistan and address problems such as poverty that help fuel terrorism, the report says. The Program for Strengthening Peace and Reconciliation has persuaded more than 5,000 Taliban members and other insurgents to stop their lives of violence, it says. The shifting situation in Afghanistan prompted the top U.S. military officer to say in early April that he is "deeply concerned" about the situation there, and that maintaining troops in Iraq is harming overall U.S. military capabilities. "The Taliban is growing bolder, suicide attacks are on the rise, and so is the trade in illegal narcotics," said Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the United States needs more troops to hold areas of southern Afghanistan -- the region of highest concern -- and to train local army and police personnel. The two men testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee. The United States recently sent an additional 3,500 troops to Afghanistan, but commanders in the region would like 10,000 to 12,000 more, Gates said. He said he doubted NATO would make up the difference. Although 25 NATO allies and 13 other countries have contributed forces, the bulk of the recent fighting in Afghanistan has been done by U.S., Canadian, British and Dutch troops. Canadian troops are based in the southern province of Kandahar, once a Taliban stronghold. E-mail to a friend

State Department report: Taliban military, technical capabilities stronger . Taliban called a determined threat to Afghan stability . Funding comes from Pakistan supporters, narcotics trafficking, abductions . Number of terror attacks increased from 969 in 2006 to 1,127 last year .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Transportation Security Administration is looking into a report that Louisiana Sen. David Vitter had an angry altercation with an airline worker at Washington Dulles International Airport last week. Louisiana Sen. David Vitter reportedly went into a "tirade" with a Washington Dulles International Airport worker. The agency is not doing a formal investigation, TSA spokesman Sterling Payne told CNN, but it is gathering information to determine if one is needed. "We are looking into the reported incident," Payne said. An aide to Vitter said Friday morning the Republican senator had not been contacted by the TSA and maintains the media account of the incident is overblown. Roll Call had a report in its gossip column earlier this week, based on an unnamed eyewitness, that Vitter arrived at the airport 20 minutes before his United Airlines flight was scheduled to depart. The door to the boarding bridge was already closed, but Vitter opened it anyway, triggering an alarm. The paper said an airline worker warned him not to enter the walkway, which led to a "tirade" by Vitter who "remained defiant." The source told Roll Call the senator left the area before airport police arrived. Vitter has refused to answer reporters' questions about the incident, but in a statement Wednesday described his actions more innocently and the Roll Call report "silly." "After being delayed on the Senate floor ensuring a vote on my anti-pay raise amendment and in a rush to make my flight home for town hall meetings the next day, I accidentally went through the wrong door at the gate," he said. "I did have a conversation with an airline employee, but it was certainly not like this silly gossip column made it out to be." Vitter has been the subject of unwelcome headlines before. In 2007, he was linked to a Washington, D.C., prostitution ring. He denied allegations he had relationships with prostitutes, but apologized for "a very serious sin." Joel DiGrado, Vitter's spokesman, said the congressman would not comment further on the issue. CNN's Mike Ahlers contributed to this report.

TSA gathers information about alleged incident involving Louisiana Sen. David Vitter . Vitter reportedly had angry confrontation with airport worker . Vitter says media account of incident is overblown .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Air Force is grounding more than 100 planes used to support ground troops in Iraq and Afghanistan because of fatigue cracks in the wings, Air Force officials said Friday. Aircraft like this A-10 Warthog provide close support to ground troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. The officials said 127 A-10 Thunderbolt IIs, including some used in the United States, will be grounded until they are each inspected for the cracks. "The inspections are a necessary step in addressing the risk associated with A-10 wing cracking, specifically with thin-skin wings. This risk is of great concern to the Air Force and is representative of a systemic problem for our aging Air Force fleet," the Air Force said. The A-10 Thunderbolt II, nicknamed the "Warthog" because of its unique un-aerodynamic look, is one of the Air Force's older aircraft, having first been delivered to the service in 1975. The average age of the A-10 fleet is now 28 years, but the entire Air Force fleet has an average age of 25 years, according to Air Force statistics. The Air Force has more than 400 A-10s in its fleet. The cracks in the older A-10 A-models and A-10 C-models were discovered at Hill Air Force Base in Utah during routine maintenance. No A-10 has had an accident because of the cracks just discovered, according to Air Force officials. The inspection of the 127 planes will give priority to the planes in the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters of battle, officials said. The plane was designed as a tank killer, with a front-mounted Gatling gun that fires 30-mm armor-piercing ammunition capable of destroying a tank. The planes are now primarily used in Iraq and Afghanistan to protect ground troops in close combat situations, flying low and slow and with the ability to target individuals hidden on mountainsides or rooftops. Last year, the Air Force grounded hundreds of F-15 fighter jets after one fell apart during a training mission. The culprit was a fatigued longeron, a part that holds the fuselage together. Numerous F-15s flying in Iraq and Afghanistan also were grounded until they were inspected, forcing the service to fly other aircraft in their place. The Navy was also asked to help cover the F-15 missions during the weeks they were grounded.

127 A-10 Thunderbolt IIs will be grounded because of fatigue cracks in wings . A-10s first delivered to Air Force in 1975; average age is 28 years . None of the cracks has been attributed to accidents . Planes used in Iraq, Afghanistan to protect ground troops in close combat situations .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced Wednesday that laboratory tests on popular smoking devices known as electronic cigarettes have found they contain carcinogens and other toxic chemicals dangerous to humans. E-cigarettes are battery-operated and contain cartridges filled with nicotine and other chemicals. Known as "e-cigarettes," the devices are battery-operated and contain cartridges filled with nicotine and other chemicals, spiced with flavors such as chocolate, cola or bubble gum. While manufacturers tout e-cigarettes as a "healthy way" to smoke, federal health officials say the devices turn nicotine, which is highly addictive, and other chemicals into a vapor that is inhaled by the user. "The FDA is concerned about the safety of these products and how they are marketed to the public," said Dr. Margaret A. Hamburg, commissioner of the FDA. CNN contacted Florida-based Smoking Everywhere, one of the largest manufacturers of e-cigarettes, after the FDA announcement, and a spokeswoman said the company had no comment. Because e-cigarettes have not been submitted to the FDA for evaluation or approval, the agency had no way of knowing the levels of nicotine or the amounts or kinds of other chemicals that the various brands of these products deliver to the user. That is why the FDA began to test them. The FDA's Division of Pharmaceutical Analysis analyzed the ingredients in a small sample of cartridges from two leading brands of e-cigarettes. In releasing its information, the FDA did not identify the two companies, but said in one sample, diethylene glycol -- a chemical used in antifreeze that is toxic to humans -- was detected. Other samples detected carcinogens that are dangerous to those who smoke them, the FDA said. The FDA has been examining and seizing shipments of non-U.S.-made e-cigarettes at the U.S. border since summer 2008. To date, 50 shipments have been stopped. The products examined thus far meet the definition of a combination drug-device product under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. "We know very little about these devices, said Dr. Jonathan Samet, director of the Institute for Global Health at the University of Southern California, "but to say they are healthy -- that's highly doubtful." Samet and other health experts attended the FDA announcement on its findings. Dr. Jonathan Winickoff, chairman of the American Academy of Pediatrics Tobacco Consortium, said parents need to be aware of e-cigarettes. "It is very important that parents let their children know these are not safe and to make recommendations, or even enforce rules that they not be used," he said. "Children who use these products may also be using other tobacco products," said Dr. Matthew McKenna, director of the Office of Smoking and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "It's a good idea to make sure the child is aware of the dangers of tobacco in products in general." The FDA has been challenged regarding its jurisdiction over certain e-cigarettes in a case pending in federal court. The FDA suggested health care professionals and consumers report serious side effects or product quality problems with the use of e-cigarettes to the FDA's MedWatch Adverse Event Reporting Program either online, by regular mail, fax or phone. CNN's Valerie Willingham contributed to this report.

FDA lab tests on e-cigarettes find carcinogens and other toxic chemicals . E-cigarettes are battery operated, contain cartridges filled with nicotine, chemicals . They turn nicotine, chemicals into a vapor that is inhaled by the user . Product had not been submitted to the FDA for evaluation or approval .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday that says it supports "all Iranians who embrace the values of freedom, human rights, civil liberties and the rule of law." Throngs in Tehran cheer Thursday for defeated presidential candidate Mir Hossein Moussavi, center. The resolution was approved by 405 lawmakers, while one -- Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas -- voted against it. Two others, Reps. Brad Ellsworth, D-Indiana, and Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, voted "present." In a statement on his Web site, Paul said he voted against the measure because he is "always very cautious about 'condemning' the actions of governments overseas." "I have always hesitated when my colleagues rush to pronounce final judgment on events thousands of miles away about which we know very little," said Paul, who attracted attention last year during his unsuccessful bid for the Republican presidential nomination. "And we know very little beyond limited press reports about what is happening in Iran." The resolution, which also "condemns the ongoing violence against demonstrators," was sponsored by Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Howard Berman, D-California, and two Republicans, Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana and House Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia. Speaking shortly after the resolution passed, Pence called it a message from Americans to the Iranian people. "As Americans have done throughout our history, this Congress today, on behalf of the American people, has spoken a word of heartfelt support to all Iranian citizens who embrace the values of freedom, human rights, civil liberties and the rule of law," he said. He urged U.S. senators to support the identical resolution that Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, introduced Friday. Both Pence and McCain have been outspoken in their criticism of President Obama's response to massive rallies in Iran against the results of last week's presidential election. Watch as Obama walks a fine line » Supporters of Iranian opposition leader Mir Hossein Moussavi have taken to the streets this week calling for a new election after the results of the June 12 vote showed an overwhelming victory for hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The rallies also have denounced the Iranian government's crackdown on the protests in which at least eight people have died. Obama has said he is "deeply troubled" by the violence, but he has avoided siding with Ahmadinejad's opponents, telling reporters, "It is up to Iranians to make decisions about who Iran's leaders will be." "It's not productive, given the history of U.S.-Iranian relations, to be seen as meddling, the U.S. president meddling in Iranian elections," Obama said this week. But several Republicans, particularly McCain -- Obama's opponent in last year's presidential race -- have criticized the administration's position. McCain introduced a resolution on the Senate floor Friday morning that he said would be "an expression of support by the government and the people of the United States of America" for those protesting the election results. "It is unfortunate in a way that this resolution is required since the administration does not want to 'meddle' and has refused, the president has refused to speak out in support of these brave Iranian citizens, most of them young, who are risking their very lives to protest what was clearly an unfair and corrupt election," McCain told his fellow senators. Watch what else McCain said about Obama » The resolution passed Friday states that the House: On Thursday, Cantor joined the critics of the White House, saying the United States has a "moral responsibility" to condemn attacks on protesters. "The administration's position that what's going on in Iran is a 'vigorous debate' is absurd," he said. "People are being brutalized and murdered by the regime in Tehran. We have no idea exactly how many have died or have been seriously injured since the regime has restricted journalists. In no way do these actions constitute a 'vigorous debate.' " Cantor, the No. 2 Republican in the House

NEW: Lone dissenter: "We know very little ... about what is happening in Iran" House votes 405-1 for resolution supporting democracy in Iran . Republican Sen. John McCain offers similar resolution in Senate . McCain, other Republicans criticize President Obama's warning against "meddling"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Marine commander on Wednesday warned of a "growing" insurgent threat in Afghanistan, but he said forces would have to be cut in Iraq to send more Marines to Afghanistan. Marines could be pulled from Iraq's Anbar province, Gen. James Conway said Wednesday. "To do more in Afghanistan, our Marines have got to see relief elsewhere," said Gen. James Conway in a briefing for Pentagon reporters. Conway said the Corps' two regimental combat teams -- about 10,000 Marines -- in Iraq's Anbar province could be removed as there are only two or three insurgent attacks a day in what was once the hotbed of the Iraqi insurgency. The U.S.-led coalition is scheduled to hand over security control in Anbar to Iraqi troops next week. Despite the progress, Conway said, he doesn't expect any decisions on troop withdrawals until Gen. David Petraeus -- the head of the U.S. military in Iraq -- makes his recommendations on troop deployment in Iraq to President Bush and Defense Secretary Robert Gates. There are more than 3,000 Marines in Afghanistan, and Conway said that the Marine Corps would be willing to help bolster the fight against the Taliban in that country. "I think that a battalion of Marines in Afghanistan count for more than a battalion of Marines in Iraq, if you will, just in terms of the impact that they can have," he said.

Marines in Iraq's once-volatile Anbar province could leave, general says . Anbar attacks down to a few a day, Gen. James Conway says . Marines could have greater effect in Afghanistan, Conway says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy has moved the guided-missile destroyer USS Cole and other ships to the eastern Mediterranean Sea off Lebanon, Pentagon officials said Thursday. A file image of the USS Cole, which the U.S. Navy moved to the Mediterranean Sea off Lebanon. The deployment comes amid a political standoff over Lebanon's presidency, but the Navy would not say whether the events are linked. "It's a group of ships that will operate in the vicinity for a while and as the ships in our Navy do, the presence is important," Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Thursday. "It isn't meant to send any stronger signal than that," he said. "But it does signal that we're engaged and we are going to be in the vicinity, and that's a very important part of the world." The Cole was badly damaged by an al Qaeda bombing during a port call in Yemen in 2000, killing 17 sailors. It returned to service in 2002. The destroyer and two support ships are close to Lebanon but out of visual range of the coast, Pentagon officials said. Another six vessels, led by the amphibious assault ship USS Nassau, are close to Italy and steaming toward the other three, the officials said. Mullen would not say whether the deployment has anything to do with the upcoming Lebanese parliamentary vote on a new president, which was postponed for a 15th time earlier this week. But he said the vote was "important," and Washington was waiting for it to take place. And a Bush administration official told CNN the decision to move ships to the region was a message to neighboringSyria that "the U.S. is concerned about the situation in Lebanon, and we want to see the situation resolved." "We are sending a clear message for the need for stability," said the official, who was not authorized to speak for publication. The ships "should be there a while," the official added. Lebanon's pro-Western majority in parliament and the pro-Syrian opposition have battled for power over the last three years. The country has been without a president since November, when pro-Syrian leader Emile Lahoud's term expired and parliament was unable to agree on a replacement. Despite general agreement among the factions to award the post to army chief Gen. Michel Suleiman, disagreements over how to share power in a future Cabinet have kept the issue from coming up for a vote. Parliament speaker Nabih Berri's office announced Tuesday that the next planned session has been pushed back to March 11. Berri's office said the Arab League needed more time to break the deadlock. Lebanon has been wracked by a sometimes-violent power struggle since the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, whose supporters blamed Damascus for his killing. The resulting outcry eventually drove Syrian forces out of Lebanon, where they had been stationed since the 1970s. E-mail to a friend CNN Correspondent Zain Verjee contributed to this report.

U.S. Navy makes move amid a political standoff over Lebanon's presidency . The presence is important," says chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff . Lebanon's pro-Western majority in parliament struggles with pro-Syrian opposition .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy is having hundreds of its older F/A-18 fighter jets inspected, including some flying operations over Afghanistan, for cracks in part of a wing assembly, officials said Friday. Inspectors looking at F/A-18 fighter jets have found 15 with stress crack problems on the wings. Some 636 F/A-18 A through D model Hornets in both the Navy and the Marine Corps are being inspected for stress cracks on a hinge connecting the aileron to the flaps on the back side of the wings, according to Navy spokesmen. Inspectors started looking at the planes Thursday and have found 15 aircrafts with the problem. A panel on the wing can be swapped out with a new one to get rid of the problem. The Navy is still looking at the hinge in question to see whether the problem is severe enough to ground the Hornets and come up for a permanent fix for the hinge. Navy officials said there are no immediate plans to ground the 636 planes. This month, a post-flight inspection of one F/A-18 found a crack, and it was determined to be systemic enough to warrant an inspection of the older F/A-18s, according to Navy officials. The Navy also flies the Super Hornet, a newer version of the F/A-18. That plane is not part of this inspection. Navy flight operations around the world will not be interrupted because of the inspections, officials said.

636 F/A-18 A through D model Hornets being inspected for stress crack . Inspectors started looking at planes Thursday and have found 15 with problem . Navy officials said there are no immediate plans to ground the planes .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Navy released nine of the 16 suspected pirates it was holding on a ship for the last few weeks, according to defense officials. The U.S. Navy apprehends suspected pirates February 12 in the Gulf of Arden. The pirates were released because the Navy did not have enough evidence to hand them over to Kenya for prosecution in court, in accordance with a recent agreement between the United States and Kenya, the officials explained. The nine were brought into Somali waters and then handed over to the Puntland coast guard. Puntland is the self-proclaimed Somali state that includes the point of the horn of Africa. The suspected pirates were detained by the Navy after the captain of the Indian-flagged ship Premdivya broadcast a distress call to all ships in the area that it had come under attack by a small boat. The Navy saw a small boat meeting the description given by the Premdivya, and the occupants were detained and moved to the nearby USS Vella Gulf, where they were held.

Navy didn't have evidence to hand suspected pirates to Kenya for prosecution . Nine people were brought into Somali waters, handed to coast guard . Suspected pirates were detained after a captain broadcast a distress call . Captain said he was under attack by pirates in small boat .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Senate was called to order for 11 seconds on Wednesday as the last political scuffle of the year between the White House and the Democratic-led Congress played out. Democratic senators will hold short "pro forma" sessions over the holiday break to prevent recess appointments. Nearly all the senators left the Capitol for the Christmas holiday last week, but Democrats are keeping the Senate in session to block President Bush from making any recess appointments -- a constitutional mechanism that allows the president, during congressional recesses, to fill top government posts for up to one year without Senate confirmation. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Virginia, opened and then immediately gaveled the Senate session to a close. He spent 57 seconds in the chamber. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, announced December 19 that he would keep the Senate open with a series of "pro forma" sessions through mid-January. Talks had just broken down with the White House on a deal that would have allowed the president to make dozens of those appointments if he agreed not to appoint one controversial official, Steven Bradbury, as the permanent head of the influential Office of Legal Counsel at the Justice Department. Bush declined to accept the Democrats' offer, and Reid refused to approve Bradbury because of concerns about his involvement in crafting legal opinions for the administration on interrogation techniques of terrorism suspects. Similar sessions were conducted over the Thanksgiving recess. Webb also did the duty Friday, but he won't be the only senator tasked with presiding over the shortened sessions. Other Democrats -- including Sens. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, Byron Dorgan of North Dakota, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Ben Cardin of Maryland and Chuck Schumer of New York -- will share the duty. E-mail to a friend CNN's Ted Barrett and Vandana Kilaru contributed to this report

Democratic senators will hold short "pro forma" sessions over the holiday break . Sessions usually under one minute long . Move prevents President Bush from making recess appointments . Bush refused to withdraw one controversial nominee after Democratic offer .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Supreme Court delayed a decision on whether to accept an appeal from a Georgia death row inmate who has gained international support for his claims of innocence in the the murder of a Savannah police officer two decades ago. Troy Davis' case has earned the support of leaders including the pope and former President Jimmy Carter. The justices were scheduled to announce Monday whether they would take the case of Troy Davis, but no order was released. The court is expected to take up the matter again in September. Last fall, the Supreme Court granted Davis a stay of execution two hours before he was to be put to death. A month later, the justices reversed course and allowed the capital punishment to proceed, but a federal appeals court issued another stay. The high court's latest delay means Davis will continue to sit on death row. Watch a report on Davis' long fight » His supporters Monday delivered about 60,000 signatures in petitions to Chatham County, Georgia, District Attorney Larry Chisolm, calling for a new trial. "This delay is an indication that the Supreme Court is concerned by the gravity of Troy Davis' innocence claims," said Laura Moye, director of Amnesty International USA's Death Penalty Abolition Campaign. "We will continue to call on all authorities, including the Supreme Court, to finally hear the evidence that has motivated hundreds of thousands of people worldwide to raise their voices and demand justice." Davis has always maintained his innocence in the 1989 killing of Officer Mark MacPhail. Witnesses claimed Davis, then 19, and two others were harassing a homeless man in a Burger King restaurant parking lot when the off-duty officer arrived to help the man. Witnesses testified at trial that Davis then shot MacPhail twice and fled. But since his 1991 conviction, seven of the nine witnesses against him have recanted their testimony. No physical evidence was presented linking Davis to the killing of the police officer. The Georgia Pardons and Parole Board last year held closed-door hearings and reinterviewed Davis and the witnesses. The panel decided against clemency. MacPhail's mother, Annaliese, told CNN at the time, "This is what we were hoping for, and I hope pretty soon that we will have some peace and start our life, especially my grandchildren -- my grandson and granddaughter. It has overshadowed their lives." After the justices in October refused to grant a stay of execution, Davis' sister, Martina Correia, told CNN she was "disgusted" by the decision. "It doesn't make any sense," she said. "We are praying for a miracle or some kind of intervention. We will regroup and fight. We will never stop fighting. We just can't be discouraged. The fight is not over 'til it's over." Ten days after the high court refused last October to intervene, a federal appeals court in Georgia granted a temporary stay of execution. Since then, further appeals by Davis' legal team have dragged on for eight months. Prominent figures ranging from the pope to the musical group Indigo Girls have asked Georgia to grant Davis a new trial. Other supporters include celebrities Susan Sarandon and Harry Belafonte; world leaders such as former President Jimmy Carter and former Archbishop Desmond Tutu of Cape Town, South Africa; and former and current U.S. lawmakers Bob Barr, Carol Moseley Braun and John Lewis.

Supreme Court ends session without hearing Troy Davis' appeal . Davis is on Georgia's death row; says he's innocent . Davis was convicted in 1991 of murdering of off-duty Savannah police officer . Seven of the nine witnesses against Davis have recanted .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Supreme Court's only black justice was the target of a racially motivated threat by an Ohio man who has been indicted in Cleveland, Justice Department officials announced Wednesday. Racially motivated threats were made against Justice Clarence Thomas, according to a federal indictment. An eight-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury charges David Tuason of Pepper Pike, Ohio, with making multiple threats against Justice Clarence Thomas and with threatening to blow up the Supreme Court building. Tuason had made the threats in e-mails and mailed letters to the Supreme Court, as well as to Thomas personally, according to a source close to the case. Tuason "engaged in an elaborate scheme of sending racially motivated threatening communications ... intended to threaten and intimidate with bodily injury African-American males known to affiliate with white females," said U.S. Attorney Frank Filiuzzi Wednesday in Cleveland. "The indictment alleges that an associate justice of the Supreme Court, athletes, and entertainers received threatening communications," Filiuzzi said. Thomas's wife is white. "The indictment also alleges that at times, children of mixed racial parents were also targeted," the prosecutor said. The indictment says that "Tuason, at times, threatened to blow up the facility or building in which the targeted victim was located." If Tuason is found guilty, he faces up to 10 years in prison for the count targeting Thomas and five years imprisonment for each of the other counts. E-mail to a friend CNN's Bill Mears contributed to this report.

Justice Clarence Thomas received racially motivated threats, indictment says . David Tuason also threatened to blow up Supreme Court building, indictment says . Indictment: Tuason threatened black males known to affiliate with white females . Children of mixed-race parents also received threats .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday froze the U.S. assets of eight members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, which it has deemed a narco-terrorist organization. The Treasury's action, termed a "designation," also prohibited Americans from conducting business with FARC. "Today's designation exposes eight 'International Commission members' of the FARC," said Adam Szubin, director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. "Through their service to the FARC as international representatives and negotiators, these persons provide material support to a narco-terrorist organization." The organization, comprised of Colombian leftist rebels, is best known as FARC, its Spanish acronym. The eight in Tuesday's designation represent the FARC in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Venezuela, Panama, Mexico and Canada, the Treasury Department alleged. "As representatives of the FARC and members of its International Commission, these individuals work abroad to obtain recruits, support and protection for the FARC's acts of terrorism," the department said in a written statement. "Some are also themselves violent criminals." One, Jairo Alfonse Lesmes Bulla, was arrested in August for allegedly plotting the assassinations of some South American officials, Treasury said. Bulla represents FARC in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay, according to the department. Another, Orlay Jurado Palomino, who represents FARC in Venezuela, is wanted in Colombia on charges of kidnapping, rebellion and terrorism, the department said. And Francisco Antonio Cadena Collazos, who represents FARC in Brazil, was arrested in August 2005 at the request of Colombia on charges of rebellion, the Treasury statement said. A fourth, Nubia Calderon de Trujillo, was recently granted asylum by Nicaragua, the department said. The other four are Ovidio Salinas Perez; Jorge Davalos Torres; Efrain Pablo Rejo Freire; and Liliana Lopez Palacios, according to the Treasury statement.

Treasury Department targets members of Colombia rebel group . The group, known as FARC, has been deemed a narco-terrorist organization . Action also prohibits Americans from doing business with FARC .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. attorney general is trying to prevent immigration authorities from sending a Muslim woman to her home country, where she was a victim of female genital mutilation. Attorney General Michael Mukasey ordered an immigration court to reconsider an African woman's case. In a stinging order overriding federal immigration courts, Mukasey blasted a decision that said a 28-year-old citizen and native of Mali should be expelled "because her genitalia already had been mutilated [so] she had no basis to fear future persecution if returned to her home country." Calling the rationale "flawed," Mukasey sent the case back to the Board of Immigration Appeals with orders to reconsider. The woman, a native of Mali, begged the court not to send her back to her Bambara tribe. The 28-year-old said if she returned and had a daughter, the child also would be subject to mutilation. The woman also said she faced forced marriage if she had to go home. Mukasey cited what he concluded were two significant factual errors in the court's rejection of her appeal. "Female genital mutilation is not necessarily a one-time event," Mukasey said. He noted that the board in a previous case had granted asylum in to one woman whose "vaginal opening was sewn shut approximately five times after being opened to allow for sexual intercourse and child birth." He also concluded that the Board of Immigration Appeals was wrong to assume that the woman "must fear persecution in exactly the same form [namely, repeat female genital mutilation] to qualify for relief." Mukasey had been urged to look into the matter by angered members of Congress in the wake of the January decision. "This recent action taken by the Board of Immigration Appeals is a step backward for the rights of women worldwide," declared Rep. John Conyers, D-Michigan, in a January letter. "Female genital mutilation is a gross violation of a woman's human rights and has traditionally been grounds for the granting of an asylum claim," Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-California, said in the letter. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, issued a statement applauding Mukasey's action, and declaring female genital mutilation a "barbaric practice widely regarded as a human rights abuse." The Justice Department acknowledged it is extraordinarily rare for an attorney general to jump into a relatively low-level immigration case. The immigration courts decide about 40,000 cases a year, and an attorney general has issued an opinion on a case only three times in the past three years. Female genital mutilation is common in parts of Africa, Asia and in some Arab countries, according to the United Nations. The operation is viewed by some ethnic groups as a means to control a woman's sexuality and is sometimes a prerequisite for marriage or the right to inherit. The procedure can cause tissue injury, severe infection and fever, among other complications. The U.N. has recorded cases in which hemorrhaging and infection lead to death.

Court ruled that because woman already had surgery, she should not get asylum . In rare move, Attorney General said court's ruling was "flawed" Michael Mukasey ordered court to reconsider its ruling . Mali woman said she fears any daughter she had would be subject to mutilation .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. government has charged an international arms dealer with conspiring to sell a rebel group millions of dollars in weapons "to be used to kill Americans in Colombia," federal prosecutors announced Tuesday. Viktor Bout is accused of selling missiles, rockets and other weapons to FARC, a Colombian rebel group. Viktor Bout, who was recently captured in Thailand, had agreed to sell the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) surface-to-air missiles, armor-piercing rocket launchers, "ultralight" airplanes, unmanned aerial vehicles, and other weapons, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release. There was no immediate public response from Bout, who remains in custody in Thailand. Federal authorities unsealed an indictment charging Bout with four terrorism offenses: conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals, conspiracy to kill U.S. officers or employees, conspiracy to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile, and conspiracy to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization. FARC is designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. Justice Department officials said they are seeking Bout's extradition to the United States. The indictment alleges that Bout made agreements with FARC between November 2007 and March of this year. In their news release, federal prosecutors said Bout agreed to sell weapons "to two confidential sources" working with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, who had "represented that they were acquiring these weapons for the FARC, with the specific understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack United States helicopters in Colombia." The news release also refers to a "covertly recorded meeting in Thailand on March 6, 2008." "With the unsealing of this indictment, we are one step closer to ensuring Bout has delivered his last load of high-powered weaponry and armed his final terrorist," DEA Acting Administrator Michele M. Loenhart said in the news release. Attorney General Michael Mukasey last month singled out Bout as a leading example of a new breed of organized crime leaders who operate across international boundaries to amass wealth without regard to political ideology. "Viktor Bout has long been considered by the international community as one of the world's most prolific arms traffickers," U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia said in the news release Tuesday. Bout's assets in the United States were frozen in 2004 after he allegedly shipped weapons to Liberia in violation of U.S. government restrictions.

Viktor Bout offered to sell surface-to-air missiles, rockets to FARC . Arms dealer captured in Thailand. U.S. seeks extradition . U.S. says Bout is an example of a new breed of organized crime leaders .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. has restored Fulbright scholarships to seven Gaza-based students, saying it erred last week when it rescinded the awards because of travel restrictions that Israel imposes on the Palestinian territory. Student Hadeel Abukwaik, 23, says she hopes to have an exit visa to leave Gaza for the U.S. by August. In e-mails to the students on Sunday, the U.S. Consulate in Jerusalem said the United States was working with Israeli authorities to let them leave the Hamas-ruled zone to study at American universities. The scholarships were reinstated after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice expressed outrage about the initial decision, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Monday. McCormack said the initial decision was partly the result of a "faulty decision-making process" by the State Department. "The secretary saw it when it got to her level. She said, 'Fix it,'" McCormack said. "We hope that it has been fixed and that we are working with the Israelis to get these exit permits so that these individuals, again, can have a visa interview." Watch how the students learned about the scholarship loss » U.S. officials had said the scholarships were rescinded because Israel had denied them exit visas. But McCormack said Monday that U.S. authorities did not take up the matter with Israel until after the matter became public. Israel, which has been criticized for banning hundreds of students from leaving Gaza to study abroad, said it considers each application individually. Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev indicated Sunday that his country would be willing to grant the students visas. "This can happen," Regev said. "No one has to pressure Israel on this issue. We have an interest. A real interest." Citing security concerns, Israel imposed an embargo on the movement of people and goods from Gaza after Islamic militant group Hamas took over the territory last year. Palestinians can leave Gaza only with Israeli permission. Hamas has refused to recognize Israel's right to exist, and Israel, the United States and the European Union have designated it a terrorist organization. McCormack said the seven Gaza Fulbright students must be interviewed by Israeli authorities before they can get visas to the United States. "Should they have a successful visa interview -- and by law I can't prejudge an outcome of a visa interview -- then they would be able to come to the United States and pursue their program," he said. If the seven are allowed to leave, it would be the first time Israel has let students do so from Gaza since January, according to Palestinian advocacy group Gisha. One of the Gaza Fulbright scholars, Hadeel Abukwaik, 23, said she "laughed like crazy" from sheer joy when she received Sunday's e-mail. "I was really hoping for this, but I didn't want to want it too much," the software engineering student said by phone Monday. "I didn't want to be disappointed again. "This is really good news." Fulbright scholarships are awarded on the basis of academic merit and leadership potential under the U.S. government-funded Fulbright program, which was started in 1946. The scholarships allow U.S. citizens and foreign nationals to study and teach abroad to promote the "mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries of the world." More than 279,000 participants have been chosen for Fulbright scholarships. Abukwaik said the e-mail she received Sunday gave no indication about when the students might be able to travel. She is waiting to hear back from several universities, including ones in California and Florida. She said academic programs start in August and she hopes to have a visa to leave Gaza by then. CNN's Atika Shubert in Gaza City and Elise Labott in Washington contributed to this report.

NEW: State Department says U.S. erred when it rescinded scholarships . U.S. tells students it is trying to persuade Israel to let them leave Gaza . U.S. cited Israeli travel restrictions on territory when it rescinded awards last week . Israeli spokesman indicates his country would be willing to grant visas .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The U.S. military hopes to kill or capture some 50 Afghan drug traffickers with financial ties to the Taliban in an effort to shut down one of the insurgency's biggest sources of revenue, a U.S. Senate report says. Afghan men smoke heroin in the city of Herat on August 7, 2009. The new plan is the first time the U.S. military has been directly involved in anti-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan, and commanders say it is an essential part of the overall plan to stabilize the country, which is under heavy Taliban influence. Until now the U.S. military has left the eradication programs to other U.S. agencies and the Afghan military, keeping its "most wanted" list to insurgent leaders tied to bomb making, weapons smuggling or facilitating foreign fighters into the country. "The change is dramatic for a military that once ignored the drug trade flourishing in front of its eyes," according to the report. "No longer are U.S. commanders arguing that going after the drug lords is not part of their mandate." It does not name the 50 targets, but says they are on a list of 367 names of Taliban and other insurgents targeted by the U.S. military. "Some" of the 50 have already been apprehended or killed, according to a senior military official. The official would not quantify the amount further and would not speak on the record because of the sensitive nature of the issue. The yet-to-be released report was prepared by staff for members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. A copy was provided to CNN. It is based on testimony by U.S. military officials to the committee. Bush-era efforts by the United States and the U.S.-trained Afghan Army to eliminate poppy farms did very little to solve the problem, with numerous farmers' crops flourishing while other farmers were left with no source of income and bitterness toward the Afghan government, the report concludes. It criticizes former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld for failing to push forward on a military role in drug eradication even after being shown proof of the connection between the drug lords and the Taliban. The change in the U.S. military's approach to fighting the drug war came last fall after the United States told NATO members that the drug trade was a threat to NATO troops because there was a direct connection between it and Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. "There is what we call a nexus of insurgency. There's a very broad range of militant groups that are combined with the criminality, with the narco-trafficking system, with corruption, that form a threat and a challenge to the future of that great country," then-U.S. commander in Afghanistan Gen. David McKiernan told reporters at the Pentagon last October. But with a new approach to the war by the Obama administration, the United States has started attacking the drug problem head on. According to the report, this year U.S. and NATO combat forces started attacking militants, drug labs and buildings connected to insurgents with ties to drug lords for the first time since the start of the war in 2001. Referring to people tied to narcotics and militants, the report says, "The military places no restrictions on the use of force with these selected targets, which means they can be killed or captured on the battlefield." The Pentagon's spokesman said the effort is still focused on fighting terrorism. "There is a well-established link [between] the drug trade and financing of the insurgency and terrorism," said spokesman Bryan Whitman. "It's important to delineate that we target terrorists that are connected to the drug trade. ... Terrorist do interface with drug networks and we know they provide finance for the insurgency, and it's this nexus that creates the security and force-protection issues that make them a legitimate target." A major U.S. Marine offensive against the Taliban was launched last month in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, home to the majority of the poppy farms and opium trade. The report says the Taliban make about $70 million a year on the drug trade. The report concedes that counter-narcotics alone

Report: U.S. military pursuing 50 Afghan drug traffickers tied to Taliban . New initiative strives to shut down big revenue source for insurgency . Report: "The change is dramatic for a military that once ignored the drug trade," U.S., NATO forces now targeting insurgents tied to drug lords, report says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United Kingdom has MI-5, which roots out spies and terrorists in the British Isles. The RAND Corporation said one option would be for domestic intelligence to operate under the FBI. Canada has CSIS -- the Canadian Security Intelligence Service. Now Congress is asking: Should the U.S. have its own domestic intelligence agency? On Monday, at the request of Congress, the RAND Corporation outlined the pros and cons of establishing a domestic intelligence agency. It also discussed different ways to organize a new entity, either as part of an existing department or as a new agency. But there's one thing you won't find in the report -- a recommendation on what to do. "We were not asked to make a recommendation, and this assessment does not do so," the report says. Instead, says RAND's Gregory Treverton, the report provides a "framework" for policymakers to use when deciding whether and how to reorganize counter-intelligence efforts at home. RAND is a nonprofit think tank seeking to help improve policy and decision making through objective research and analysis. Collecting intelligence domestically always has been a sensitive issue, at least partially because of episodic abuses by the government, notably against civil rights leaders, unions, antiwar organizations or even communists and hate groups. But the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks renewed calls for increased domestic intelligence to prevent future attacks. Critics said that in the lead-up to the attacks, the FBI devalued counterterrorism agents and failed to heed signs that an attack was imminent. "If you didn't carry a gun, you didn't count so much," Treverton said. After the attacks, the FBI moved to transform its primary mission from law enforcement to counterterrorism intelligence and prevention. It now focuses on terrorism through its National Security Branch and the National Counterterrorism Center. The RAND report focuses on two options to the current system. In one, a new agency would be created using intelligence agencies from the FBI, Department of Homeland Security and intelligence community. A second option is to create an "agency within an agency" in the FBI or DHS. The first option would result in an organization with a clear, unambiguous mission, and might be able to draw on a more diverse recruitment pool, such as linguists and historians who are not normally attracted to law enforcement. On the flip side, such massive reorganizations typically involve political compromises that could affect its performance. The second option -- an "agency within an agency" -- could involve less short-term disruption, but could be hindered by a "lack of clarity of a single mission," the report says. RAND also suggests a range of actions short of reorganization that could improve domestic intelligence gathering, such as increasing resources, improving leadership and changing bureaucratic cultures. The report does not assess the FBI's performance since 9/11, Treverton said, but he believes Congress should seek an independent assessment. A panel of experts that RAND convened guessed that the probability of a terrorist attack had decreased about one-third since the September 11, 2001. But "they were not enthusiastic about alternatives" to current counterterrorism organizations. In a cautionary note, the report says that while public acceptance of domestic intelligence activities is imperative, public attitudes about what is considered acceptable "can both be fragile and shift significantly over time." "Public demand for domestic intelligence is driven by the perceived threat, and those perceptions can change much more rapidly than the threat itself," the report says. For instance, immediately after the 9/11 attacks, 49 percent of people surveyed were worried "a great deal" about more attacks. Two years later, that had dropped to 25 percent.

Nonprofit think tank RAND outlines pros and cons at request of Congress . Group says government could create new agency specifically for domestic intel . Other option includes agency operating under Homeland Security or FBI . September 11 attacks renewed calls for domestic intel to help prevent future ones .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States and Britain praised Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf's contribution to the war on terror while the Bush administration claimed no role in the leader's resignation Monday. Pakistan's Pervez Musharraf has until now stubbornly resisted pressure to quit. A senior State Department official familiar with the situation told CNN U.S. officials were in touch with Musharraf in the week leading up to the resignation. However, the official said, the United States made it clear that it would not get involved in the struggle between Musharraf and the newly elected Pakistani parliament. "If he made a decision to go, or fight against it -- we didn't advise him either way," the official said. "We really did keep our fingers out of this one." Musharraf is viewed as a keen ally of the West in the fight on terror, receiving billions in military aid from both and launching attacks on militant groups near the country's border with Afghanistan. Watch Musharraf resign » "President Musharraf has been a friend to the United States and one of the world's most committed partners in the war against terrorism and extremism," said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice after Musharraf's announcement. "We will continue to work with the Pakistani government and political leaders and urge them to redouble their focus on Pakistan's future and its most urgent needs, including stemming the growth of extremism, addressing food and energy shortages and improving economic stability," she added. "The United States will help with these efforts to see Pakistan reach its goal of becoming a stable, prosperous, democratic, modern, Muslim nation." The Bush administration's main priority is a crackdown on Taliban and al Qaeda militants in Pakistan's tribal regions. The administration believes Pakistan's intelligence service is full of al Qaeda and Taliban loyalists, an accusation Pakistan denies. View a timeline of Musharraf's time in power » "There is a great deal of frustration on the part of the U.S. government with Pakistan's inability to follow through on what the U.S. sees as its clear commitments," said Robert Grenier, a former CIA counterterrorism official, now a managing director at risk consultation firm Kroll. "It remains very much to be seen whether this new democratically-elected leadership will really be able to follow through in a sustained and coherent way," he said. "They haven't demonstrated an ability to do that." The United States has stepped up missile strikes inside Pakistan, killing dozens of militants, and head of the Army, Gen. Ashfaq Kiyani, is now the United States' closest ally in power. But some experts warn that U.S. pressure could go too far. "The U.S. military has to be extremely cautious," said Rick Barton, a director and adviser with the non-profit Center for Strategic and International Studies who is a former U.N. and U.S. official. "It could actually be setting the torch to the kindling inside the country." Musharraf told the nation in a televised address Monday that he would step down -- nearly nine years after he seized power in a bloodless coup in 1999. "I don't want the people of Pakistan to slide deeper and deeper into uncertainty," he said. Until now, Musharraf, 65, had stubbornly resisted pressure to resign. But his once-considerable power eroded significantly since February's election that pushed his party out of power. That pressure increased in the past few weeks as the new ruling party began making plans to impeach him. Only time will tell whether the power shift will benefit Pakistan, but "it puts a lot more responsibility squarely on the government. There is no more excuse any more. They have to stand up and do things. They can't blame Musharraf," the State Department official said. The official said Musharraf isn't expected to try to undermine the government. "I really don't think he has been a factor for six months," the official said. "He hasn't been able to do that while he was in the presidency, and he won't be as well-positioned [

Pervez Musharraf tells nationwide audience he will resign as president . U.S. and Britain praise Musharraf for his contribution to 'war on terror' Both promise continued aid and support for Pakistan .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States imposed stiff sanctions against Iran on Thursday, targeting two Iranian military groups and a number of Iranian banks and people it accuses of backing nuclear proliferation and terror-related activities. "What this means is that no U.S. citizen or private organization will be allowed to engage in financial transactions with these persons and entities," Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said. "In addition, any assets that these designees have under U.S. jurisdiction will be immediately frozen." Rice and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson made the announcement in a brief appearance before reporters on Thursday morning. Rice accused Iran of "pursuing nuclear technologies that can lead to a nuclear weapon; building dangerous ballistic missiles; supporting Shia militants in Iraq and terrorists in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories; and denying the existence of a fellow member of the United Nations, threatening to wipe Israel off the map." Watch Rice tell why sanctions are being imposed » "Many of the Iranian regime's most destabilizing policies are carried out by two of its agencies: the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or the IRGC, and the Quds force, an arm of the IRGC," she said. She said the sanctions were being imposed "because of the Revolutionary Guard's support for proliferation and the Quds force support for terrorism." The United States also designated three Iranian state-owned banks for sanctions, two of them "for their involvement in proliferation activities" and the other "as a terrorist financier," Rice said. "Iran funnels hundreds of millions of dollars each year through the international financial system to terrorists," Paulson said. "Iran's banks aid this conduct using a range of deceptive financial practices intended to evade even the most stringent risk management controls." The Revolutionary Guard Corps, he said, "is so deeply entrenched in Iran's economy and commercial enterprises, it is increasingly likely that, if you are doing business with Iran, you are doing business" with the corps. "We call on responsible banks and companies around the world to terminate any business with Bank Melli, Bank Mellat, Bank Saderat, and all companies and entities" of the corps, Paulson said. The move marks the first time the United States has attempted to punish another country's military through sanctions. Previous sanctions imposed by the United States have been tied to Iran's nuclear program. The United States has been working with other world powers to halt what they believe is Iran's intent to develop a nuclear arsenal. Iran says it is pursuing nuclear power for peaceful reasons. Mohamed ElBaradei, director-general of the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency, said last month that Iran's declared nuclear material has not been diverted from peaceful use and criticized U.S. rhetoric regarding Iran. The Quds Force is blamed by the U.S. military for training and arming Shiite militias in Iraq and smuggling highly lethal explosives into Iraq, where they are used to attack coalition forces. Iran denies the charge. "If the Iranian government fulfills its international obligation to suspend its uranium enrichment and reprocessing activity, I will join my British, French, Russian, Chinese and German colleagues, and I will meet with my Iranian counterpart any time, anywhere," Rice said. "We will be open to the discussion of any issue. But if Iran's rulers choose to continue down a path of confrontation, the United States will act with the international community to resist these threats of the Iranian regime." Last month, representatives of world powers announced that unless a November report shows a "positive outcome" of talks with Iran about its uranium enrichment program, they will move ahead with plans for a resolution imposing additional sanctions on the country. The U.N. Security Council has repeatedly demanded that Iran suspend enrichment of uranium and has imposed limited sanctions on Tehran for refusing to comply. The European Union is weighing its own unilateral sanctions. E-mail to a friend CNN's Kathleen Koch and Elise Labott contributed to this report.

U.S. puts sanctions on Iran's Revolutionary Guard, banks, individuals . Revolutionary Guard accused of supporting nuclear proliferation . Guard's Quds force said by U.S. to support terrorism . Sanctions mean financial assets of Revolutionary Guard, others, are frozen .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States is keeping a close eye on Pakistan after this week's Taliban surge into the Buner district brought them just 60 miles from the capital, Islamabad. A Taliban fighter in the district of Buner, which is only 96 kilometers from Islamabad. A Pakistani government official said Friday that the insurgents had completely withdrawn from the district by the end of the week, but a human rights group said people in Buner were reporting that local Taliban remained in the district. And senior U.S. officials cautioned that any withdrawal by the Taliban was likely meaningless and that the fundamentalist group now holds large areas of the country with the government seemingly unable to stop them. "We're certainly moving closer to the tipping point," Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff said on NBC's "Today" show Friday. In the interview from Afghanistan, Mullen said he was "extremely concerned" about indications the Taliban is moving closer to Pakistan's capital of Islamabad. Syed Mohammed Javed, commissioner of the Malakand Division that includes Buner, said the Taliban withdrew on Friday without any conditions. Earlier in the day, Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan told CNN that the militants would pull back from the district. Pakistani Express TV showed live footage of armed and masked Taliban militants in Buner, loading pickup trucks and driving away. Sufi Muhammed, an Islamist fundamentalist leader who has been negotiating on behalf of the Taliban, was on scene overseeing the withdrawal, police said. U.S. military commander Gen. David Petraeus credited about 300 Pakistan's Frontier Corps with driving Taliban militants out of Buner. The U.S. Central Command chief spoke to CNN on Friday after testifying before a Congressional panel about the need for the United States to boost its support for Pakistani counterinsurgency troops such as the Frontier Corps. But Amnesty International's regional chief said people in Buner are reporting a different situation. "What we're hearing from people in Buner ... is that the Taliban that have moved out are the non-local ones," Sam Zarifi, Amnesty's Asia Pacific director, told CNN. "So the local branch of the Taliban are still in place in Buner." Amnesty International is concerned that those local Taliban will continue to enforce the Taliban's "abusive and repressive" control of Buner. Girls over the age of 7 are forced to wear a burka, a head-to-toe covering that the Taliban say is required of Muslims under its radical interpretation of Islamic law, or sharia. "I think we're going to see those harsh edicts stay," Zarifi said. The Taliban installed strict Islamic law when it took over Afghanistan after a two-year fight with warlords, many of whom surrendered without a fight. They fought with a coalition of some of those warlords known as the Northern Alliance from 1996 until U.S. forces, seeking the leadership of al Qaeda after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, added bombing raids to Northern Alliance ground operations and successfully drove the Taliban out of most of Afghanistan. iReport: Should the U.S. intercede in Pakistan? But the Taliban regrouped in 2004, launching a guerrilla war against the Afghan government while operating from the tribal areas of that country and Pakistan. Meanwhile, senior U.S. officials said that the "retreat" was likely meaningless. Control was the impetus behind the Taliban move into Buner, and the fundamentalist group now controls large areas of Pakistan, they said. The officials said, however, that they did not believe the Taliban's goal was to take over the government of Pakistan but rather to create instability by taking advantage of Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's apparent inability to cope with the situation. Zardari, they said, does not understand the gravity of the situation, remains distracted by domestic politics and appears unable to make critical decisions to deploy the army to stabilize the country. State Department envoy Richard Holbrooke has been on the phone "nonstop" with officials in Islamabad and Washington, the officials said, providing frequent information to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Obama. Holbrooke's read on the situation,

NEW: Pakistan situation "rapidly deteriorating," says senior U.S. military official . NEW: U.S. officials: Any Taliban withdrawal from Pakistani territory likely meaningless . NEW: Fundamentalists hold large areas of the country, military officials say . Pakistan had reported Taliban withdrawal from captured district 60 miles from capital .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States is providing weapons and ammunition to Somalia's transitional government as it fights al Qaeda-linked Islamic militants, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Thursday. Somali government soldiers, who are fighting Islamic militants, patrol Mogadishu. "At the request of that government the State Department has helped to provide weapons and ammunition on an urgent basis," he said. "This is to support the Transitional Federal Government's efforts to repel the onslaught of extremist forces which are intent on destroying the Djibouti peace process." Kelly said the weapons shipments are in accordance with U.N. Security Council resolutions, which ban some arms shipments to Somalia. There is growing concern that Somalia could be the next base for al Qaeda as U.S. forces pound their positions in Afghanistan and Pakistan. CIA Director Leon Panetta recently said that the intelligence agency is keeping tabs on the region as a possible destination for fleeing al Qaeda operatives. "Our concern right now is that likely safe havens are areas in the Horn of Africa, like Somalia and Yemen, that are countries that because of their political status can be attractive to al Qaeda in order to operate there," Panetta said earlier this month. "We are focusing on those countries as well in order to ensure that there is no safe haven for al Qaeda as we continue to pressure them, continue to push them, and hopefully continue to make the effort to destroy them, not only in Pakistan but throughout the rest of the world." Somalia is not new territory for al Qaeda, according to CNN's terrorism analyst Peter Bergen. "Al Qaeda was running training camps in Somalia in the early and mid-1990s," he said. "If this is now coming back, this is something that al Qaeda has already done and it's worrisome for the future. ... "The fact that we're seeing evidence of this already happening in both Yemen and Somalia suggests that, A, the drone program in the tribal areas of Pakistan has been effective, but, B, you know it's pushing al Qaeda into areas where they'll build up larger operations." Somalia recently called on its neighbors to send military forces to help government troops stop hard-line Islamist militants from taking over. The call for help came hours after a third top politician was killed this month in ongoing fighting. The deaths included Mogadishu's police chief and Somalia's internal security minister, who was killed in a suicide car bombing in the central city of Beledweyne. A Pakistani militant who is a high-ranking official in al Qaeda is leading the fighting in Somalia against the government, said Sheikh Adan Madowe, Somalia's parliament speaker. Madowe warned that militants will spread fighting into the rest of the region if they topple the government in Somalia. The United States is concerned that Somalia's weak government could fall to the Islamist insurgency, as it did in 2006 before Ethiopian forces ousted the militants from power later that year. "We think this government ... represents Somalia's best chance for peace, stability and reconciliation," Kelly said Thursday. "This government is the best chance they've had in the last 18 years." Somalia's current President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed is a former member of the Islamic Courts Union, which took part in the 2006 coup. His decision to renounce the bloody insurgency and try to establish peace in Somalia has put him at odds with Islamist hard-liners who are still battling for control of Somalia. Residents and journalists in Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, have reported seeing foreign fighters among Al-Shabaab, the radical Islamic militia that is battling to overthrow the weak transitional government. Those foreign fighters recently distributed recorded messages from al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden calling for the overthrow of the government. Al-Shabaab, also known as the Mujahideen Youth Movement, was officially designated as a terrorist organization by the United States in March 2008. It is waging a war against Somalia's government in an effort to implement a stricter form of Islamic law, or sharia.

State Department: Weapons for fighting al Qaeda-linked Islamic militants . Weapons shipments are in accordance with U.N. Security Resolutions, Kelly says . There is growing concern that Somalia could be the next base for al Qaeda .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States needs a new law requiring that the president consult with Congress before going to war, a blue-ribbon panel led by two former secretaries of state said Tuesday. James Baker, left, and Warren Christopher led a panel that recommended a new War Powers Act. The current War Powers Resolution is "ineffective, and it should be repealed and it should be replaced," James Baker said in a joint appearance with Warren Christopher, announcing the results of the study they led. The recommendation follows failed efforts by Democrats in Congress to put a stop to the war in Iraq or to put conditions on President Bush's conduct of it. Congress passed a joint resolution to authorize armed force against Iraq in 2002, but some Bush opponents say it should not have been interpreted as a blank check for the United States to invade and occupy the Persian Gulf nation. Baker, who served in George H.W. Bush's administration, and Christopher, who served under President Bill Clinton, said their project was not prompted by any specific war, with Christopher adding that the commission had "tried very hard not to call balls and strikes on past history here." "We didn't direct this report at any particular conflict," Baker added. The existing law, the War Powers Resolution of 1973, has been regarded as unconstitutional by every president since it was passed as a response to the Vietnam War, Baker and Christopher said. It requires presidents to report regularly to Congress about ongoing conflicts, but the provision has been flouted. "No president has ever made a submission to Congress pursuant to the War Powers Resolution since 1973," former Sen. Slade Gorton, a Republican member of the committee, said Tuesday. The panel, formally called the National War Powers Commission, said a new law should be created requiring the president to consult with key members of Congress before sending troops into combat expected to last more than a week, or within three days of doing so in the case of operations that need to be kept secret. It should also make clear exactly who the president needed to consult. The panel suggests that the president talk to "a joint Congressional committee made up of the leaders of the House and the Senate as well as the chairmen and ranking members of key committees." The new committee would have a permanent professional staff with access to intelligence information, Baker and Christopher said. Congress, in turn, would have to declare war or vote on a "resolution of approval" within 30 days, they said. If a resolution of approval failed, any member of Congress could introduce a "resolution of disapproval," but it was not clear that such an act would stop a war in progress. Christopher was unable to say in the news conference what practical effect congressional disapproval would have. Baker said the commission had been in touch with the presidential campaigns of Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, as well as leaders of Congress. He declined to reveal what they thought of the proposal, but said: "We haven't gotten a negative reaction." Congress has not officially declared war since 1942, when the United States entered formal hostilities with the Axis powers in World War II. But since then, presidents have sent troops into countries including Korea, Vietnam, Grenada and Iraq. The Constitution makes the president the commander in chief of the armed forces, but gives Congress the power to declare war and approve military budgets. Baker and Christopher's group included both Republicans and Democrats and held seven meetings over 14 months.

War Powers Act is "ineffective" and should be repealed, blue-ribbon panel says . Former secretaries of state James Baker and Warren Christopher led the study . They say the project was not prompted by any specific war . Panel proposes new law requiring president to consult with Congress .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States needs to formulate an "updated strategy" for Iraq, now that the Bush administration's 18-month game plan for the country is completed, the head of the Government Accountability Office told lawmakers Wednesday. U.S. soldiers crouch at their positions during a mission in Baquba, northeast of Baghdad, earlier this month. Acting U.S. Comptroller General Gene L. Dodaro appeared before a House Armed Services Committee hearing to discuss last month's GAO progress report on Iraq, which reaffirmed the need for a renewed strategy in the war-ravaged country. The report, Dodaro said in prepared remarks, noted that "some gains" have been made in the security, legislative and economic areas since President Bush last year announced "The New Way Forward" -- the near-term goals for Iraq that included the military surge. The surge, or troop escalation, ended this month. "The United States had made some progress in achieving key goals stated in 'The New Way Forward,' " the report said. "Looking forward, many challenges remain, and an updated strategy is essential." Dodaro said the progress report recommended an updated strategy in Iraq to the Departments of State and Defense. He told lawmakers that the departments said they will "review and refine the current strategy as necessary, but asserted that 'The New Way Forward' remains valid." Dodaro also argued that a renewed strategy is important "for several reasons." The goals and objectives for the present phase end this month and they are "contained in disparate documents rather than a single strategic plan," he said in his prepared remarks. "Much has changed in Iraq since January 2007, when the president announced 'The New Way Forward.' Violence is down, U.S. surge forces are leaving, and a new framework for the U.S. presence in Iraq needs to be agreed upon beyond the U.N. mandate," Dodaro said. The GAO report said that while the number of enemy-initiated attacks in Iraq have decreased about 80 percent from June 2007 to June 2008, the "security environment remains volatile and dangerous." The agency noted that not all of the country's provinces have lead responsibility for security and less than 10 percent of Iraqi security forces "were at the highest readiness level." The progress report also cited the enactment by Iraqi lawmakers of measures "to return some Baathists to government, grant amnesty to detained Iraqis and define provincial powers." It said there is an "unfinished" legislative agenda, citing the need for measures on "sharing oil revenues, disarming militias, and holding provincial elections." A provincial election law was passed on Tuesday by Iraq's parliament, the Council of Representatives, but Iraqi President Jalal Talabani has rejected it, his office said Wednesday. The measure was strongly opposed by Kurdish lawmakers and Iraq's Kurdish Regional Government had criticized it, calling for its rejection. It's not clear whether further negotiations may take place to amend the legislation. As for the economic arena, crude oil production is below U.S. goals, even though it has "improved for short periods," the GAO report said. Goals for water service are "close to being reached," but the daily electricity supply "met only slightly more than half of demand in early July 2008." It also noted that Iraq "spent only 24 percent of the $27 billion it budgeted for its reconstruction efforts between 2005 and 2007." Dodaro said the Pentagon, State Department and other agencies should "develop an updated strategy for Iraq that defines U.S. goals and objectives after July 2008." "This strategy should build on recent security and legislative gains, address the remaining unmet goals and challenges for the near and long term, clearly articulate goals, objectives, roles and responsibilities, and the resources needed," he said.

NEW: Head of Government Accountability Office speaks to House committee . Though attacks are down, situation in Iraq remains "volatile and dangerous" Report cites "unfinished" legislative agenda in Iraq . Iraq's oil production remains below U.S. goals, report says .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States on Thursday imposed economic sanctions on a North Korean company that the United Nations said is linked to the country's nuclear weapons program. News comes on day U.S. State Department Envoy Philip Goldberg met with U.N. sanctions committee. A U.S. Treasury Department statement said Korea Hyoksin Trading Corporation is owned or controlled by Korea Ryonbong General Corporation, which has been designated by the United Nations as a proliferator of weapons of mass destruction. The order freezes any U.S. assets of Hyoksin and prohibits any Americans from dealing with it, the statement said. It notes that a sanctions committee set up by the U.N. Security Council recently cited Hyoksin for involvement in development of weapons of mass destruction. The announcement came as the U.S. coordinator for implementation of U.N. sanctions against North Korea met Thursday with the Security Council sanctions committee. The envoy, Philip Goldberg, said the talks showed "strong commitment" by all nations to enforcing Security Council Resolution 1874, which authorized sanctions against North Korea's weapons program. "What I found in that room and in my dealings with other governments ... is unity of view," Goldberg said, specifically mentioning China, which is North Korea's longtime supporter. "Commitment to implementation is strong and unified," he said.

U.S.: Hyoksin linked to corporation associated with weapons of mass destruction . Order freezes Hyoksin's U.S. assets, prohibits Americans from dealing with company . U.N. recently cited Hyoksin for involvement in weapons of mass destruction .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States will allow Americans to send mobile phones to relatives in Cuba under a change in policy that President Bush announced Wednesday. President Bush announces the U.S. policy allowing cell phones to Cuba at the White House on Wednesday. Bush said he is making the change since President Raúl Castro "is allowing Cubans to own mobile phones for the first time." "If he is serious about his so-called reforms, he will allow these phones to reach the Cuban people," Bush said. Bush urged the Cuban government to loosen restrictions further, saying if Cubans can be allowed to own mobile phones, "they should be trusted to speak freely in public." They should be allowed to watch uncensored movies and have free access to the Internet, he said. And he called for the government to implement major free-market reforms. Relations between the United States and Cuba remain tense nearly 50 years after Fidel Castro overthrew the pro-American government in Havana. The United States has maintained an embargo against Cuba for decades. Cuban officials on Monday accused the top U.S. diplomat in Havana of delivering money from private anti-Castro groups in Florida to dissidents in Cuba. U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said that "the U.S. government has programs to provide humanitarian assistance to people that are essentially forgotten by the Cuban government and that we ... do not stand in the way of private groups doing that as well." As to how that is done, he said, "I'm not aware of the mechanics; I don't steep myself in these things." Fidel Castro, beset with health problems, handed day-to-day governing power over to Raúl, his younger brother, earlier this year. After being elected president in February, Raúl Castro announced that Cubans who can afford them could buy cell phones and DVD players and stay in hotels previously reserved for foreign tourists -- overturning bans from the Fidel era. The goods and services remain out of reach for most people on the island, where $120 cell phones plus $10.80 calling cards cost about six times the average monthly salary. Bush said Wednesday it is "the height of hypocrisy to claim credit to allow Cubans to purchase appliances that virtually none of them can afford." Though the price may put mobile phones out of the reach of most Cubans, they are affordable for many of those who have access to U.S. dollars -- typically either sent from relatives abroad or earned internally by tourist workers. Bush on Wednesday marked what the White House called a Day of Solidarity with the Cuban People, which the president said he hopes will be an annual event.

President Bush: Cubans also "should be trusted to speak freely in public" Bush calls for Cuba to implement major free-market reforms . U.S. has maintained an embargo against Cuba for decades . New leader Raúl Castro allowing Cubans to buy cell phones, DVD players .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States will provide $73 million in aid to Zimbabwe, President Obama announced Friday after meeting with Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai at the White House. President Obama (right) praised Zimbabwe Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai at the White House on Friday. "I obviously have extraordinary admiration for the courage and tenacity that the prime minister has shown in navigating through some very difficult political times in Zimbabwe," Obama said. "There was a time when Zimbabwe was the breadbasket of Africa, and [it] continues to have enormous potential. It has gone through a very dark and difficult time politically." Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe "has not acted oftentimes in the best interest of the Zimbabwean people and has been resistant to the democratic changes that need to take place," Obama said. "We now have a power-sharing agreement that shows promise, and we want to do everything we can to encourage the kinds of improvement not only on human rights and rule of law, freedom of the press and democracy that is so necessary, but also on the economic front." The U.S. aid will not be going to the government directly "because we continue to be concerned about consolidating democracy, human rights and rule of law," Obama said. "But it will be going directly to the people in Zimbabwe." In a CNN interview following his meeting with Obama, Tsvangirai said he is grateful for the generosity. "Whether it is humanitarian aid or transitional support, it adds up to the relief that Zimbabwe is seeking," he said. Watch Tsvangirai discuss importance of aid to Zimbabwe » Tsvangirai said he told Obama he would like the United States to use its global influence to assist Zimbabwe in dealing with the challenges it faces. Tsvangirai said he understood other nations' reluctance to support the Zimbabwean government, given Mugabe's controversial history. "I think it's fair," he said. "I understand it, given our history, and I'm not going to defend President Mugabe." But, he noted, the two have agreed to work together and help Zimbabwe progress as a nation. In remarks with Obama, Tsvangirai said progress has been made by the transitional government, but much remains to be done. "It is the problems of implementation," he said. "... even by the standard of our own benchmarks, there are gaps that still exist." He said he would continue to strive to meet those benchmarks, not for the international community, but because "it gives [the] people of Zimbabwe freedom and opportunity to grow." The power-sharing arrangement between Tsvangirai, the leader of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, and Mugabe came after contested elections last year. "Of course we cannot brush away that history, that sad history," Tsvangirai told CNN. But he said he is hoping the country will heal and move forward, and wants even those skeptical of Mugabe to appreciate the transition process. Asked whether he believes Mugabe should retire, Tsvangirai said "at the age of 85, I think one needs to retire." But, he said, for his own legacy, it's important for him to be thinking about a "dignified exit." "I think that [the power-sharing government] provides him with this opportunity," Tsvangirai said. Asked about his relationship with Mugabe, he said, "We don't have to fall in love to work together. But we have accepted that we have made an agreement to have a workable relationship between the two political parties." He said there had been acrimony between the two, but they realized it was not helping the Zimbabwean people. "We are inspired by people like Nelson Mandela, who had to go for 27 years in jail but still come out and say, 'Let's forget about the past' ..." he said. He and Mugabe have chosen the process of dialogue rather than violence, Tsvangirai said. "Let history judge whether this historic experiment was the right course of action."

President Obama praises Zimbabwe PM Tsvangirai, offers $73 million in aid . Tsvangirai in power-sharing agreement with Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe . Tsvangirai on Mugabe relationship: "We don't have to fall in love to work together"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House did not intend to show any disrespect toward Nancy Reagan when it failed to invite the former first lady -- a vigorous supporter of stem-cell research -- to a bill-signing ceremony on the subject, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said Tuesday. Nancy Reagan watches President Obama sign the Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission Act Tuesday. "I think she speaks in real personal terms about the issue," Gibbs told reporters. "And I think her candor and her courage have been heartening, and we certainly meant no slight to her whatsoever." On Monday, Vanity Fair published an interview with Nancy Reagan on its Web site in which she suggested the Obama administration missed an opportunity by not inviting her to witness President Obama signing a measure in March expanding federal support for stem-cell research. The former first lady has long promoted such steps despite objections from many in the GOP. She has argued that expanded stem-cell research could have helped her husband, who suffered from Alzheimer's disease. "I would have gone, and you know I don't like to travel," she told the magazine. Watch more on Gibbs' reaction to the controversy » "Politically, it would have been a good thing for (Obama) to do. Oh well, nobody's perfect. He called and thanked me for working on it. But he could have gotten more mileage out of it," she said. Gibbs' comments also come the same day Mrs. Reagan attended a White House ceremony marking Obama's signing of legislation authorizing a Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission. The 11-member commission will plan activities marking Ronald Reagan's 100th birthday on February 6, 2011. Watch Obama laud Reagan's optimism » Mrs. Reagan is slated to attend the unveiling of a new statue of President Reagan on Wednesday morning at the Capitol and then share a private White House lunch with first lady Michelle Obama. Obama issued an apology to Mrs. Reagan earlier this year after joking in a news conference that she held seances during her years in the White House -- an apparent reference to reports she consulted with astrologists during her husband's presidency.

Former first lady Nancy Reagan is a strong supporter of stem-cell research . Mrs. Reagan tells magazine: Obama should have invited me to stem-cell bill signing . She's slated to attend the unveiling of a new statue of President Reagan Wednesday . She witnesses signing of Ronald Reagan Centennial Commission legislation .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House has invoked executive privilege to keep President Bush's top political adviser, Karl Rove, from having to testify Thursday about the firings of at least eight U.S. attorneys. The White House invoked executive privilege to keep Karl Rove from having to testify Thursday. Rove, "as an immediate adviser to the president," can't be ordered to testify and has been told not to appear, White House Counsel Fred Fielding told the Senate Judiciary Committee. The committee called Rove and his deputy, Scott Jennings, to testify Thursday morning. The White House says it is trying to protect the president's ability to receive candid advice and offered to let top aides discuss the firings only if they were not placed under oath and no transcript was taken. "It is regretted that the committee has forced this action, as the president's offer of accommodation to you and to the House Judiciary Committee could have provided information being sought in a manner respectful of presidential prerogatives and consistent with a spirit of comity," Fielding wrote. But Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, accused the White House of trying to cover up Rove's role in the firings. He questioned why Rove discussed the matter publicly when the issue first made news, but now "is suddenly unable to talk it about when he is under oath." "Mr. Rove has given reasons for the firings that have now been shown to be inaccurate, after-the-fact fabrications," Leahy said in a statement issued Wednesday evening. "Yet he now refuses to tell this committee the truth about his role in targeting well-respected U.S. attorneys for firing and in seeking to cover up his role and that of his staff in the scandal." Mark Paoletta, a lawyer for Jennings, told CNN his client will appear before the Judiciary Committee but would refuse to answer questions he feels are covered by executive privilege. Former White House political director Sara Taylor testified under similar circumstances in July. The White House already has invoked executive privilege to block previous testimony by Taylor and former White House counsel Harriet Miers, who skipped a hearing in the House two weeks ago, and to keep Chief of Staff Josh Bolten from turning over documents subpoenaed as part of the inquiry. The panel voted to cite Miers and Bolten for contempt of Congress for failing to comply with subpoenas. The decision on whether to pursue any action on those citations lies with the Justice Department. The privilege claim can be challenged in court. But Sen. Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the ranking Republican on the Judiciary Committee, has said the courts would be unlikely to resolve any challenge before Bush leaves office. Vice President Dick Cheney dismissed the congressional investigation of the attorney firings as a "witch hunt" during a CNN interview Tuesday. Democratic congressional leaders, however, say administration officials have been unable to answer their most basic questions -- who compiled the list of prosecutors to be dismissed, and why were they selected? While the Bush administration has maintained that the prosecutors' firings were handled properly, the controversy has led to the resignations of at least three top Justice Department officials and triggered widespread criticism of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who repeatedly told a Senate committee in April that he did not recall details of the firings. Critics say the attorneys were forced out for political reasons, such as for failing to bring voter fraud cases pushed by Republican activists, and administration officials have acknowledged that one was fired to allow a Rove protege to take a post in Arkansas. E-mail to a friend CNN's Kevin Bohn contributed to this report.

Executive privilege to keep Karl Rove from testifying about attorney firings . White House says it is trying to protect president's ability to receive candid advice . White House invoked executive privilege to block other advisers' testimony . Senator accuses White House of trying to cover up Rove's role in the firings .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House has provided the use of a government airplane to a key Democratic senator in order to ensure the availability of what may prove to be the deciding 60th vote in favor of the $787 billion economic stimulus package. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, could represent the decisive 60th vote on the $787 billion economic stimulus package. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, has returned to his home state to attend a wake for his 88-year-old mother, who died February 2 from complications from leukemia. At the end of the wake, Brown will be flown from Mansfield, Ohio, to Andrews Air Force Base. After he casts his vote, he will return to Ohio for his mother's funeral early Saturday. The plane is being provided by the White House, Brown's office said, because the vote is considered "official business," and there are no commercial flights available that would allow him to cast the vote and return to Ohio for his mother's funeral Saturday morning. A White House official refused to provide a cost estimate for the military plane, but acknowledged "it will be a higher cost than if he were flying commercial." The official said it is a "small government plane." "Taking immediate action to save or create 3.5 million jobs and get America's economy moving again is a top priority for Ohio and the nation," said the White House official. "Given that no commercial flights were available that would allow Sen. Brown to make the vote and to attend services memorializing his mother, the administration provided government transportation to ensure that he could do so." While the final Senate vote on the stimulus plan began at 5:30 p.m. ET, senators are expected to be allowed to vote until after 10:30 p.m., giving Brown enough time to return to the Capitol. CNN's Ed Henry and Ted Barrett contributed to this report

White House provides plane to Democratic senator so he can vote on stimulus bill . Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, may represent the decisive 60th vote on measure . Brown will vote between wake and funeral in Ohio for his mother, who died at age 88 . White House official says loaner is a "small government plane"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House is blasting Congressional Democrats for not sending a bill that would fund veterans' care programs to the president's desk by Veterans Day. The White House's Dana Perino accused Democrats of holding veterans care funding hostage. "There's absolutely no reason that the veterans' bill could not have been signed by the president today, except for the political games that the Democrats decided to play with it," White House press secretary Dana Perino said Sunday in Crawford, Texas. Congressional Democrats had attached legislation funding veterans programs to a $150.7 billion bill that also funded a number of domestic priorities, including health, labor and education. Democrats also added $3.7 billion to what the president budgeted for veterans programs. The labor-health-education bill would increase funding by more than $10 billion over last year's funding for those programs. The president has threatened to veto the bill because of the added spending. The House passed a health-labor-education bill 269-142 last week with the veterans funding attached, but the Senate later voted to strip out the veterans funding and send the health-labor-education bill to the president. Perino accused the Democrats of "trying to hold hostage our veterans to extra domestic spending or increases in taxes." "The president wants clean legislation, a clean bill to fund the veterans," Perino said. On Saturday, the Democratic congressional leadership sent a letter to President Bush saying they welcomed a dialogue on spending, sayings disagreements over funding levels "have never been so great that we cannot reach agreement on a spending plan that meets the needs of the American people." "Key to this dialogue, however, is some willingness on your part to actually find common ground," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said in the letter. The leadership said last year's Congress, which was still under Republican control, had never passed a separate bill funding veterans programs. Congress also sent to the president legislation that would fund veterans care at the levels requested by the president through December 14, the leadership said. The current funding level "is still below the $3.9 billion extra that we passed," said Nadeam Elshami, spokesman Pelosi. "We are committed to getting the extra funding that the Congress already voted on the president's desk for his signature." The leadership blamed Republican members of Congress for stalling the funding for the veterans programs by blocking its inclusion in the larger spending bill. Perino, though, said the Democrats could still send a separate bill to the president funding the veterans program that passed both chambers of Congress. "The Democrats decided not to send the president this bill," Perino said. "That has to be laid at their feet." E-mail to a friend CNN's Deirdre Walsh contributed to this report.

White House accuses Democrats of holding hostage funding for veterans care . Funding was attached to large health-labor-education bill . White House says it wants a clean bill that only funds veterans programs . Democrats call on White House to engage in a dialogue on spending levels .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House refused to indicate Monday whether President Obama will issue a posthumous pardon for Jack Johnson, the African-American boxing champion convicted in 1913 for dating a white woman. Jack Johnson's 1910 defeat of Jim Jeffries, the "Great White Hope," sparked riots. The House of Representatives on July 29 unanimously passed a resolution urging Obama to grant a pardon; the Senate passed a similar measure by a voice vote on June 24. The push for a rare posthumous pardon has been spearheaded for years by Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, and Rep. Peter King, R-New York, two of Congress' top boxing enthusiasts. "It is our hope that you will be eager to agree to right this wrong and erase an act of racism that sent an American citizen to prison," they wrote Friday in a letter to Obama. Johnson, the first African-American to win the heavyweight title, was convicted for violating the Mann Act, which outlawed the transportation of women across state lines for "immoral" purposes. He served 10 months in prison on charges "brought forward clearly to keep him away from the boxing ring, where he continued to defeat his white opponents," McCain and King said. Almost a century after Johnson's conviction, his compelling saga has continued to capture the interest of sports writers, civil rights activists and historians. It provides, they agree, a unique window into American politics and culture at a time when Jim Crow-style racism reigned supreme. Johnson was first arrested for breaking the Mann Act in 1912, four years after winning the heavyweight crown. That case fell apart, but investigators soon after charged him with a similar offense involving a woman he had dated years earlier. Justice Department lawyers argued it was a "crime against nature" for him to have a sexual relationship with a white woman. Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, later to become the first commissioner of Major League Baseball, set Johnson's bail at $30,000, the equivalent of more than $660,000 today. When a bail bondsman showed up, Landis jailed him, too, according to an account that filmmaker Ken Burns relays in his documentary "Unforgivable Blackness: The Rise and Fall of Jack Johnson." An all-white jury convicted Johnson in less than two hours. "Mr. Johnson was perhaps persecuted as an individual, but ... it was his misfortune to be the foremost example of the evil in permitting the intermarriage of whites and blacks," one of the prosecutors later said. Johnson's real crime, in the eyes of many, was committed on July 4, 1910, when he successfully defended his boxing title against Jim Jeffries, a white boxer who came to be called the "Great White Hope" because many white fans saw him as the best chance to wrest back a boxing title from the African-American champ. Johnson beat Jeffries, who had come out of retirement for the fight, before a stunned, almost entirely white crowd in Reno, Nevada. Race riots followed. More than 20 people were killed and hundreds were injured. Most victims were black. So when they "couldn't beat him in the ring, the white power establishment decided to beat him in the courts," Burns said in his documentary. Johnson fled to Europe in 1913 while free on appeal. But after years of fights overseas, including the eventual loss of his title in Havana, Cuba, in 1915, Johnson came home. He turned himself over to U.S. authorities at the Mexican border in 1920 and served 10 months in prison. He died in a car wreck in 1946. "Back then, if you were black and you were told that you did something wrong, you really had no recourse," Linda Haywood, Johnson's great-niece, recently told CNN. "You just accepted what was done because black people were basically powerless and voiceless. Jack may have been a rich boxer, but he couldn't fight the system." McCain and King introduced resolutions calling for a presidential pardon

Jack Johnson, the African-American boxing champion, convicted in 1913 . Sen. John McCain, Rep. Peter King back posthumous pardon . Resolutions passed House and Senate this summer . Johnson served 10 months in prison for dating a white woman .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House released the text Monday of a controversial back-to-school speech to students from President Obama. The uproar over President Obama's back-to-school speech led the White House to release the transcript Monday. Many conservatives have expressed a fear that the address would be used to push a partisan political agenda. In the text of the speech, however, Obama avoids any mention of controversial political initiatives. He repeatedly urges students to work hard and stay in school. "No matter what you want to do with your life, I guarantee that you'll need an education to do it," he says. "This isn't just important for your own life and your own future. What you make of your education will decide nothing less than the future of this country." The text of the 18-minute speech was posted on the White House Web site so people can read it before its scheduled Internet broadcast to schoolchildren Tuesday. Read text of Obama's speech to students (pdf) Some of the president's critics have been adamantly opposed to the idea of an address by Obama to children. "The president's speeches tend to be [about] what's wrong with the country and what can we do to fix it," said Bill Hogsett, a parent from Dallas, Texas. "I believe this is the greatest country on Earth, and I try to teach that to my children. ... I don't want them hearing that there's a fundamental flaw with the country and the kids need to go forward to fix it." Hogsett, who spoke Monday shortly before Obama's remarks were released, said he wanted to read the speech before making a final judgment. Amy Veasley, another parent from the Dallas area, said she was surprised by the controversy. "The president of our country wants to call our students to action. I'm not sure why parents wouldn't want their students to hear out the leader of our country," she said. A Baltimore, Maryland, teacher who asked not to be identified bemoaned the fact that the country has "become so polarized that we believe that our president is an enemy and not our leader." During Bush's presidency, she said, "whether I disagreed or not, I still saw him as a leader." On Sunday, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said that parents who are threatening to keep their children home Tuesday to avoid Obama's speech were being "silly." Appearing on the CBS program "Face the Nation," Duncan emphasized that it is up to school officials whether to include the speech in the day's activities and that the message of the speech is simply to encourage children to finish school. "That's just silly," he said of anyone planning to have their kids stay home because of the speech. "They can go to school. They can not watch." The speech is about "the president challenging young people," Duncan asserted. Some school administrators have decided to show the president's speech, but others will not. Watch CNN's Ed Henry talk about school speech uproar » Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a possible contender for the GOP's 2012 presidential nomination, said Sunday that Obama's speech would disrupt an already-hectic first day of school for many students. "I think there's concerns about the disruption," he said on CNN's "State of the Union," calling the scheduling of the speech a "little ham-fisted" by the White House. Watch school reject Obama's speech on education » "There [are] also concerns about is this going to be done in an appropriate manner. I trust and hope that the White House will have a content that is not political and they're not using the public school infrastructure for that purpose." Duncan, however, noted Obama's speech is not unprecedented. President George H.W. Bush delivered a nationally televised speech to students from a Washington school in fall 1991, encouraging them to say

Speech posted on Web site Monday for parents, pundits to view . Obama says, "No matter what you want to do ... you'll need an education" Secretary of Education Arne Duncan: "Silly" of parents to keep kids out of school . Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty: Speech could cause first-day "disruption"

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House said it had no comment Monday in response to the upcoming release of a new Michelle Obama action-figure doll. The Michelle Obama doll is available in three outfits, all of which show off her trademark bare arms. The 6-inch doll is made by New York toymaker Jailbreak Toys and is set for release on November 20, but the company began work on the new product six or seven months ago, according to Jason Feinberg, Jailbreak Toys' 32-year-old founder. "The entire political scene was a little rosier at the time," Feinberg said in a phone interview, "But what was really apparent was the country, and really the world at large, were very enamored of this lady." Feinberg, whose company began selling a Barack Obama action-figure doll in mid-2008, said that Michelle Obama's "energy" was "muted, subdued, classy" coming out of last year's campaign while her husband's image was much more like that of a superhero. The new Michelle Obama doll is available in three outfits: the purple dress worn when the Obamas shared their famous fist bump during the campaign, the red and black dress she wore on Election Night and the black-and-white floral dress she wore during an appearance on "The View." All three dolls show Michelle Obama in a sheath dress and with bare arms, attributes that have become personal trademarks during her tenure as first lady. Feinberg said his target audience for the new doll is not children but adults "who collected toys as a child, who haven't lost that kind of whimsical enthusiasm." Like Jailbreak's Barack Obama doll, the new Michelle Obama doll will retail for $12.99, according to Feinberg. Katie McCormick Lelyveld, a spokeswoman for the first lady, said in an e-mail to CNN that the White House had no comment on the new doll. When the company behind Beanie Babies began selling dolls named "Marvelous Malia and Sweet Sasha" soon after Inauguration Day, the White House had a swift and strong reaction. "We feel it is inappropriate to use young private citizens for marketing purposes," the first lady's spokeswoman said at the time.

The 6-inch doll is made by New York toymaker Jailbreak Toys . Jailbreak's Jason Feinberg: Target audience is adults "who collected toys as a child" New doll, which will be available November 20, will retail for $12.99 .

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The alleged pirate apprehended by the U.S. Navy after the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama is en route to New York, according to defense officials. The USS Bainbridge tows the lifeboat in which Capt. Robert Phillips was held for days. He was handed over to federal authorities by the U.S. military in Djibouti, the officials said. The suspected pirate, 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 that turned into a hostage ordeal 350 miles off the Somalian coast. Three pirates who were holding the Maersk Alabama's captain in the ship's lifeboat were killed by Navy SEALs. The survivor had surrendered and was aboard the Bainbridge when the captain, Richard Phillips, was rescued, officials said. From the Bainbridge, he was transferred to the USS Boxer for medical treatment. He 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. See an interactive map of 2009 pirate attacks off the Horn of Africa » 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 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 piracy in the region is fueled by the desire to survive hardship and poverty. He said the suspect told him he wanted to go the United States, and asked whether Quinn could help him get there. "I said, 'Yeah, you're 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 Radio's Steve Kastenbaum in New York 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 bay pilot who steered a container ship into the San Francisco Bay Bridge in 2007, causing a massive oil spill, pleaded guilty Friday to violating misdemeanor pollution laws and faces up to 10 months in prison, federal prosecutors said. The Korean-flagged Cosco Busan rammed into San Francisco's Bay Bridge on November 7, 2007. Prosecutors dropped felony charges against him. John Joseph Cota, 61, pleaded guilty to violating the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, a law enacted in the wake of the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska, and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Cota gave orders to officers controlling the Korean-flagged Cosco Busan as the ship was leaving fog-shrouded San Francisco Bay, California, on November 7, 2007. The 901-foot ship struck fenders around the base of a bridge support tower, rupturing two of the ship's fuel tanks and spilling about 53,000 gallons of oil into the bay. At least 2,000 migratory birds were killed. At the time, officials estimated clean-up costs at $60 million. "Today's guilty plea is a reminder that the Cosco Busan crash was not just an accident, but a criminal act," said John C. Cruden, acting assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Environment and Natural Resources Division. "John Cota was an experienced ship pilot that was handsomely compensated for his special knowledge of ships and expertise in local waters. His failure to act prudently under the circumstances caused a major environmental disaster that could have been far worse," said Joseph Russoniello, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of California. Cota has piloted about 4,000 ships in the bay during his 27-year career, said his attorney, Jeffrey Bornstein. Bonstein said Cota is remorseful and accepts responsibility for his part in the accident. But Bornstein also criticized the accident investigation. He said it was unfair and protected others who also bear responsibility. "Captain Cota has been vilified by the media, lost his job, will now go to jail for at least 60 days, and still suffers under the weight of crushing civil lawsuits," Bornstein said. "He understands and accepts responsibility for his part in the accident and hopes that others will step forward and accept their roles and responsibilities as well." Cota will be sentenced to 2 to 10 months in prison and be fined between $3,000 and $30,000, if the plea terms are accepted by U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston. Sentencing is scheduled for June 19. Prosecutors said the plea included factual admissions by Cota, including an acknowledgment his negligence "was a proximate cause of the [oil] discharge." Cota also admitted that he failed to discuss the planned route with the ship's master or crew as required, or to use the ship's radar in the final approach to the bridge. He also failed to recognize two red triangles on the ship's electronic chart system that marked bridge tower buoys. Attorney Bornstein said the ship's master told Cota the red triangles represented the lights on the bridge, "which in Capt. Cota's knowledge were at the center of the span. He had no reason to think that the master didn't know what he was talking about." See the path As part of the plea agreement with Cota, the government agreed to dismiss false statement charges pending against him. Those charges alleged that Cota failed to disclose his medications on required Coast Guard forms. The court ruled those charges would be tried separately. But Cota admitted in the plea papers filed Friday his 2006 physical exam form failed to disclose some of the medications he was prescribed. Among them were two pain medications, three different drugs prescribed as sleeping aids and an antidepressant prescribed for an off-brand purpose. Bornstein said there is no evidence that medication played any role in the accident. At Friday's hearing, Illston set trial for the remaining defendant in the case, the ship's manager, Fleet Management Ltd. (Hong Kong), for Sept. 14. The charges include acting negligently, killing protected migratory birds, obstructing justice and making false statements by falsifying ship records after

John Joseph Cota pleads guilty to violating misdemeanor pollution laws . The pilot faces up to 10 months in prison, federal prosecutors say . Container ship Cosco Busan slammed into San Francisco's Bay Bridge in 2007 . Massive oil spill killed more than 2,000 birds and cost $60 million to clean up .