The latest news on Faith in Action, Economic Crisis, Homeowner Help, Credit for Global South, Presidential Campaign, Health Insurance, Immigration, Iran, Mideast, Israeli Government, Pakistan, Nuclear Proliferation, North Korea, Zimbabwe, and Select Op-ed

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Faith in action. Keeping pace with expanding need "As people struggle in this tough economic time, they are increasingly looking to religious institutions for clothes, food and comfort. And the religious leaders are working to provide those needs, even as they feel the money pinch themselves."

Economic crisis. Congress rips Greenspan for crisis "In four hours of questioning before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, the man once called 'Maestro' for his mastery of nuance and ability to smoothly guide the economy through treacherous shoals acknowledged for the first time to making mistakes and misjudgments that contributed to what he called a 'once-in-a-century credit tsunami.'" Greenspan Says He Was Wrong On Regulation "Alan Greenspan, once viewed as the infallible architect of U.S. prosperity, was called on the carpet, pilloried by a congressional committee for decisions that contributed to the financial crisis devastating world markets."

Homeowner help. U.S. Vows More Help for Homeowners "A senior policy maker told a Senate committee that the administration was working on a plan under which the government would offer to shoulder some of the losses on loans that are modified." Treasury Considers Backing Mortgages "The federal government may start guaranteeing home mortgages to persuade lenders to ease the monthly financial burden on struggling homeowners, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila C. Bair said."

Credit for global South. West Is in Talks on Credit to Aid Poorer Nations "With the financial crisis engulfing developing countries from Latin America to Central Europe, raising the specter of market panic and even social unrest, Western officials are weighing coordinated action to try to stabilize these economies."

Presidential campaign. Polls Point to Struggle for McCain "The Republican nominee's path to the presidency is now extremely precarious and may depend on something unexpected taking control of a contest that appears to have swung hard toward Barack Obama since the end of the debates." Polls Show Obama Gaining Among Bush Voters "Senator Barack Obama is showing surprising strength among portions of the political coalition that returned George W. Bush to the White House four years ago, a cross section of support that, if it continues through Election Day, would exceed that of Bill Clinton in 1992, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News polls." New polls paint bleak battleground map for McCain campaign "Four new polls released Thursday found a bleak outlook for John McCain, even in traditionally Republican states, and a potential landslide victory for Democrat Barack Obama on Nov. 4."

Health insurance. Kennedy secretly crafts health care plan "From his sickbed, Sen. Edward M. Kennedy has secretly been orchestrating meetings with lobbyists and lawmakers from both parties to craft legislation that would greet the new president with a plan to provide affordable medical coverage to all Americans, a measure he has called 'the cause of my life.'" Health care: Both candidates' plans promise radical change "Whether the next president is Barack Obama or John McCain, this much is assured: Each man is offering a health-care overhaul that, if successfully implemented, might hasten the end of Americans getting health insurance through their employers."

Immigration. Renewed Crackdown On Illegal Immigrants "The Bush administration in its final weeks will revive a stalled crackdown on U.S. companies that hire illegal immigrants, issuing a new regulation and asking a federal judge to lift a ban on the measure, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff announced yesterday." U.S. to renew push for crackdown on illegal workers "In a final drive to toughen immigration enforcement, the Bush administration will again try to institute a system that would force employers to fire workers who have discrepancies in their Social Security data."

Iran. Bush plans to establish U.S. diplomatic post in Iran "The Bush administration will announce in mid-November, after the presidential election, that it intends to establish the first U.S. diplomatic presence in Iran since the 1979-81 hostage crisis, according to senior Bush administration officials." Election doubts over Ahmadinejad's health "He is renowned for his long hours and hectic schedule, but the stress of high office may be taking its toll on the health of Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and jeopardizing his political future." 'Ahmadinejad's health is deteriorating' "The reports come after Ahmadinejad, 52, canceled a series of public appearances, including two speeches and a cabinet meeting."

Mideast. Chances for peace emerge in Mideast clashes "But a new calm has emerged in the cross-border battle between Gazan militants and the Israeli army, Palestinian rival factions Fatah and Hamas are preparing for reconciliation talks, and on Thursday in Egypt Israeli President Shimon Peres backed the 'spirit' of a 2002 Arab initiative that maps out regional peace." Mubarak: Blame Hamas, not Egypt, over Schalit "Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak defended his government's mediation efforts to secure the release of kidnapped IDF soldier St.-Sgt. Gilad Schalit at a private meeting with President Shimon Peres Thursday at this Sinai resort, where the two affirmed the need for a comprehensive peace agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbors."

Israeli government. Key Israel party spurns coalition "The religious Shas party says it will not back Tzipi Livni's bid to form a coalition, in a big setback for the would-be Israeli PM." Shas: Decision not to join government final "Yishai said his party's demands for the allocation of more funds to poor Israelis and for a commitment that Jerusalem remain united, demands which were not met by Kadima, were not personal, but were for the benefit of the entire country."

Pakistan. Pakistan rejects 'U.S. war' on extremists "Serious doubts multiplied yesterday about Pakistan's commitment to America's military campaign against al-Qaeda and the Taliban after parliament overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling for dialogue with extremist groups and an end to military action."

Nuclear proliferation. Fallout of U.S.-India nuke deal "China's agreement to help Pakistan build two nuclear power plants is prompting warnings that the new U.S.-India civilian nuclear deal is already pushing other countries to pursue their own nuclear relationships."

North Korea. North Korea uses public executions to intimidate citizens, U.N. rights expert says "North Korea is using public executions to intimidate its citizens and has imposed restrictions on long distance calls to block the spread of news about rising food shortages, the U.N. investigator on human rights in the reclusive nation said."

Zimbabwe. Tsvangirai to attend Zimbabwe talks "Morgan Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe's prime minister-designate, has decided to attend next week's regional summit in Swaziland aimed at rescuing a stalled power-sharing deal." Zimbabwe: Tsvangirai Slams Mugabe "Prime Minister-designate Morgan Tsvangirai has slammed President Robert Mugabe and Zanu PF for negotiating in bad faith over the allocation of government ministries and other aspects of the power-sharing agreement."

Editorial. Without a Lord of (military) Hosts (Haaretz) "The injection of a religious dimension into the Israel Defense Forces' goals constitutes a serious internal threat. This is not just because Druze, Muslims, Christians and others also serve in the IDF, nor is it just because democratic orders are liable to conflict with rabbinic orders, especially with regard to the territories and the settlements. It is also because Israel must refrain from any hint of a religious war between the Lord of Hosts and Allah. Israel would lose such a war, even if it won on the battlefield."

Commentary. Everybody's Voting for the Weekend (Steve Israel and Norman J. Ornstein, New York Times) "Our current system penalizes single parents, people working two jobs, and those who have to choose between getting a paycheck and casting a ballot. Two weekend days of voting means those working families would have a greater chance of making it to the polls. It means easing the long lines during rush hour at the polling sites. It means more locations, more poll workers and more voters."