House Passes Health Repeal. In the first major act of the new Congress, the Republican-led House voted Wednesday to repeal the Democrats' health-care overhaul, fulfilling a pledge that GOP candidates made during the fall midterm campaigns. Three Democrats sided with a unified GOP in the 245 to 189 vote.
China's President Admits Human Rights Failings. President Obama used his summit Wednesday with Chinese President Hu Jintao to place the issue of human rights front and center in the U.S. relationship with the world's preeminent ascending power. And Hu, in a rare concession, acknowledged that China needs to make more progress.
Guantánamo. The Obama administration is preparing to increase the use of military commissions to prosecute Guantánamo detainees, an acknowledgment that the prison in Cuba remains open for business after Congress imposed steep new impediments to closing the facility.
Quote of the Day. “So let us begin anew -- remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear, but let us never fear to negotiate. Let both sides explore what problems unite us instead of belaboring those problems which divide us.” John F. Kennedy Inaugural address, January 20, 1961. President Kennedy was referring to U.S.-Soviet relations, but the same admonition applies to political disagreements today. (American Rhetoric)
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