Sign up to receive our daily news summary via e-mail »
Quote of the day. “This was just a call to say: ‘It appears Twitter is playing an important role at a crucial time in Iran. Could you keep it going?’” P.J. Crowley, assistant secretary of state for public affairs, explaining why State Department staff called Twitter asking for a delay in scheduled maintenance, which would have cut off service while Iranians were using Twitter to swap information and inform the outside world about the protests around Tehran. (New York Times)
Iran. Fresh protest under way in Tehran “Tens of thousands of people have again taken to the streets in Iran's capital Tehran in protest at election results.” Iran rallies planned amid clampdown “Anti-government protesters in Iran have announced they are to hold another rally in the capital to dispute the veracity of a presidential election.” Iran arrests 500 activists in wake of election protests “At least 500 activists, opposition figures, journalists and students have been arrested in Iran in recent days in a growing crackdown aimed at 'decapitating' the movement against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's re-election.” Amid Impasse, Rivals Rally in Iran “Tens of thousands of Iranians demonstrated Tuesday for the third straight day as government authorities confronted an increasingly polarized public and an extraordinary political stalemate with no obvious solution.” Recount Offer Fails to Quell Political Tumult in Iran “Iran’s leaders failed on Tuesday to halt a second day of huge demonstrations against last week’s election results but, placed on the defensive, offered another concession to the sustained rage here, saying they would allow a limited recount.” Iran's senior ayatollah slams election, confirming split “Supporters of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his main rival in the disputed presidential election, Mir Hossein Mousavi, massed in competing rallies Tuesday as the country's most senior Islamic cleric threw his weight behind opposition charges that Ahmadinejad's re-election was rigged.” A duel for legitimacy plays out in Iran rallies “The dueling rallies illustrated efforts by both sides to seek the stamp of legitimacy by drawing huge numbers of people onto the streets. They also highlighted the contrast between Mousavi supporters' technical savvy and the old guard's blunt instruments of state.”
Health care cost. Democrats Work to Pare Cost of Health Care Bill “Senate Democrats worked feverishly on Tuesday to pare the costs of legislation to overhaul the health care system, and were considering a reduction in proposed subsidies to help uninsured Americans buy coverage.” Obama's Health Plan Needs Spending Controls, CBO Says “President Obama's plan to expand health coverage to the uninsured is likely to dig the nation deeper into debt unless policymakers adopt politically painful controls on spending, such as sharp reductions in payments to doctors, hospitals and other providers, congressional budget analysts said yesterday.”
War funding approved. House approves war spending bill “Sidestepping opposition from antiwar liberals, the House on Tuesday approved funding to escalate the war in Afghanistan and wind down U.S. involvement in Iraq.” House passes war-funding bill, despite reservations “A divided House of Representatives Tuesday approved by 226 to 202 a $105.9 billion emergency spending bill to fund the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and help curb flu outbreaks. However, many lawmakers in both parties were uneasy.”
Immigration. Report Links Increase in Hate Crimes to Contentious Debate Over Immigration “U.S. civil rights leaders said yesterday that an increase in hate crimes committed in recent years against Hispanics and people perceived to be immigrants 'correlates closely' to the nation's increasingly contentious debate over immigration.” Third year of fewer illegal immigrants caught “The number of Border Patrol apprehensions nationwide dropped for a third consecutive year, falling more than 17 percent to a level not seen since 1973, according to new government data.”
Human trafficking. U.S. expands human trafficking watch list “The Obama administration yesterday expanded the U.S. watch list of countries suspected of not doing enough to combat human trafficking, putting more than four dozen nations on notice that they might face sanctions unless their records improve.”
Detainee report. CIA Urges White House to Keep Parts of Detainee Report Secret “The CIA is pushing the Obama administration to maintain the secrecy of significant portions of a comprehensive internal account of the agency's interrogation program, according to two intelligence officials.”
Anglican Church. New Anglican Church poses dilemma “The Anglican Church in North America will be formally founded next week, challenging the legitimacy of the U.S. Episcopal Church and posing a dilemma for the worldwide Anglican Communion over who represents Anglicanism in the United States and Canada.”
Job benefits for same-sex partners. U.S. to Extend Its Job Benefits to Gay Partners “President Obama will sign a presidential memorandum on Wednesday to extend benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees, administration officials said Tuesday evening, but he will stop short of pledging full health insurance coverage.” Obama to offer benefits to gay partners of federal employees “His action is a significant advance for gay rights and comes days after the Obama administration sparked outrage by filing a legal brief defending the law forbidding federal recognition of same-sex marriage.”
North Korea. North Korea issues military threat “North Korea has warned of a 'thousand-fold' military retaliation against the U.S. and its allies if provoked, the latest threat in its rhetoric aimed at defending its nuclear activities.” N Korea threatens 'merciless attack' “North Korea's threat today to launch a thousand-fold' attack against the U.S. is the latest in a string of outbursts that add rhetorical color to the serious business of persuading the regime to abandon its nuclear weapons program.” Obama Assures South Korea of Protection From Increasingly Hostile North “As new sanctions against North Korea take effect, President Obama said yesterday that he does not believe it is inevitable that the isolated communist nation 'will or should be' designated a nuclear power.” U.S. may be within N. Korea missile range in 3 years, official warns “North Korea may be able to overcome technical difficulties and assemble a missile capable of hitting West Coast cities within three years, a top Defense Department official said Tuesday, but it is unlikely to be able to deliver a nuclear warhead in that time frame.”
Pakistan. Pakistan troops battle Taliban in the Sakhra Valley “At a remote base camp in the heart of the Swat Valley, Pakistani army troops are hunkered down in a temporary compound, a large private home whose owner recently fled the advancing warfare.” India positive after summit with Pakistan “Manmohan Singh, India’s Prime Minister, said today that his country wanted to make peace again with Pakistan, raising hopes for a resumption of talks over Kashmir that are seen as key to President Obama’s new strategy towards Pakistan and Afghanistan.”
Zimbabwe. Morgan Tsvangirai to appeal for his people’s return to Zimbabwe “Morgan Tsvangirai will deliver a passionate appeal this week to Zimbabwe refugees and asylum seekers living in Britain to return home to help to rebuild their shattered country.”
Opinion. Catholic bishops and budget cuts (Tim Rutten, Los Angeles Times) “Last week, the state's Catholic bishops bravely walked into this lion's den of intransigent 'realism' and offered their view of what's actually at stake in this tragedy that's being played as farce. It's crucial, they said, that lawmakers not only'"undertake major tax and budget reforms' but also that they 'give top priority to programs that provide for the basic needs of children, the disabled and those poor and unemployed who cannot provide for themselves.'"
Got something to say about what you're reading? We value your feedback!