Morning copy 01.10.2006

Samuel Alito

The hearings kick off now, but here's the link to his openning statement yesterday, Houston Chronicle.

By the way, Arlen Specter just hit the big question, Griswold vs. Connecticut. Alito does not seem like one that would overturn the underlying logic of the abortion ruling.

Jill Zuckman, of the Chicago Tribune, clears the dust off the newspeg that the Democrats need to show their special interests that the lesser party has some teeth. The GOP would find itself in the same position where the anti-Roberts proposed by an anti-Bush. The journalists would be dusting off the newspeg in that logically possible world as well.

China

The Washington Times reports on China's increasing influence:

BEIJING -- Bolivian President-elect Evo Morales yesterday met with Chinese President Hu Jintao and called China an "ideological ally," a day after he invited the communist country to develop Bolivia's vast gas reserves.

The A.P. reports on China's efforts to modernize its military:

SHANGHAI -- China has cut the size of its military, the world's biggest, by 200,000 soldiers in an effort to create a stronger, more high-tech fighting force, the military said yesterday.

Iran's nuclear program

Iran is set to begin research at its nuclear facitlity, BBC News.

The Guardian has news analysis on Iran's recent activity:

Dr Ali Ansari, a lecturer in modern Iranian history at the University of Saint Andrews, takes an even bleaker view. "In light of what Iran has been saying over the last six weeks, the whole situation is made much more difficult."

Dr Ansari believes that Iran will not stop until it has the means to produce nuclear power.

He feels that for the last two years Tehran has been "accommodating" towards inspections but that "it has got them nowhere. Now they have decided to be bullish."

GOP leadership

Bloomberg News on the specter of Jack Abramoff with the race for majority leader in the Congress:

Representative Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican, said concerns that the two men are too close to Washington's K Street lobbying corridor may encourage a dark-horse candidate to run against them. ``We have three weeks until this election, and a lot can happen between now and then,'' Flake said.

Iraq

Reuters reports on an upcoming speech today from President Bush:

In a speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Bush will talk about building democracy, the importance of strengthening Iraqi security forces and reconstruction efforts, McClellan said.

Sago mine tragedy

Pittsburgh Post Gazette reports on the investigation into the disaster:

Yesterday, West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin III appointed J. Davitt McAteer, who was assistant secretary for MSHA during the Clinton administration, to lead the state's investigation. He currently is a vice president at Wheeling Jesuit University.

Bird Flu

The Times of London reports on HSBC's bird flu contingency plans:

HSBC, one of the world's biggest banks, has drawn up contingency plans to cope with the absence of up to half of its 253,000 staff in a bird flu pandemic, as fears grow of the virus spreading westward across Europe.