News roundup 04.10.2006

Immigration nation

The San Francisco Chronicle: "Rallies on immigration across country today / Big crowds expected to protest House bid to change law"

The Houston Chronicle: "RALLY FLOODS DALLAS STREETS"

Bloomberg News: "U.S. Immigration Bill May Draw 2 Mln Protesters"

The Washington Times:

Republican Rep. Peter T. King, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, says that he expects "several thousand people" will protest his district offices in New York but that "you can't allow that to intimidate you."

The Christian Science Monitor: "US immigrants mobilizing for major 'action'"

The Washington Post: "Organizers Expect Crush for Immigrant Rights Rally"

The Los Angeles Times: "Immigration Activists on March Again"

The Des Moines Register: "Workers' legal status difficult to know"

The long war in Iraq

The A.P. via the USA Today: "Sunnis tell Shiites to find new candidates for Iraq prime minister"

The New York Times:

BAGHDAD, Iraq, Apr. 11 - The main Sunni Arab and Kurdish blocs said today that they were holding firm in their rejection of Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari's bid to hang onto his job in the new government, pushing the Shiite bloc closer to offering up alternative candidates.

The Christian Science Monitor:

BAGHDAD AND BOSTON – With each new suicide attack on Shiite civilians - the most recent killed 90 last Friday at a mosque run by a leading Shiite party - the United States' ability to shape Iraq's political development grows a little weaker and the country's simmering sectarian strife burns a little hotter.

The Washington Times: "Gas prices, discontent rising in Iraq"

The Washington Post:

The U.S. military is conducting a propaganda campaign to magnify the role of the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, according to internal military documents and officers familiar with the program. The effort has raised his profile in a way that some military intelligence officials believe may have overstated his importance and helped the Bush administration tie the war to the organization responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

The Washington Post:

BAGHDAD, April 9 -- With politicians deadlocked over who will be Iraq's next prime minister, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said Sunday that planned talks with Iranian officials over Iraq-related issues would be delayed until a government is formed.

(Every weekend Khalilzad reveals an important story about the status of Iraq. Interesting that the normal communications team from the administration does not keep the public informed on these steps. It's the ambassador almost in direct dialogue with the American people.)

The Los Angeles Times: "Kerry Presses for Iraq Deadline"

Iran

Reuters via CNN:

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- The Bush administration insisted Sunday its priority was to seek a diplomatic solution to the dispute over Iran's nuclear ambitions, amid a reports of stepped-up planning for possible U.S. air strikes.

A senior administration official downplayed prospects for American military action, calling the latest reports "ill-informed," but stopped short of an outright denial.

The A.P. via the Los Angeles Times: "U.S. Dismisses Speculation Over Strikes Against Iran"

The Times of London: "The idea of US nuclear attack on Iran is just nuts, says Straw"

The Times of London:

The flurry of rebuttals and reactions to the reports that America has drawn up secret plans to launch a military strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities if necessary may please the proponents of psychological warfare; it can only dismay America’s allies and those attempting to negotiate a halt to Iran’s nuclear programme.

Leaker in chief

The Washington Post: "Specter Says Bush, Cheney Should Explain Leak"

The New York Times:

WASHINGTON, April 9 — A senior administration official confirmed for the first time on Sunday that President Bush had ordered the declassification of parts of a prewar intelligence report on Iraq in an effort to rebut critics who said the administration had exaggerated the nuclear threat posed by Saddam Hussein.

The United States Army

The New York Times: "Third Retired General Wants Rumsfeld Out"

The New York Times:

WASHINGTON, April 9 — Young Army officers, including growing numbers of captains who leave as soon as their initial commitment is fulfilled, are bailing out of active-duty service at rates that have alarmed senior officers. Last year, more than a third of the West Point class of 2000 left active duty at the earliest possible moment, after completing their five-year obligation.

The USA Today:

WASHINGTON — Two of every three eligible soldiers continue to re-enlist, putting the Army, which has endured most of the fighting in Iraq, ahead of its annual goal.

Steelers' politics

Bloomberg News:

April 10 (Bloomberg) -- Franco Harris and Lynn Swann shared Super Bowl glory four times with football's Pittsburgh Steelers. These days, as Swann runs for governor of Pennsylvania, Harris is lining up on the opposite side.

From Russia with crack downs

The Philadelphia Inquirer:

MOSCOW - The Kremlin has begun cracking down on private groups that advocate human rights and democracy, the latest move in a government campaign that already has tamed political opposition, stifled business dissent, and all but eliminated independent news media.

The do very little Congress

The Philadelphia Inquirer:

On Friday, lawmakers began a two-week break, this time for Easter. The last break was two weeks ago - a seven-day recess for St. Patrick's Day.

At this rate, they'll spend fewer days in Washington this year than any time since Harry Truman ran against the "do-nothing" Congress in 1948. The light schedule and the inability to pass major legislation raise a fundamental question: Is Congress broken?