'Post-partisan' talk divisive for Obama
WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- The bipartisan candor of U.S. presidential hopeful and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has been met with both admiration and skepticism.
Obama touted himself as the "post-partisan" politician in a political system often gridlocked in an antagonized U.S. political environment.
Obama said in a speech Saturday that "American people are hungry for something different" and said he could establish a "working coalition, a working majority for change" in Washington.
Critics and supporters alike view Obama's rhetoric with a note of pessimism.
"He believes he's a game-changer, but I don't believe the game has changed," said U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., in Monday's Washington Post.
Past experiments with a bipartisan compromise came at the expense of party principles, as the Clinton White House settled on a joint federal and state heath program in place of a universal healthcare system and Republicans failed to curtail an expanding government bureaucracy, the Post said.
Iranian ships 'provoke' U.S. Navy
MANAMA, Bahrain, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Kevin Cosgriff said Monday five Iranian boats threatened three U.S. ships navigating the Strait of Hormuz.
Cosgriff told a Pentagon briefing the USS Port Royal, the USS Hopper and the USS Ingraham were confronted early Sunday by, and received threatening radio calls from, five small high-speed crafts belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard navy.
"The behavior of the Iranian ships was, in my estimation, unnecessary, without due regard for safety of navigation and unduly provocative in the sense of the aggregate of their maneuvers, the radio call and the dropping of objects in the water," Cosgriff said.
"The Revolutionary Guard demonstrated their capacity to act irresponsibly and, in my estimation, well out of the ordinary norms of what we would expect."
The incident occurred about 15 miles off the Iranian shore and lasted about 30 minutes. Cosgriff said the Iranian boats came within 500 yards of the U.S. vessels on several occasions.
Bush: 'We can't take economy for granted'
CHICAGO, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. President George Bush warned on Monday that though the U.S. economy is resilient, Americans cannot take it for granted.
Bush traveled to Chicago for an appearance before businessmen at the Union League Club.
"Our economy is flexible, it motivates people to take risk. We are the most prosperous nation in the world. There's a sense where we can be optimistic. We have seen anxiety -- dealt with anxiety before; this isn't the first time," Bush said.
"We have a strong foundation in our economy but we cannot take economic growth for granted."
Bush noted recent economic indicators have turned mixed and energy prices pose a real threat. He said one way to keep a downturn at bay would be to make the current tax cuts permanent to encourage businesses to make investments.
Bush also addressed the current credit crunch in the housing industry.
"In times of uncertainty in the housing market, it makes sense to help people refinance loans," he said.
As for healthcare, Bush said he's on the side of small businesses and changes in the tax code to encourage people to go shopping for healthcare in the individual market.
High court examines lethal injections
WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court heard argument Monday on whether the way lethal injections are carried out is too painful to be constitutional.
At the core of the argument is the three-drug "cocktail" administered by the 37 states that use lethal injections for executions -- Nebraska continues to use electrocution. Since the high court agreed this fall to hear the case, the states have instituted an unofficial moratorium on executions.
In the case before the Supreme Court, two Kentucky death row inmates contend the anesthetic -- the first part of the cocktail -- doesn't render the lethal parts of the execution painless.
The Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution bans "cruel and unusual punishments."
Monday the justices, even those in the liberal bloc, seemed to be more interested in the details of lethal injection than in its constitutionality. Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer spent some time questioning an inmate's attorney on whether a one-drug injection -- 3 grams of anesthetic -- would be lethal as well as painless.
With the rest of the high court divided 4-4 between conservatives and liberals, moderate Justice Anthony Kennedy may provide the deciding vote in the case, as he has in scores of cases through the 1990s and 2000s.
Kennedy also spent much of Monday's argument asking questions about the technical details of lethal injection, not whether lethal injection itself was unconstitutional.
Kenyan leaders agree to talk
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Kenya's opposition Orange Democratic Movement Party has decided to use international mediation to resolve a post-election dispute in Nairobi.
The party canceled planned nationwide protests after the death toll from the ethnic and political unrest rose to 500.
A U.S. envoy sent to Africa said the vote counting was rigged and urged Kenyan leaders to quickly find a solution to the crisis and to implement political, social and electoral reforms.
The leader of the opposition party, Raila Odinga, called off the protests after with the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer in Nairobi.
Frazer has also met with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki to encourage a political reconciliation between the men.
Tuesday, the head of the African Union, Ghanian President John Kufour was scheduled to arrive in Nairobi to spearhead mediation between the two parties.
Internal Notes inserting "party" in lede (otherwise, it read the main opposition was to Kenya, which would imply another country). also post-election violence, sted post election-violence.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- The bipartisan candor of U.S. presidential hopeful and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., has been met with both admiration and skepticism.
Obama touted himself as the "post-partisan" politician in a political system often gridlocked in an antagonized U.S. political environment.
Obama said in a speech Saturday that "American people are hungry for something different" and said he could establish a "working coalition, a working majority for change" in Washington.
Critics and supporters alike view Obama's rhetoric with a note of pessimism.
"He believes he's a game-changer, but I don't believe the game has changed," said U.S. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., in Monday's Washington Post.
Past experiments with a bipartisan compromise came at the expense of party principles, as the Clinton White House settled on a joint federal and state heath program in place of a universal healthcare system and Republicans failed to curtail an expanding government bureaucracy, the Post said.
Iranian ships 'provoke' U.S. Navy
MANAMA, Bahrain, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Kevin Cosgriff said Monday five Iranian boats threatened three U.S. ships navigating the Strait of Hormuz.
Cosgriff told a Pentagon briefing the USS Port Royal, the USS Hopper and the USS Ingraham were confronted early Sunday by, and received threatening radio calls from, five small high-speed crafts belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard navy.
"The behavior of the Iranian ships was, in my estimation, unnecessary, without due regard for safety of navigation and unduly provocative in the sense of the aggregate of their maneuvers, the radio call and the dropping of objects in the water," Cosgriff said.
"The Revolutionary Guard demonstrated their capacity to act irresponsibly and, in my estimation, well out of the ordinary norms of what we would expect."
The incident occurred about 15 miles off the Iranian shore and lasted about 30 minutes. Cosgriff said the Iranian boats came within 500 yards of the U.S. vessels on several occasions.
Bush: 'We can't take economy for granted'
CHICAGO, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. President George Bush warned on Monday that though the U.S. economy is resilient, Americans cannot take it for granted.
Bush traveled to Chicago for an appearance before businessmen at the Union League Club.
"Our economy is flexible, it motivates people to take risk. We are the most prosperous nation in the world. There's a sense where we can be optimistic. We have seen anxiety -- dealt with anxiety before; this isn't the first time," Bush said.
"We have a strong foundation in our economy but we cannot take economic growth for granted."
Bush noted recent economic indicators have turned mixed and energy prices pose a real threat. He said one way to keep a downturn at bay would be to make the current tax cuts permanent to encourage businesses to make investments.
Bush also addressed the current credit crunch in the housing industry.
"In times of uncertainty in the housing market, it makes sense to help people refinance loans," he said.
As for healthcare, Bush said he's on the side of small businesses and changes in the tax code to encourage people to go shopping for healthcare in the individual market.
High court examines lethal injections
WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court heard argument Monday on whether the way lethal injections are carried out is too painful to be constitutional.
At the core of the argument is the three-drug "cocktail" administered by the 37 states that use lethal injections for executions -- Nebraska continues to use electrocution. Since the high court agreed this fall to hear the case, the states have instituted an unofficial moratorium on executions.
In the case before the Supreme Court, two Kentucky death row inmates contend the anesthetic -- the first part of the cocktail -- doesn't render the lethal parts of the execution painless.
The Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution bans "cruel and unusual punishments."
Monday the justices, even those in the liberal bloc, seemed to be more interested in the details of lethal injection than in its constitutionality. Liberal Justice Stephen Breyer spent some time questioning an inmate's attorney on whether a one-drug injection -- 3 grams of anesthetic -- would be lethal as well as painless.
With the rest of the high court divided 4-4 between conservatives and liberals, moderate Justice Anthony Kennedy may provide the deciding vote in the case, as he has in scores of cases through the 1990s and 2000s.
Kennedy also spent much of Monday's argument asking questions about the technical details of lethal injection, not whether lethal injection itself was unconstitutional.
Kenyan leaders agree to talk
NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Kenya's opposition Orange Democratic Movement Party has decided to use international mediation to resolve a post-election dispute in Nairobi.
The party canceled planned nationwide protests after the death toll from the ethnic and political unrest rose to 500.
A U.S. envoy sent to Africa said the vote counting was rigged and urged Kenyan leaders to quickly find a solution to the crisis and to implement political, social and electoral reforms.
The leader of the opposition party, Raila Odinga, called off the protests after with the U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer in Nairobi.
Frazer has also met with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki to encourage a political reconciliation between the men.
Tuesday, the head of the African Union, Ghanian President John Kufour was scheduled to arrive in Nairobi to spearhead mediation between the two parties.
Internal Notes inserting "party" in lede (otherwise, it read the main opposition was to Kenya, which would imply another country). also post-election violence, sted post election-violence.
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This material may not be reproduced, redistributed, or manipulated in any form.
This material may not be reproduced, redistributed, or manipulated in any form.
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