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Mukasey sworn in as attorney general

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Michael Mukasey was sworn in Friday as U.S. attorney general in a private ceremony at the Justice Department, a department spokesman said.

Mukasey's swearing-in came less than 24 hours after winning Senate confirmation despite criticism at his refusal to call the interrogation technique of waterboarding, which simulates drowning, as torture, CNN reported.

The former federal judge flew to Washington from his New York home, and a short time later was administered the oath in private by Assistant Attorney General for Administration Lee Lofthus, CNN said.

Mukasey will be formally sworn in next week in at a public ceremony either at the White House or the Justice Department, official said. A date has not been announced.

House passes alternative minimum tax patch

WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- The U.S. House of Representatives Friday voted 216-to-193 to limit the reach of the alternative minimum tax for one year, despite a presidential veto threat.

When created in the 1960s, the alternative minimum tax targeted millionaires. However, inflation has extended AMT's reach to middle-income Americans, National Public Radio said.

About 4 million taxpayers in 2006 paid alternative minimum taxes; C-SPAN reported an estimated 21 million would be affected in 2007 if the so-called AMT patch were not enacted.

The Temporary Tax Relief Act of 2007 also contains language that would increase taxes on private equity partners and hedge fund managers.

Besides the AMT fix for the 2007 tax year, the bill would provide tax relief for homeowners refinancing their mortgages and extend 38 expiring tax breaks, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The White House said it objected to tax increases House Democrats want to use to offset the cost of the AMT patch.

Coast Guard: Delay on spill 'unacceptable'

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- The Coast Guard acknowledged Friday that it waited too long to announce the size of a devastating oil spill in San Francisco Bay.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency as emergency workers and volunteers struggled to contain the spill, rescue birds and clean up beaches.

A container ship, the Cosco Busan, hit a tower on the Bay Bridge, which connects San Francisco and Oakland, on Wednesday morning. Coast Guard logs show that its officers only realized the magnitude of the spill -- 58,000 gallons -- in late afternoon and did not announce the size until 9 p.m., The San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Admiral Craig Bone called the delay "unacceptable." But he maintained that the Coast Guard did everything possible to contain the spill even when officers thought only 140 gallons had escaped the vessel.

Fog was thick in the bay on Wednesday morning, possibly contributing to the collision and hampering containment efforts.

Witness outlines plan to get Simpson items

LAS VEGAS, Nov. 9 (UPI) -- O.J. Simpson returned to a Las Vegas courtroom for the second day of a probable cause hearing on charges he robbed two sports memorabilia dealers at gunpoint.

The prosecution was expected to call up to eight witnesses during the hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to try Simpson and two others at a criminal trial, KVVU-TV, Las Vegas, reported Friday.

Simpson and his co-defendants face 12 charges, including kidnapping, armed robbery and assault with a deadly weapon in the Sept. 13, 2007 incident at the off-Strip Palace Station Hotel and Casino.

Prosecutors allege the former NFL running back and movie actor and five other men stormed into the hotel room to confront two memorabilia dealers about collectibles Simpson claims were stolen from him. Three pleaded guilty to lesser charges in exchange for their testimony.

Continuing his testimony from Thursday was Tom Riccio, a California collectibles broker who said he set up the meeting at which Simpson and the others, including two men with guns, burst into a hotel room and took sports-related items Simpson said belong to him.

Riccio testified on cross-examination that he didn't think the confrontation was a robbery, "since (the items) belonged to Simpson."