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Kenya death toll reaches 140

NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- The death toll in Kenya's election violence reached at least 140 Monday as the international community pressured President Mwai Kibaki to ease tensions.

A dusk-to-dawn curfew was imposed in the town of Kisumu on the shore of Lake Victoria, a stronghold of support for opposition candidate Raila Odinga where about 53 people had been killed, The Daily Telegraph reported. Troops were enforcing the measure by shooting on sight, the British newspaper reported.

The fighting, which had produced at least 140 deaths, was primarily between the Luo and the Kikuyu tribes, who are traditional enemies, the Telegraph said.

Riot police were in the streets of Nairobi as protesters denounced Kibaki's re-election.

Observers from the European Union have voiced doubts about the legitimacy of the vote count, which gave Kibaki another term in office by a razor-thin margin.

The New York Times said the outcome of the vote, along with Kibaki's heavy-handed response to protests, had resulted in a tepid response from other governments. The newspaper said Canada's high commissioner to Kenya met publicly with Odinga, while the U.S. Embassy in Kenya issued a statement expressing concern about ballot counting.

Richardson says Iraq is the No. 1 issue

PERRY , Iowa, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Democratic presidential hopeful Bill Richardson told potential Iowa caucus-goers Monday that Iraq should be the No. 1 issue in this election.

Speaking at a campaign stop in Perry, Iowa, the New Mexico governor stood by his suggestion that Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf should step down. Richardson also said U.S. aid to Pakistan should be suspended in the wake of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto's assassination last week.

"You're going to see al-Qaida forces get stronger unless Musharraf leaves office," Richardson was quoted by The Hill as saying.

Richardson, who trails in the polls, said the Iraq war has taken a backseat to other issues, including the economy and illegal immigration. Richardson, who has called for a complete withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq, said the war is an issue that "divides America."

"Mainly because of huge disagreements between the president and Congress over this war, we're unable to deal with other priorities that affect America," he said.

Huckabee pulls attack ad

DES MOINES, Iowa, Dec. 31 (UPI) -- U.S presidential contender Mike Huckabee pulled a negative campaign ad against fellow Republican Mitt Romney Monday but not before showing it to reporters.

The ad questioned the former Massachusetts governor's record on immigration, taxes, crime fighting and healthcare, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Huckabee, a former Arkansas governor, Saturday denounced political attack ads, saying he hoped the negative ad produced by his own campaign would not be aired publicly.

"We all can talk about changing the tone of politics and the direction and the way we elect our officials," Huckabee said.

"And sometimes we talk about it and then we end up doing the same things, and at some point we have to decide, can we change the kind of politics and the level of discourse, and so I've got to believe that we can but it's got to start somewhere, and so it might as well start here and it might as well start with me."

Asked if he thought Romney was fit to be president, Huckabee told reporters, "Voters can make that decision."

Huckabee's decision to withdraw the ad comes as polls in Iowa show Romney is regaining his lead, the newspaper reported.

Poll: Americans say they're happy

PRINCETON, N.J., Dec. 31 (UPI) -- Most Americans say they are very satisfied with the way things are going for them personally but are unhappy with how things are going in the United States.

More than 80 percent of Americans say they are satisfied with their lives at this time, including a solid majority who say they are "very satisfied," according to a recent Gallup Poll. Fourteen percent of respondents said they are dissatisfied personally.

The Gallup Poll found that Republicans, married adults, those residing in higher income households, parents of young children, those attending church weekly, and whites are most likely to say they are satisfied and happy at this time.

The percentage of Americans who say they are satisfied with their personal life has averaged 82 percent since 1979, with a low of 73 percent in July 1979 and a high of 88 percent in December 2004.

At least six in 10 Americans who attend church services weekly said they are very satisfied with their personal lives and are very happy.

The poll, based on telephone interviews with 1,027 national adults, was conducted Dec. 6-9. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 3 points.