U.S. officials dispute Olmert's claims
WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (UPI) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's claim that he got the U.S. government to abstain on a U.N. measure on the Gaza crisis was untrue, officials said.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Olmert's story of his conversation with U.S. President George Bush was "just 100 percent, totally, completely not true." White House Spokesman Tony Fratto said "there are inaccuracies" in what Olmert said.
During a speech Monday, the prime minister said he convinced Bush to tell U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice not to support the Gaza resolution she had prepared. Olmert said he made an emergency call to the president.
"I said: 'Get me President Bush on the phone,'" Olmert said. "They said he was in the middle of giving a speech in Philadelphia. I said I didn't care: 'I need to talk to him now.' He got off the podium and spoke to me."
McCormack said Rice had decided as early as Wednesday that she would not veto a resolution, after Arab ministers rejected an American effort to push for a weaker statement from the U.N. Security Council.
"So you have two possibilities left: voting for it or abstaining, and she decided, given where the state of the negotiations were in terms of the Mubarak initiative, that abstaining would give the best possibility for those negotiations to move forward and actually resolve the situation on the ground," McCormack said.
Clinton vows active arms control effort
WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (UPI) -- Hillary Clinton told a Senate panel Tuesday she would steer the U.S. State Department into a more active role in arms control and nuclear non-proliferation.
Clinton, the Democratic New York senator nominated by President-elect Barack Obama to be his secretary of state, was critical of the State Department's efforts during the Bush administration in the arms control arena. Clinton spoke to a panel considering her confirmation.
"It won't surprise you to know that in my transition review of the department, it became clear that the arms control and non-proliferation functions had been significantly degraded," Clinton said in response to questions from Sen. Richard Lugar, R-Ind. "There was a difference of opinion within this current administration as to whether such an effort is worthwhile, whether it pays off, whether it's just spinning wheels.
"We intend to build it even more robustly. I am seeking arms control and non-proliferation experts to come back into the department."
Lugar urged Clinton to use the department "to open up conversations with other countries, to work with the Defense Department, of course, the Department of Energy, others who have interest in this, but which thus far the State Department has been either a reluctant or almost non-existent partner."
Clinton agreed with Lugar that "Russia is attempting to create a gas equivalent of OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) that would give it, in addition to the bilateral powers it has, a much greater multilateral international reach on gas. So this whole question of energy security, I think, has enormous implications for our country, for Europe, but, indeed, for the entire world."
Franken sues for certification
ST.PAUL, Minn., Jan. 13 (UPI) -- Democrat Al Franken is challenging a Minnesota law preventing him from being certified as Minnesota's newest U.S. senator.
Attorneys for Franken Tuesday filed a petition with the state Supreme Court to overturn the law, which prohibits an election result from being certified while still under challenge, The Hill reported. Incumbent Republican Norm Coleman is contesting the results of a state recount that gave a 225 vote victory margin to Franken.
Monday, Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty and Democratic Secretary of State Mark Ritchie declined to certify Franken as the winner. But Franken's lawyers plan to argue federal law and the U.S. Constitution trump the state law. The 12-page petition alleges Pawlenty and Ritchie erred in declining to certify Franken, the St. Paul (Minn.) Pioneer-Press reported.
"Even if the governor issues a certificate of election prior to the conclusion of the contest phase, I will not sign it," Ritchie said.
"Right now every other state has two United States senators except for Minnesota," Franken attorney Marc Elias told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "What we are seeking is to ensure Minnesota has a full voice, not half a voice, but a full voice in the United States senate during the pendency of this contest."
Baucus: Geithner made 'honest mistakes'
WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (UPI) -- Members of the Senate Finance Committee say tax problems and immigration issues shouldn't derail Timothy Geithner's nomination for U.S. treasury secretary.
"I believe that these errors, although serious, do not rise to the level of disqualification," committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., told reporters.
The Hill reported Geithner discussed the issues with panel members behind closed doors Tuesday.
Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said Geithner made a "common mistake" in failing to report Social Security and Medicare taxes when he was technically self-employed while working for the International Monetary Fund. The Wall Street Journal reported he paid the taxes with interest after federal tax officials brought the error to his attention.
Geithner also employed a housekeeper whose visa expired, making her an illegal immigrant. Gibbs said Geithner was unaware his housekeeper's immigration status changed while she was in his employ.
Baucus said he was made aware of the two issues several weeks ago and waived them off as "honest mistakes," The Hill said.
