Daschle withdraws from HHS consideration
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Tom Daschle, dogged by his failure to pay federal taxes, withdrew Tuesday from consideration as U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services.
President Barack Obama said in a statement he accepted Daschle's decision "with sadness and regret" because he had hoped Daschle could "bring his passion" and expertise in healthcare to the post, CNN reported.
Daschle met behind closed doors Monday with the Senate Finance Committee, and was scheduled to appear before the committee next week for his confirmation hearing.
Daschle, who failed to pay $134,000 in federal taxes and has since paid $146,000 in back payments and interest, apologized to the committee and the public Monday for what he called tax errors.
On Monday, Obama said he "absolutely" stood by his close friend despite the revelations.
"Tom made a mistake which he openly acknowledged," Obama said Tuesday in his statement, adding that his subsequent repayment and eventual apology did not excuse Daschle's behavior.
"Now we must move forward to focus on the economy," Obama said.
In a statement to the media, Daschle said the position and the work required "will require a leader who can operate with the full faith of Congress ... without distraction."
"Right now, I am not that leader," he said.
Daschle was the second person Tuesday to ask their name be withdrawn from an administration post. Nancy Killefer withdrew her name from consideration to be the first U.S. chief performance officer because of tax issues, she told Obama in a letter.
"I have also come to realize in the current environment that my personal tax issue of D.C. unemployment tax could be used to create exactly the kind of distraction and delay those duties must avoid," she said in her letter to the president.
Obama names Gregg as Commerce choice
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama introduced fiscal disciplinarian Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., as his nominee to be Commerce Department chief Wednesday.
"Judd is famous ... on Capitol Hill for his strict fiscal discipline," Obama said. "It's not that enjoys saying 'no' ... it's that he shares my deep-seated commitment to guaranteeing that our children inherit a future they can afford."
Noting he and Judd don't agree on every issue, Obama said: "But we do agree on the urgent need to get American businesses and families back on their feet. ... And we know the only way to solve the great challenges of our time is to put aside stale ideology and petty partisanship, and embrace what works."
If confirmed, Judd would be the third Republican in the Obama cabinet, joining Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood.
Gregg was nominated after Obama's first choice, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson withdrew from consideration because of a federal investigation into his administration.
"We are ... in the middle of a very difficult economic time," Gregg said. "And you've outlined an extraordinarily bold and aggressive, effective and comprehensive plan for how we can get this country moving."
Saying now wasn't the time for partisanship, Gregg said, "This is a time to govern and govern well."
Gregg also thanked New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch "for his courtesy and courage in being willing to make this possible through the agreement that we have relative to my successor in the Senate."
Lynch indicated he would appoint a Republican to fill Gregg's seat once it is vacated so as not to change the balance in the Senate.
White House backs vetting, Gibbs says
WASHINGTON, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama stands by his vetting process despite two nominees withdrawing their names because of tax issues, the White House said Tuesday.
"The president has confidence in the system," Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said during a news briefing.
Former Sen. Tom Daschle withdrew his name from consideration as Health and Human Services secretary and Nancy Killefer asked that her name be pulled from consideration to be the first U.S. chief performance officer -- both because of tax issues.
"I'm not going to spend time looking through the rear-view mirror," Gibbs said after expressing the administration's confidence in the vetting process several times. "The president understands each served with the distinction."
"The decision (to withdraw) was made by Senator Dashcle," Gibbs said, adding that he "did not get a signal" from the White House.
Daschle and Killefer asked Obama to withdraw their nominations, Gibbs said, and "each also decided they couldn't distract from the agenda he was pursuing."
More broadly, Gibbs said, "We're in a critical juncture in our nation's history, at a crossroads economically."
When questioned about Obama's pledge that he would issue in "an era of responsibility" and whether anyone in the administration accepted responsibility for the lapses in the vetting.
"We all take responsibility," Gibbs said. "The president takes responsibility."
He said the difference between the situation between Dashcle and Killefer and the confirmation of Tim Geithner as Treasury secretary came because in Geithner's situation, "the process worked."
Gibbs said the administration "is looking for replacements as we speak."
Bomb blast rips northwest Pakistan mosque
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- A bomb blast ripped through a mosque in Pakistan's North-West Frontier Province Tuesday killing one person and injuring more than 20, police said.
The explosion, in the Jogian area of the NWFP's Dera Ismail Khan district, occurred as a large crowd was inside the mosque offering early evening prayer, security officials told KUNA, the Kuwait News Agency. Several of the wounded were reported in critical condition.
NWFP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar condemned the attack and blamed local Taliban militants for the bombing, KUNA said.
Suspected Taliban militants also blew up a bridge Tuesday in the Khyber region along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, disrupting NATO supply lines.
No deaths were reported in that blast, which knocked out the span connecting Landi Kotal and Jamrod in the Khyber tribal area, CNN said. Engineers and other officials were at the site working to open a temporary route and assessing damage. Local officials said most of the bridge was destroyed.
Authorities were mapping out alternate supply routes for NATO supply trucks and traffic going from Pakistan to Afghanistan because the damaged route is the main link between the two countries.
Nearly three dozen suspected militants were killed Monday as part of a continuing military operation in Pakistan's Swat Valley, Pakistani military officials said.
The 35 deaths occurred when government security forces used artillery and attack helicopters to battle between 70 and 80 suspected militants after tracking their movements in the Khwaza Khela district, CNN reported Tuesday.
Official hints at second Gaza operation
JERUSALEM, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni hinted Tuesday Hamas may face another military operation in Gaza if militants keep firing missiles into Israel.
"My opinion on this matter is clear; every attack must be met with a response," Livni told Jerusalem Radio after a Grad rocket was fired at Asheklon, The Jerusalem Post reported.
The three-week Operation Cast Lead ended two weeks ago with Israel and Hamas -- which controls Gaza -- both declaring cease-fires.
Livni also rejected diplomatic overtures with Hamas, saying "any negotiations with Hamas, whether direct or indirect, are harmful. From a strategic standpoint ... I think that we should make peace with the moderate elements."
Following the rocket attack in Ashkelon, the Israeli military warned Rafah residents to leave their homes in case there was an airstrike.
The recorded messages, in Arabic, said people who work in tunnels, live near them or are "giving logistical help to terrorists" should evacuate the area immediately, residents told the Post.
Mark Regiv, a prime minister's office spokesman, said consequences would be grave if the rocket fire continued.
"Hamas is playing with fire and they alone will be responsible for the destruction of the truce," Regev said.
Mom of 8 deluged with book, film offers
LOS ANGELES, Feb. 3 (UPI) -- Agents retained by the Southern California mother of octuplets say they have been deluged with requests for interviews and book and movie deals.
Michael Furtney and Joann Killeen told the Los Angeles Times that Nadya Suleman isn't interested in money for its own sake.
"The money itself is not the object," Furtney said. "She has her view of her life with her kids as they go down life's highway. She wants to be sure they are well cared for."
Socorro Serrano, spokeswoman for Kaiser Permanente, where the octuplets are hospitalized told the Times the majority of the calls to the hospital have been hostile.
But she has also received offers of donations of breast milk, diapers and other items. Serrano said that one mother of triplets even called with advice for Suleman -- "Hang in there."
Suleman, who is divorced and already had six children, used in vitro fertilization to become the mother of eight more children. Many doctors questioned the ethics of the specialists involved.
