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Obama, Brown discuss Afghanistan

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown agreed to consult each other about the Afghanistan-Pakistan situation, the White House said.

"They agreed to remain in close consultation going forward and underscored the importance of working closely with our allies and our Afghan and Pakistani partners," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said of Obama's telephone conversation with Brown Thursday. "They noted the successful outcome of the (Group of 20) summit in Pittsburgh and discussed strategies to make progress in confronting the threat of climate change."

The two world leaders also discussed the need to maintain a unified international approach to address Iran's nuclear ambitions, Gibbs said.

After thanking Brown for his leadership on a number of matters of mutual concern, Gibbs said, Obama "committed to staying in close touch going forward.

U.N. envoy rebuffs bias in Afghan election

KABUL, Afghanistan, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- A top U.N. envoy decried accusations of favoritism in the Afghan presidential election, saying he was committed to ensuring a credible outcome is determined.

"My silence is now being exploited, to a point where these allegations are impeding the ongoing election process," Kai Eide, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's special representative, said in a statement. "I have been motivated by my determination to make every effort to bring the election process to a conclusion."

An audit of suspicious ballot boxes is being carried out by the Electoral Complaints Commission and Independent Election Commission in the presence of monitors and candidates' representatives, the United Nations said Thursday in a release.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai declared victory over his closest challenger, former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, pending the outcome of the audit of the August election.

"We need to allow both these bodies, which were created under the laws of this country, to conclude their investigations, identify fraud, and deliver a credible result in the next few days," said Eide, also the head on the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan

The mission said Wednesday that slightly more than 100 of the 358 suspicious ballot boxes remain to be examined.

"(The) accusations that the United Nations has covered up or that I asked for fraud to be covered up are patently false," Eide said, adding he would address the allegations "at the appropriate time."

Democratic official alleges Palin cover-up

ANCHORAGE, Alaska, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- An Alaska Democratic Party official alleges state officials are "hiding something" by not granting a request for former Gov. Sarah Palin's e-mails.

Alaska Democratic Party Chairwoman Patti Higgins said Wednesday that state officials have yet to respond to public records requests made more than a year ago for e-mails involving the former Republican vice presidential candidate, the Anchorage Daily News reported Thursday.

"I think they're hiding something, I think this is a travesty of justice," Higgins said. "The law says they have 10 days to do it."

Complicated requests for public records can be extended beyond 10 days under state regulations.

State officials insist the delay in the e-mail request is due to an abundance of information requests that have left state workers overwhelmed.

"Because of the large volume of records involved, we have pulled lawyers and paralegals from other assignments to assist with the effort. Unfortunately, it's a very time-consuming process," Assistant Attorney General David Jones said.

Higgins told the Daily News she plans on meeting with the Alaska Civil Liberties Union to determine whether a lawsuit should be filed to obtain the records.

Census Bureau may have hired criminals

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- Errors by U.S. Census Bureau employees could have resulted in 200 people with criminal records being hired for canvassing, a government report said.

The Government Accountability Office said Census Bureau employees improperly fingerprinted thousands of people as part of background checks for workers hired to interact with the public door to door, The Hill reported Thursday.

The GAO report expressed concern that the checks performed on improperly fingerprinted employees were incomplete.

"It is possible that more than 200 people with unclassifiable prints had disqualifying criminal records but still worked and had contact with the public during address canvassing," the GAO's Robert Goldenkoff told a Senate subcommittee on Wednesday.

Goldenkoff said the bureau's training program was a reason for the improper fingerprints, adding that the bureau "will refine instruction manuals and provide remediation training on proper procedures" to prevent a recurrence.

Tales of sex with 'boys' haunts official

PARIS, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- France's new culture minister, Frederic Mitterrand, struggled Thursday to save his job amid revelations he paid "boys" for sex, officials said.

The nephew of the late President Francois Mitterrand is openly gay and was thrown on the defensive after opposition politicians focused on a memoir in which he told of delight in visiting brothels in Bangkok.

"I got into the habit of paying for boys," he wrote. "The profusion of young, very attractive and immediately available boys put me in a state of desire that I no longer needed to restrain or hide."

"La mauvaise vie" (The Bad Life) was a critically acclaimed bestseller in 2005. Mitterrand, 62, a popular television presenter, was praised for his honesty, The Times of London said.

But, it backfired on him this week after he jumped to the defense of filmmaker Roman Polanski, who was arrested in Switzerland for extradition to Los Angeles on a charge of having sex with a 13-year-old girl.

Now, there are angry demands from all sides, intensified by the Internet, for his resignation.

Supporters, seeking to defuse the accusations, pointed to Mitterrand's earlier explanation that homosexuals call all men "boys" and none of his male prostitutes were under age.

Senate OKs American Indian apology measure

WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 (UPI) -- The U.S. Senate approved a resolution officially apologizing to Native Americans for past actions of the federal government.

Passed as part of a defense spending bill Tuesday, the provision must undergo several more legislative steps before becoming law, the Tulsa World reported.

"I am pleased that the Senate approved this important language," bill sponsor U.S. Rep. Dan Boren, D-Okla., said, adding he would work to ensure the language stays in the bill when it goes to conference committee. "Our nation has waited far too long to make this official apology to the native peoples in Oklahoma and the U.S."

Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., the resolution's Senate sponsor, said the measure would seek reconciliation and would offer an official apology to Native Americans across the country "for the hurtful choices the federal government made in the past."

Brownback and Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, said the resolution would not authorize or act as a settlement of claims against the United States.