TheSunNews.com: Politics - Wire

Senate health debate to begin

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:04 EST

The Senate voted 60-39 Saturday to clear the way for consideration of historic legislation to overhaul the nation's health-care system, but reluctant Democratic moderates sent strong signals that the bill has an uncertain future.

Saturday's test vote was about whether to cut off a Republican-led filibuster and begin formal debate on the Senate Democrats' proposed $848 billion, 2,074-page health care plan.

Democrats control 60 of the Senate's 100 seats, and all 60 voted to proceed with the bill, while 39 of the 40 Republicans voted no. Ohio Republican George Voinovich didn't vote, while the last Democratic holdouts, Sens. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, agreed Saturday afternoon to vote with their party.

Terror trials differ in civilian, military courts

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:17 EST

The federal courts and military tribunals that will prosecute suspected terrorists vary sharply in their independence, public stature and use of evidence. But the Obama administration has so far offered no clear-cut rationale for how it chooses which system will try a detainee.

The fuzzy line drawn by the administration has made it easier for critics on both the left and right to assert that no firm legal principle is guiding the choices.

The administration has said similarly situated suspects can be tried in either system, while others may still be held without trial because there is insufficient evidence for either proceeding, but they are considered too dangerous to release.

Two Senate Democrats clear the way to debate health-care overhaul

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:52 EST

(EDITORS: Update expected after final Senate vote this evening.)

WASHINGTON - Democrats Saturday appeared likely to get the 60 votes they need to keep their health-care legislation moving forward - but reluctant party moderates sent strong signals that the bill still has an uncertain future.

Saturday's test vote was about whether to cut off a Republican-led filibuster and begin formal debate on the Senate Democrats' proposed $848 billion health-care overhaul.

Historic health care bill nears key Senate vote

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:18 EST

In a show of unity, Senate Democrats sealed a 60-vote majority needed to advance health care legislation Saturday ahead of an evening showdown with Republicans eager to doom the bill and inflict a punishing defeat on President Barack Obama.

Two final holdouts, Sens. Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, announced in speeches a few hours apart on the Senate floor they would vote to clear the way for what is expected to be a bruising, full-scale health care debate after Thanksgiving.

At a 10-year cost approaching $1 trillion, the measure is designed to extend coverage to roughly 31 million who lack it, crack down on insurance company practices that deny benefits, and curtail the growth of spending on medical care nationally.

Levin: More e-mails from Ft. Hood suspect possible

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 18:57 EST

WASHINGTON - The government intercepted at least 18 e-mails between the alleged Fort Hood gunman and a radical Muslim cleric, and a key senator says there could be more communications that might have tipped off law enforcement or military officials.

Federal investigators say they intercepted the messages between the suspect, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, and Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical American-born cleric. They were passed along to two Joint Terrorism Task Force cells led by the FBI, but a senior defense official said no one at the Defense Department knew about the messages until after the shootings. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss intelligence procedures.

Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., said Friday after a briefing from Pentagon and Army officials that his committee will investigate how those and other e-mails involving Hasan were handled and why the U.S. military was not made aware of them before the Nov. 5 shooting.

Senate Roll Call: Health Care

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:57 EST

The 60-39 roll call Saturday by which the Senate voted to advance a measure overhauling health care to a full debate.

A "yes" vote is a vote to allow the legislation to advance for a full debate. A 60-vote majority was required for approval.

Voting yes were 58 Democrats, 2 independents.

Obama trumpets Asia trip as boost to US economy

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:22 EST

President Barack Obama's eight-day trip to Asia produced no tangible wins for the United States, though he is citing talks with Asian allies that he says could help create thousands of job and open new markets for American goods in the future.

Citing progress on a trip that took him from Tokyo to Seoul, Obama noted that "Asia is a region where we now buy more goods and do more trade with than any other place in the world - commerce that supports millions of jobs back home."

"I spoke with leaders in every nation I visited about what we can do to sustain this economic recovery and bring back jobs and prosperity for our people - a task I will continue to focus on relentlessly in the weeks and months ahead," Obama said in his weekly radio and Internet address taped while he was in Seoul, the South Korean capital, and released Saturday.

Historic health care bill clears Senate hurdle

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:42 EST

Invoking the memory of Edward M. Kennedy, Democrats united Saturday night to push historic health care legislation past a key Senate hurdle over the opposition of Republicans eager to inflict a punishing defeat on President Barack Obama. There was not a vote to spare.

The 60-39 vote cleared the way for a bruising, full-scale debate beginning after Thanksgiving on the legislation, which is designed to extend coverage to roughly 31 million who lack it, crack down on insurance company practices that deny or dilute benefits and curtail the growth of spending on medical care nationally.

The spectator galleries were full for the unusual Saturday night showdown, and applause broke out briefly when the vote was announced. In a measure of the significance of the moment, senators sat quietly in their seats, standing only when they were called upon to vote.

Obama has low-key evening out after long week

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:17 EST

President Barack Obama and his family spent a low-key night out at the home of a senior White House adviser after a whirlwind week spent on a presidential trip to Asia.

The president golfed for more than four hours Saturday on the course at Andrews Air Force Base, then took first lady Michelle Obama and daughters Malia and Sasha to dinner at the Georgetown home of Valerie Jarrett.

The president's golfing buddies during the day trip to Andrews were presidential aide Eugene Kang, photographer David Katz and Marvin Nicholson, White House trip director.

Ethics committee: No punishment for Burris

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:22 EST

The Senate ethics committee on Friday admonished Democratic Sen. Roland Burris for misleading investigators about his maneuvering to get Barack Obama's old Senate seat from the governor who was ousted for trying to sell it.

Burris was appointed by disgraced former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was impeached and driven from office after he was accused of trying to sell the seat.

The committee placed special emphasis on a phone conversation between Burris and the governor's brother, where Burris linked his willingness to raise funds for the governor with his desire for appointment to the Senate.

US to drop shooting case against Blackwater guard

Sat, 21 Nov 2009 09:27 EST

The Justice Department intends to drop manslaughter and weapons charges against one of the Blackwater Worldwide security guards involved in a deadly 2007 Baghdad shooting, prosecutors said in court documents Friday.

The shooting in busy Nisoor Square left 17 Iraqis dead and inflamed anti-American sentiment abroad. It touched off a string of investigations that ultimately led the State Department to cancel the company's lucrative contract to guard diplomats in Iraq.

Iraqis have said they're watching closely to see how the U.S. judicial system handles the five men accused of unleashing an unprovoked attack on civilians with machine guns and grenades.

Sen. Nelson a 'yes' on health care test vote

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:36 EST

Democratic Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska is a "yes" in a crucial weekend test vote on health care.

The moderate lawmaker told Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., that he would vote with rank-and-file Democrats to move ahead on the legislation.

In a statement Friday, Nelson says the Senate should try to fix a health care system that costs too much and delivers too little for Nebraskans.

FAA says equipment outage caused 819 flight delays

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:57 EST

The Federal Aviation Administration is blaming an equipment outage this week for delaying 819 flights.

The agency told employees in a briefing memo Friday that air travelers experienced a total of 2,121 delays the previous day due to the equipment outage as well as thunderstorms and other poor weather in the Northeast.

The memo said that the more than 800 flight delays attributable to the equipment outage included 273 in Atlanta. At New York airports, LaGuardia reported 81 equipment-related delays and JFK 44. Nearby Teterboro in New Jersey reported 83. An unidentified Midwest airport had almost 50 outage-related delays.

Couple pleads guilty in Cuban spying case

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:37 EST

A retired State Department worker and his wife accused of a decades-long plot to spy for Cuba pleaded guilty Friday in a deal that will leave him behind bars for the rest of his life but gives her a chance at freedom in six years.

Walter Kendall Myers, 72, and his wife, Gwendolyn, 71, were caught in an undercover FBI sting operation, arrested in June and held without bail.

Two people familiar with the plea deal, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the negotiations, said Walter Kendall Myers agreed to a life sentence partly to help his wife get less prison time in the hopes she would not die behind bars.

Couple plead guilty to Cuba spying, will go to prison

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:42 EST

A retired State Department employee will spend life in prison without parole after he and his wife pleaded guilty Friday to serving as covert agents for Cuba for three decades.

Walter Kendall Myers, 72 - known to his Cuban handlers as "Agent 202" - agreed to a life sentence without parole and to cooperate with the federal government. His wife, Gwendolyn Steingraber Myers, 71 - known as "Agent 123" and "Agent E-634" - agreed to a sentence of between six years and 71/2 years in prison, and also will continue to cooperate with the government.

Prosecutors said the tough sentences - which will be imposed in April after the couple brief government investigators - should send a warning to others looking to divulge state secrets.

Obama drops by daughter Sasha's school for event

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:36 EST

Fresh from his weeklong trip through Asia, President Barack Obama is taking time to catch up on dad duty.

The president and first lady Michelle Obama stopped by 8-year-old daughter Sasha's school Friday morning. White House officials said they were visiting Sidwell Friends School in Bethesda, Md., for a school activity, but declined to elaborate.

Although Obama has no public events planned Friday, it's a busy time for him. The Senate is set for a make-or-break vote Saturday on one of Obama's signature issues - overhauling the health care system. And Obama is moving closer to his long-awaited decision on strategy for the war in Afghanistan.

Couple to plead guilty to spying for Cuba

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:07 EST

A retired State Department employee and his wife are expected to plead guilty Friday in federal court to charges that they have been spying for Cuba for decades.

Walter Kendall Myers, 72, and his wife, Gwendolyn Steingraber Myers, 71, have been held without bond since pleading not guilty in June to charges of wire fraud, serving as illegal agents for Cuba and conspiring to deliver classified information.

Federal prosecutors filed documents in the case Friday charging Myers with conspiracy to commit espionage and wire fraud. Gwendolyn Myers, was charged with conspiracy to gather and transmit national defense information.

Couple pleads guilty to spying for Cuba

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:47 EST

A retired State Department employee and his wife pleaded guilty Friday to charges that they have been spying for Cuba for decades.

Walter Kendall Myers, 72, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit espionage and two counts of wire fraud. He agreed to cooperate with government investigators in exchange for a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

Gwendolyn Steingraber Myers, 71, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to gather and transmit national defense information in exchange for six to 7 1/2 years in prison.

Prosecutors plan commission case in Cole bombing

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:47 EST

Military prosecutors said Friday they plan to seek new charges against the alleged mastermind of the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole.

The announcement follows Attorney General Eric Holder's decision a week ago to place Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, a Saudi of Yemeni descent, among 10 high-profile detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, who will face justice in the United States.

Five are headed to civilian court in New York, five others, including al-Nashiri, will go before military commissions.

Health care issues: Bundling payments

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:31 EST

A look at key issues in the health care debate:

THE ISSUE: What can the government do to get doctors and hospitals to deliver cheaper medical services?

THE POLITICS: Medicare's fee-for-service structure means that doctors, hospitals and other providers have a greater financial incentive to provide large quantities of medical services than to provide high-quality medical services. Democrats and the Obama administration want to change that, and use the savings to help pay for their health overhaul legislation and bring down medical costs over the long term. One strategy they've eyed is called "bundling." That's where a range of services - for example a hospital stay and post-discharge care - are grouped together for a single reimbursement, instead of being reimbursed separately. This could give hospitals, doctors and other providers an incentive to provide more efficient care and reduce unnecessary hospital readmissions, since they won't get paid for doing more. But doctors and hospitals have concerns about how any such program would be implemented, since it could mean lower payments to them.