Congress considers refunds of up
to $800 as recession fears grow
Associated Press Jan 17, 08 8:22 PM CST
(Newser)
-
President Bush's plan to give the economy a temporary lift favors tax rebates of up to $800 for individuals and tax breaks for businesses, the AP reports. Bush met privately with lawmakers today and will outline his plan tomorrow. Congress hopes to act quickly as fears of a recession grow. The president did not push for a permanent extension of his tax cuts, the AP notes.
More »
Bushes' Texas ranch to stage May 10 wedding to Henry Hager
People Jan 17, 08 3:02 PM CST
(Newser)
-
It turns out May 10 isn't a nice day for a White House wedding: Jenna Bush and fiancé Henry Hager will marry that day in Crawford, Texas, at the family's 1,600-acre ranch, quashing speculation the ceremony would be an in-the-spotlight DC affair. "It's going to be a small wedding," a source told People , who added that bridesmaids have already been selected.
More »
He's just after political stability now, they charge
Washington Post Jan 17, 08 4:31 AM CST
(Newser)
-
President Bush wound up a Middle East tour yesterday leaving many pro-democracy activists in the region bitter and disappointed, reports the Washington Post . The president and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice pressured authoritarian Arab governments for political reforms in 2005, but now activists worry that the White House is favoring the stability of autocratic Arab governments over the uncertainty of democratically elected ones.
More »
Bush, Congress maintain dismal approval ratings
Reuters Jan 16, 08 4:23 PM CST
(Newser)
-
America’s spirits are sinking along with the economy, a new poll says. The Reuters/Zogby mood index fell from 97.3 to 94.2 this month, the lowest mark since polling began in July. The poll found that 48% of Americans expect a recession, up from 43% last month, and two-thirds think the US is headed in the wrong direction.
More »
With $20B in energy contracts, economic pressure easy to dodge
Reuters Jan 16, 08 3:01 PM CST
(Newser)
-
Sanctioning Iran may not have actually worked, the Government Accountability Office said yesterday, just as the US pushes for a fresh round of UN sanctions. Restrictions on state-owned banks are easy to circumvent, the report notes, and Iran has signed $20 billion in energy contracts since 2003. The “evidence raises questions about the extent of reported economic impacts,” the report concludes.
More »
Public plea rejected, Bush entreats Abdullah personally
ABC News Jan 16, 08 2:31 PM CST
(Newser)
-
After his public request for increased oil production and the resulting price drop was rejected yesterday, President Bush made a personal appeal to Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah to be more generous with his wells, ABC News reports. Only an hour after Bush’s public plea, the Saudi oil minister announced the country would increase production “when the market justifies it.”—a polite refusal.
More »
Long-shot candidates could both find themselves unseated
Politico Jan 16, 08 10:58 AM CST
(Newser)
-
While Dennis Kucinich is out on the presidential campaign trail, no fewer than four Democrats in his Ohio home district are mounting primary challenges for the longtime congressman's seat, Politico reports. And though Ron Paul's anti-war stance and unconventional views have drawn a fervent national following, conservative voters in his home district in Texas are taking a second look at their rep.
More »
Little action follows rhetoric on historic trip
Associated Press Jan 16, 08 10:08 AM CST
(Newser)
-
President Bush will wrap up his tour of the Middle East tomorrow with a quick visit to Egypt, then fly home from his eight-day vision having collected plenty of promises but little in the way of actual results, the AP reports. Bush used the visit to woo Arab support for the Israeli peace process and to help counteract Iran.
More »
Prez privately telling Israel he doesn't believe Iran has shut down nukes
Newsweek Jan 15, 08 3:15 PM CST
(Newser)
-
President Bush is privately assuring Israel’s leaders that he doesn’t believe the National Intelligence Estimate's conclusion that Iran halted its nuclear weapons program in 2003. In disavowing December's NIE, Bush said the “conclusions don't reflect his own views,” a US official told Newsweek . The private pledge may help quell calls in Israel’s defense community for military strikes.
More »
Warns even rogue Iranian attack would have 'serious consequences'
Associated Press Jan 15, 08 9:32 AM CST
(Newser)
-
OPEC should start producing more oil, President Bush told Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah today, or it risks damaging “consuming economies,” like the US. Bush said high oil prices were reducing consumer purchasing power, and said more supply “would be helpful.” He also warned Iran to avoid another Strait of Hormuz incident, saying any attack on US ships would have serious consequences.
More »
Prez and Abdullah discuss weather, plan to talk oil and Mideast peace
Associated Press Jan 14, 08 6:18 PM CST
(Newser)
-
President Bush announced a $123 million arms deal with the Saudis as he visited the oil kingdom for the first time today. Part of $20 billion in military sales to shore up Gulf states against Iran, the Saudi deal will offer advanced "smart bomb" technology that some US lawmakers worry could be used to strike Israel. But Saudi Arabia's war on terror efforts and anti-Iran stance appear to override such fears, the AP reports.
More »
Two parties threaten
to leave Olmert's governing coalition
Associated Press Jan 14, 08 10:45 AM CST
(Newser)
-
Talks opened today between high-level Israeli and Palestinian negotiators as leaders on both sides faced intensifying criticism from within their own camps. Israeli PM Ehud Olmert was threatened with the withdrawal of two political parties from his governing coalition if sensitive subjects such as a divided Jerusalem are broached, and Hamas called on Mahmoud Abbas to "stop giving away Palestinian blood and rights for free."
More »